MOTORS AND MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 121, 8 February 1918, Page 9

MOTORS AND MOTORING

| IB? Clutch.] Neglect that is Costly. It will pay. any owner of a motorcycle-' with side-car attachment to see that, the outfit is.'so stayed as to keep ' tho hack wheels properly' in alignment. A. 'motoring writer observes that one 1 has' only to.glance at the.rear of machines- as- they pass along tho streets to uoto that' in maiiy cases tho back j wheels are out' of alignment— in some . oases almost to an alarming degree, i Anyone with any knowledge of mechanics knows that this means an additional stress- oiv the outfit. The greatest harm, however,'is, done-.to the tyres'. With the''wheels ont of alignment they are' subjected -to a continual lateral sawing action at tho point of contact witii Toad surface. : This means ruination to-.the.'best tyres . • evar made. Needless .to say .in most ...instances .the tyres, receive' the blame for not standing, up to their work, whereas la roality faulty bracing of tho outfit is the cause of the trouble. Nothing wears rubber. quicker than the rasping action of a, wheel which is running out of alignment.- The matter is an important one to the trade and to motorcyclists .themselves, and it is a subject that'certainly- requires more at' tentiion tli;iu it is getting Renovating Leather. • Leader is too expensive nowadays to' neglected. A little care end thought expended on tho upholstery of onfe's 'car will lengthen its lifo tremendously. The time spent in protecting It-will nay good dividends in lengthened Bervico and-improved appearaueo. If the leather gets wet, wipe it ofE vhen you come into the garage. ]f. with the top down, try to pick a shady spot.' Heat and moisture .110 tho tinemJes of leathei*. Oil is its life. ■As the 1 leather dries out do not wait for it to cifaclc open, but give it n ooat of cushion dressing, or rub linseed oil into it. Hern and There. A. novelty' in English' motor, bodywork design is a single door, '29 inches wide, giving access to the front and rear seats.' This idea is carried out by "having a 7-inch section of the front sed-t'attached to the inner side of the clocir. When open it leaves a 7|-mch wiole entrance at its narrowest point, anil the passage way to the rear seat is 10-inches wide. The fixed part of thai front seat is 34 inches wide. it sparkiug plug that is almost selfclaaning lias been introduced in the States; it is called the "push-clean plug, from tho fact that all the motorist has to do is to push the button on jilie top of the plug. This effects a cleansing of the porcelain, the olectrodfe, and scrapes the side wires. A . patented cleaning-bridgo on the bottom v»f ifho shell protects the sparking points and porcelain, besides making it possible to clean the plugs while the enable is running, if so desired. Carbon and oil are removed from the porcelain by tihe cutters; the points of tlio side wires are cleansed and polished automatically, while oil and carbon are wiped off the centre electrode by the bridge during the "which, . it iia' said, takes not longer than two seconds. An idea of the extent to which shortngo of petrol is driving English motorto the use of coal gas as a sub-Bw-tiite is given in the fact that one of tlie big makers of gas containers in ,■ England bad nearly 8000 orders in band when tho last mail left. _ The use of coal gas is now threatening to assume such proportions that in some quarters fear, is expressed that even this substitute may be "limited" by the Government. 'In ordinary rolliftg country a driver of average skill ban boost the mileage of a car which gives twelve miles to tij© gallon io fourteen or fifteen J6y simply shutting of? the engine, putting the gear-in neutral and coasting whenever there is an opportunity. This is not a freak performance, _ but one W,fiich can he carried out . without appreciably cutting down the speed. / ; Observations by the "Kunstoffe," a German newspaper, .support an opinion that tho Germans have met little : success in their endeavours to find a satisfactory substitute for ordinary rubber tyres. It states that _ a good deal of attention is being given 111 Germany to various forms of animal plant and mineral substances for ( tlie manufacture of tyres. In place of rubber, flas and hemp are being used. These are soaked in rubber, paraffin , Vfax, or celluloid, lyres are also made of a series of layers of calico steeped '. in rubber, or of strips of leather specially treated. In place of plant fibres : mineral substanccs are also in use. ' For instance, asbestos, which is mixed at a certain heat with balata rubber. Prom the same'source it is stated that air tubes for tyres are being made in Switzerland from Japanese silk paper 6oaked in a form of wax. One cause of skidding is to be found in unequal adjustment of rear-wheel brakes. It is wise to make frequent tests of the parts for incorrect adjustment. _ It is necessary to have someone with ; you to watch the wheels. Drive the car along a dry road, accelerate quickly, and then suddenly apply the brakes. While in many respects the front seat of a-motor-car is the pleasanter of tb.% Wo, the heat to which .tho feet pf those occupying the position are 'vdbjected to is by 110 means agreeable. Even in winter the region directly behind the dashboard is uncomfortably warm in many cars, whilo in summer the temperature is often almost unbearable. In somo cars a perfunctory attempt is made at ventilation, but at best it is ineffectual, and the distribution of tho air admitted is very uneven. It Would not be a difficult, nor' an expensive matter to provide an adequate, and an easily controlled ventilating system in every ear above the lowest grade; ami why the present condition of affairs is permitted to exist is one of the mysteries that only the manufacturers can solve. It is all tho more a mystery because anything that adds to the comfort of a car is a strong recommendation nowadays. Lighting-uptime To-day, 7.6 p.m. Next Friday, 6.57 p.m.