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Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 20789, 24 February 1933, Page 6

NOTES.

"EoatUrter" Invites articles or paragraphs of interest to motorists for fhlfi page. * FIXTURES. March 4—C.A.A. light car trial.

The free wheel will be as popular as ever on the 1933 American cars. The motoring public in the United States has now become well accustomed to this device, and regards 11 as a definite improvement to the transmission system. Early difficulties < have been overcome by the enterprise with which car manufacturers have modified the design of their chassis to suit free-wheel requirements. The Cardiff City Engineer, reporting to the City Council on experiments he had been conducting in connexion witn an iron road which had been laid down •in Cardiff, said he intended writing a strong report to the Ministry of Transport, who were interested in the experiment, deprecating the use of iron roads, because they were too expensive and horses fought shy of them. A Hungarian lire-fighting appliance extinguishes small tires with the ai of carbon dioxide gas produced by chemical treatment of the exhaust gases of the fire engine. England's roads are more crowded than those of any other nation, there being 12.7 vehicles to every mile or road. In the United States the figure is 8.8, in Germany 6.8, and in France 3.9. Tn this year ending on November 1, i 932, 644 Paris policemen were involved in traffic accidents. Of these, 85 were knocked down at the special crossings for pedestrians. There is an acute shortage of petrol rin Chile. As a result of research, it jhas been discovered'that a'newsubstiitute can be extracted from nitrates. It is called "nitroline." RubW wings for. motor cars are .now sin accomplished fact. Carbon monoxide, the deadly gas iwhich is generated by motor-car engines, is now being put to' a practical ruse by an American chemist. A recent idevelopment has shown that this, gas im&y "be used to extract the pure metal •from 11101101 ore, or from any other 'base in which nickel can be found. fJThe process may also be used to obtain 'iron from ore in the form of a hi® powder, which is so pure that it can [be used as a medicine without further ijmrification. Experiments are taking place in the production of motor-cars employing •solid rubber springs .in place of the present metal suspension system. On many cats nowadays fuses of the glass-tube type aro.used, the fuse wire being within the tube and attached;, to brass caps cemented to the en&s of the (tubes. When hj, fuse blows and a spare Is not. available, a quite satisfactory temporary measure i» to wind a length pf fuse wire—of the correct pmperage — round the outside of one of the caps, pontinuing the wire to the other cap End winding it round that also. When he fuse is returned to its clips the grire will ho helcl securely in position. Interesting results have been yielded , |by an analysis by the British National Bftfety First Association of . the 1017 fatal road accidents which occurred in Great Britain in a recent period Of two knonths. This analysis shows that 80 per cent, of the persons killed were laged leas than 16 years or more than. 65 years. Of the accidents among children, mbst ware due to the victims running:' into the road in front of an approaching ear. Of the accidents investigated 08 per cent, wore considered to have been preventable,. and errors in judgment, or other failures of the ihuman element,, wore held responsible for 85 per .cent. With the desire to comply adequately pith the. regulations regarding the use *>4 dazzling headlights, many motorcar owners focus the light so that the < beams reach the ground very close to jthe front of the car. While every pro- . -caution to prevent dazzle is justified, a second danger may bo encountered if the flights..fail to illuminate the road at a jauffloienfc distance ahead of the car. The cardinal safety rule for, every motorist (to observe is never to drive at a higher ispoed "than that at which he can stop mrithin the dear roadway ahead o£ him.. [Applied to night driving, this means jthat the lights must be so adjusted jtbat the road is clearly lighted to a distance ahead of the car at least equal to It hat required to stop the car from Ithe highest Bpced likely to be attained , pa night driving. This adjustment should [preferably be made at night, and, if * . possible, with two persons in the driver's seat. If it be made with the front peat empty any extra load imposed on ►the front axle when the front seat only (is occupied may depress the front of \!the car on the springs and thus retdnce the distance covered by effective flighting. '