Motors & Motoring

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 206, 27 May 1932, Page 16

Motors & Motoring

(By

“SPARE WHEEL.")

The Wellington Automobile Club has erected a warning sign at the spot where the railway lines cross the main road to the quarry siding, just opposite the Paekakariki railway station.

Clutch release bearings vary widely in their need for lubrication. They range from 250 to 1000 miles in requiring attention. Every motorist should know which applies in the case of his car.

It is the upper beam that the motorist should be concerned with when he sets about adjusting the headlights. If he sees that it provides a light at the prescribed height ahead of the car and without causing glare, the lower beam will take care of itself.

The Department of Commerce in the United States calculates that the output. of motor-cars fell by nearly 1,000,000 during 1931 as compared with 1930. It was the worst trading year since 1922, and even the output in that year was 154,270 more than in 1931.

Physical comfort has been enhanced in many ways in this year’s cars, such as by softer springing, improved upholstery and a reduction in the physical effort required to operate three important controls—the steering wheel, brake pedal and clutch pedal.

Two cars, one driven by a Jew and the other by a Scotsman, collided at an intersection. After both drivers had surveyed the damage, the Jew offered the Scotsman a drink of whisky—which he took. A few minutes later, along came a constable, who asked, “Who caused the accident?” “He did, of course,” replied the Jew. “Smell his breath."

Au old friend of every owner who can remember the days when polished brass was the approved finish for lamps and radiators and in less degree of those who owned cars in the nickel-plate era, is metal polish. But its utility is by no means confined to polishing bright work. It cleans glass much better than most of us can do the job -with a leather, and it is very good indeed for removing the scratches from, and restoring the clearness of celluloid side screens.

LOSS OF COMPRESSION

Detection and Cure Loss of compression in one or more cylinders of the engine will always have an adverse effect on its performance and petrol mileage, and the carowner is well advised to stop this trouble before progressive wear and tear may make it necessary to have expensive repairs carried out. Nowadays there is such a big reserve of power in many car engines that minor compression losses may often be overlooked, but it is a good plan to test the compression in each cylinder from time to time. The most satisfactory course is to make use of a proper compression gauge, and all well-equipped service stations will have- such an instrument available; but a fairly good idea of the general condition of the cylinders can be gained by using the hand-crank to bring each piston in turn on to its compression stroke; noting if any one in particular seems to offer less resistance than the others.

It often happens that loss of compression can bo traced to a simple and easily cured valve fault. With a compression gauge one can make accurate tests of each cylinder and should any reading be appreciably below that of the others, full investigation into the causes must be made. To ascertain whether the leakage is at a valve, or past the piston rings, the gauge is unscrewed from the spark plug hole and a little heavy oil is injected on to the top of the piston. This has the effect of sealing the piston temporarily should there be any leakage at the rings. The gauge is next replaced and the engine cranked. If it is then observed that a higher reading is secured it may naturally be assumed that the piston rings or cylinders’ walls are at fault, but if there is no change in the reading, then it is most probable that a defective valve is the cause of the trouble. Another easy method of diagnosis is to slip a short length of rubber tubing or hose pipe through the oil filler of the crankcase, taking care that its end does not dip into the lubricant. Then get a helper to bring the piston in the suspected cylinder on to its compression stroke and, applying the other end of pipe to the ear. listen for any sound of air leaking past the rings. If this symptom is absent, the natural conclusion is that a valve is the cause of the trouble.

Leakage of compression between the cylinder wall and the piston rings must always be regarded as a serious defect, for, although it may be only slight, it may rapidly get worse and worse until the cylinder has worn to an elliptical shape, and will have to be rebored. When it has been ascertained that one or more of tiie cylinders is losing compression past the rings, the most economical course is at once to consult a really skilled garageman. It is a mistake to think that the fitting of new piston rings will always prove to be a remedy, although some motor mechanics seem to regard that treatment as a panacea for the mechanical ills referred to. The truth is that if there is any appreciable elliptical wear of the cylinders, new piston rings will prove worse than useless unless the cylinders are rebored to their true circular form. SIDELIGHTS Krenuently worse dazzle is created by the side-lights than by the head-lights, and the causes are that the side-lights tire too bright or are out of focus. Focusing generfilly is impossible, but the over-brightness can be cured by frosting the glasses. Tills simply is done by removing the glasses and rubbing the inner faces together, after smearing them with line carborundum valve grinding paste.

Should the inner faces be concave or the glasses be fixed permanently in the frames paste tissue paper over the inner faces.

EARLY DAYS Pioneer Motorist MR. C. W. WOOD'S EFFORTS An interesting sidelight on early motoring history in New Zealand was given by .Mr. G. W. Tench in the course of an illustrated lecture before the members of the Canterbury branch of the New Zealand Motor Trade Association, states “The Sun.” Mr. Tench said that perhaps one of the .most interesting persons whose early association with the trade in New Zealand had meant so much in its progress was Mr. Cecil Wood, of Timaru, to whom was given the credit of making the first motor-cycle engine manufactured in New Zealand. His first motor-vehicle was produced in 1897. The engine was on the explosive principle, with cylinders applied to the rear wheel, and nearly 35 years later there was the spectacle of a wellknown British manufacturing firm incorporating this principle in its 1932 models.

In Mr. Wood’s engine the explosive mixture was a chemical compound made by a Timaru chemist, and although the machine was a success as far as propulsion was concerned, great difficulty was experienced in clearing the residue from the explosion. The faults in his first machine merely whetted Mr. Wood’s appetite for further endeavours, with the result that he successfully produced another car. and had it on the road in May, 1900. He then built a three-wheeler motor-car, with the tiller type steering wheel, and had it on the road in 1901. In .the same year he produced a four-wheeled motor-car. At this time Mr. Wood had become as famous in Timaru as Henry Ford was in America, bi fact, so persistent were Mr. Wood’s efforts that one did not know what he was likely to produce next. One of the first motor-cars which he made was constructed, as far as the frame was concerned, out of inch and a quarter cycle tubing. The engine parts were cast by a Timaru foundry. The trouble in those days was not the production of the engine, but a suitable fuel to drive it. Mr. Wood made many attempts at hydro-carbon combustion. In one of his earlier machines, he used a hot tube for ignition and gunpowder for his fuel, with the disadvantage that if the flywheel on the engine was not speeding at the start, the tubes would blow out. He had to withstand nuiny disappointments and much criticism. Had the people in those days the fortune to foresee the future of automobilism, Mr. Wood’s experiments would have been looked on as being less of a fanatical nature.

At one time he made a special trip to Dunedin to secure a bottle of petrol, and on another occasion he slept in a haystack 20 miles from home, as the result of his machine breaking down. Many times he had to push his machine over the long, dusty roads to his destination. The four-wheeled car which he constructed had the engine on the rear axle, and fuel was supplied from a surface carburettor. The mixture altered every few minutes because of variations in the temperature of the atmosphere. The body was built by a Timaru eoachbuilder; the mudguards by a sawmiller, and the tires (25 x 3 pneumatic) were specially made by the Dunlop Rubber Company. The ironwork was also done by a Timaru linn. There was no spray finishing then, so the paint-work cost £6, and was regarded by the coachbuilder as an achievement.

Mr. Wood was originally engaged in the cycle business. He has been a very prominent member of the .South Canterbury M.T.A., of which he is a pastpresident. In 1927 he was president of South Canterbury’s first motor -Olympia. In 1929-30 he was Dominion president of the M.T.A.

Mr. Wood is given the credit of mak-

ing the first three-speed gear-box in New Zealand, which consisted of a tube, having the sliding pinions fitted on the outside, with steel keys forced into slots in the pinions by means of springs from inside the tube.

NON-CORROSIVE New Battery Fluid FRENCH CHEMIST’S CLAIM A chemical discovery of importance has just been brought to the commercial stage in France. This is a new liquid electrolyte destined to replace the usual dilute sulphuric acid used in accumulators, for which remarkable claims are made.

Although many structural improvements have been made in accumulators during the past 50 years, sulphuric acid is still universally employed as an electrolyte in lead-plate batteries. The successful introduction of a new liquid would thus mark something of a revolution in electrical practice. The new electrolyte is the invention of a French chemist, M. A. Fiorillo. It is non-corro-sive, and will not attack wood, metal or clothing, and may even be spread on the hands w'ithout danger. Terminals remain clean indefinitely. One of the most important advantages claimed for it is its de-sulphating property. No matter how badly sulphated up. the

plates may be, the fluid, it is claimed, will dissolve the sulphate in from 10 mins, to 20 mins. During this process a curious phenomenon may' be noted, for the battery, it is said,, takes on a charge through the electrical energy generated by the chemical process involved in absorbing the sulphate. This charge rises in some instances to very nearly the full normal voltage.

In the case of a car with batteries completely run down, if these are emptied of acid, washed out with water and refilled with the new liquid, they will be found, 15min. later, to have enough current for all the lighting equipment of the car, according ,to the claim. In some instances the start.er may even be used, although a brief charging period is advised before this is attempted. Perhaps the most important advantage claimed for the new fluid is that it allows for extremely rapid charging. According to this, an accumulator filled with the fluid will support a charging rate ten times in excess of that possible with sulphuric acid. Under these conditions new’ batteries filled with the liquid can be fully charged in from two hours to three hours instead of' 24 hours. Various other claims are advanced for this new electrolyte.

CONVEX MIRRORS

New rear-vision mirrors of a greatly improved type are finding wide popularity among British motorists. These mirrors are of the rimless type, fixed to the top of the windshield in the orthodox manner, but they are about twice the length of an ordinary mirror and they are convex. Their field thus covers not only the road immediately behind the car,. but. also that on the driver’s side as far up as his shoulders. When fitted to the car they enable a driver to command a view of everything behind and beside him which cannot be seen by turning his head to the right or left.

‘‘SHARE EXPENSES” Car-Owners’ Liabilities ILLEGAL PRACTICE TJRIVATE Sedan Car, going AuckX land Wednesday morning, via New Plymouth, vacancies 2-3 Passengers; share expenses.—Ring ( ) The advertisement reproduced above is typical of many which appear in the daily papers. The regulations covering the transport of goods and passengers strictly control passenger traffic, and warning is given that the practice advertised above is illegal. The third party insurance policy for private cars also becomes involved under this practice. Last week, Mr. Miller, S.M., in a case which came before him at Napier, held that it was illegal for car owners to carry passengers who agreed to “share expenses,” and a fine of £l, with costs 10/-, was inflicted on the offender.

REMOVING TAR To remove hardened rar' from rhe bodywork is difficult even with solvents, but the job can be greatly simplified with the aid of an ordinary safety razor blade and holder. A new blade as it comes from the package is unfit for use in removing tar until it has been conditioned by pressing firmly against and moving back and forth over a hard, smooth plane surface like glass. This bends the edge to an angle which allows it to rest flat on the lacquered surface and cut through the tar without scratching. It is quite important that the tool be held at the same angle while cutting as in conditioning on the glass. The conditioning should be repeated from time to time, for each piece of grit encountered bends the edge, and might cause it to scratch. Very little pressure is required in shaving off the tar, and a skilled operator can cover a large panel in a few minutes. In some cases the removal is not absolutely complete. Though it feels quite smooth, a dark stain remains. This is softer than the material removed, and. being very thin, responds quickly to solvents or an abrasive cleaner. THE MOTOR DOCTOR The doctor’s method of diagnosing a patient’s trouble by mechanical tests has been applied to the motor-car repair shop by a San Francisco engineer. He has designed an electrical apparatus of dials and lamps which is said to diagnose a car’s ailments in five minutes. It looks like a face. A voltmeter in the left eye and an ampmeter in the right one test the car's battery and ignition system. The nose is a vacuum meter for checking the condition of the valves and the vacuum tank. A slot just below serves as a spark gap indicator, while the teetn are neon tubes that show the intensity of the spark in each individual cylinder.

A cut lemon is very effective in removing dirt and stains from leather uphostery. The lemon is rubbed on the leather with a moderate pressure, and when tiie surface dries an ordinary polish cloth and a little “elbow grease” will produce a really good and lasting sheen.

I Overtaking and passing of 2 I vehicles on the road is a perform- J j ance always fraught with a cer- i ! tain amount of danger, and is the | | contributing cause of a large num- | j ber of accidents, the Wellington i I Automobile Club says. The danger ! j is accentuated by the fact that | j drivers of vehicles do not always j I pay sufficient attention to the ! I surrounding circumstances and | I the distance required to overtake j I another vehicle. Ability to judge f I distance and speed is absolutely i ! essential in this operation. j

Pneumatic cushions should only be inflated sufficiently to support the load they have to carry. If wrongly inflated they can be most uncomfortable.