MOTORS & MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 47, 18 November 1932, Page 15

MOTORS & MOTORING

(By

SPARE WHEEL.)

To save good clothes carry the sleeve of an old coat, or shirt, in the pocket of the car, to 'be used when working around the motor.

It is reported that the Soviet Naphtha Syndicate, while reserving freedom of action, has resolved to refrain temporarily from too keen competition, so as to avoid conflict in the world oil market.

If the engine does not conform with the speed of the car when the throttle is open, look for a slipping clutch. Adjustment should be made at once for clutch plates will be damaged beyond repair.

The tramcar will scon be a thing of the past in Paris. Already 50 of the routes have been abolished since 1925, and now it is announced that within the next 18 months a further 23 routes are to go.

It is advisable to change the water in the radiator of a new car several times during the first 1000 miles of driving. Any foreign substance which may be in the cooling system will be eliminated in this manner.

A Bill before the French Chamber of Deputies proposes to abolish the registration tax on motor-cars and replace it with a super-tax or “24 centimes on each litre of petrol used.” Petrol in France is cheaper than ever previously, and the new tax, while reducing the taxation on motorists, would only increase the gallon price of petrol from 1/1 to 1/3.

Last year in America there were 10,150 vehicles in fatal accidents, and 9500 in non-fatal accidents, due to glaring headlights or one or both headlights being out, according to J. B. Crossley, a vice-president of the New York Automobile Club. He added that' there were 4140 vehicles in fatal accidents, and 4000 in non-fatal accidents caused by tail lights being out or obscured. UNIQUE ENGINE Valveless and Crankless Professor A. M. Low, the famous English scientist, has designed a valveless and crankless engine, which it is claimed will operate at 15,000 revolutions per minute. To permit such speed valves must be eliminated, and in their place Professor Low proposes to use a perforated cylinder head. He has found in 10 years of special tests that a combustible gas can be fed into a tube so fast that, if ignited, the flame will not be able to travel backwards toward the source of gas supply. Secondly, he has found that if the gas from this tube be led into a cylinder through small, cooled perforations, and ignited, the flame will not pass back through the orifices, and very little explosive force will be lost. These principles are combined In his new engine, together with a system of regular pulsations of gas supply pressure. The two-stroke cycle is used, and to reduce cost of production eccentrics on the crankshaft replace cranks. Exhaust is by open ports In the cylinder walls, these being uncovered by the pistons on tbeir downward travel. FOR LEVEL CROSSINGS ' The unattended level crossings of the United States railways, like those ■ in New Zealand, have been a source of considerable danger to motorists and other road users for many years, and, owing to the great number of crossings in the country, it has been found impossible to adopt the English system of attending crossings. This danger has been reduced very considerably by a' device which, has been tried out recently. It consists of a girder, or boom, into which Is built a large reflecting “Stop” sign, visible by day or : night. The boom is automatic In Its operation, being actuated by the locomotive of the train. On approaching a crossing the engine makes a contact on the rails, thus setting into operation the hydraulic power which causes the boom to swing across the road. A large bell rings as the gate shuts. Subject to further tests proving satisfactory ,lt is intended to erect these gates on all the main road crossings in the United States. ~ ~~ LIPTON’S OLD CAR It is pathetic, snys “English Motor,” to learn that the 30 h.p. Mercedes car on which the late Sir Thomas Lipton used to tour is stored with stacks of old iron at a wharf at New Barnet. It is a large six-seater, and is still complete with Its triple lamps and rugs, and it stands in the open. Orders have been given that it is to remain intact for the present. Mr. Davis, into whose hands it has fallen, is sentimentally inclined toward the old bus and would sell it for a song to anybody who would give it a good home. Sir Thomas was very attached to the old car, which lie equipped with a number of luxury gadgets, Including a patented device of his own by which the leather hood is mechanically raised and lowered. HEADLAMP REFLECTORS The part which the reflector in a headlamp plays in ensuring a perfect driving light is not always appreciated by car-owners The light which reaches the road directly from the filament represents an inconsequential part of that which should be available, most of the light being provided by the indirect rays which reach the road from the silvered reflector. If the reflector is allowed to become dull or tarnished it absorbs light Instead of reflecting it, and in consequence the intensity of the headlamp beam is impaired. The reflector should therefore be kept highly polished. For this purpose extremely fine silver-plate polish or rouge should be used. More abrasive polishes, such as those used for brass, will quickly scratch and wear away the finely finished reflecting surface, IMPROVED CARS With the output of cars in America reduced to about half of the 1929 figures, new ideas are in constant demand. During the past two years American manufacturers have wholeheartedly adopted free-wheeling, redesigned the chassis to suit, and evolved novelties such ns automatic clutch control and synchromesh. Now, according to an overseas authority, they are becoming more interested than ever in the “doughnut” tyre or air wheel, designed to run at a pressure of about 151 b. per square inch and to give phenomenal riding comfort on rough roads. (

TOLL OF THE MOTOR Dominion’s Fatality Rate “Begulatlons and penalties are important factors in reducing the number of accidents, but the will of the motorist to avoid unnecessary risks is the main factor, and a full realisation of this by motorists might easily reduce our accident rate very appreciably,” states the official organ of the New Zealand Motor Trade Association. The article continues: “The magnitude of the loss of life by motor accidents is better realised by the statistics of the United States of America and Great Britain. Last year in the United States 34,400 people were killed and 997,600 were injured in motor vehicle accidents, and in Great Britain the figures were 5746 killed and 139,756 injured. “The matter is of special concern to Insurance underwriters, and a recent investigation as to the causes throws some interesting light on the subject. The underwriters no longer explain away the increase in the number of accidents by the increased number of motor vehicles in use, and the factors they list, which are mainly responsible are: (1) The increased power and speed of motor-vehicles. (2) Improved roads. (3) Increased congestion. (4) Increased use of closed cars, permitting the use of motor-cars in all classes of weather when formerly it was common practice to lay up open ears for the winter. (5) Increased mileage. (6) Increased family use of motorcars. “The position in New Zealand, although serious, compares very favourably with that of Great Britain or United States, and for the year 1931 the number of motor fatalities was considerably less than in either of the two preceding years. The motor fatalities for the last three years are: 1029, 180; 1930, 223; 1931, 159. The reduction in the rate for 1931 is partly accounted for by the fact that fewer .motor vehicles were in use than In 1929 and 1930, but this is neither the sole or the main reason for the decrease. “The ratio of fatalities to number of motor vehicles on the road (not on the register) was 131 per cent, in 1930 and .099 per cent, in 1931. On the same basis for the year 1931 the ratio in Great Britain was .264 per cent, and in United States .132 per cent. “Since the regulations were tightened up in reference to the issue of drivers’ licenses the standard required before a license is issued has been raised, and the new driver of to-dny is much less likely to cause an accident than was the case previously. The accident ratio in New Zealand should be the lowest in the world, as the average New Zealander has the necessary qualifications required by a competent driver, and it should be the aim of every motorist to do his or her best to bring this about.” ROAD & RAIL TRANSPORT The 1932 edition of the year book of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (London) contains a comprehensive statistical review of all phases of the British motor industry and of motor transport during the preceding year. The society makes a special appeal for the better coordination of rail and motor transport, in the course of which it is stated: “Difficult as the problems of the railways undoubtedly are, though, indeed, far less serious than those of the main industries of the country, is there anyone who would deny that but for that comparative encouragement which has been given to road transport and the vast material consequences thereby arising, the situation of the railways, and indeed of the heavy Industries of the country, and the national welfare itself would have been infinitely more difficult. So it is we sec in such Dominions as Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand that the stifling by the States of so-called competitive road transport, however successful in Itself, has failed to do more than to be accompanied by colossal railway losses. It has irritated the public, it has increased production costs, it has created unemployment, and has but aggravated the economic difficulties of the States concerned, while "depriving the British motor industry of orders for vehicles which in their turn would have created traffic for our home railways and helped in no small degree to reduce the gravity of the world position. “Tragic though the past months may have been and pitiable the publicity given to a so-called controversy (in Great Britain), between two of the greatest industries of the country, may the first words of this historical review make the plea that the salvation of private enterprise must depend upon the productive industries, whether of Great Britain or of the Empire, uniting in the demand for that freedom for and encouragement of enterprise which itself created the railways, and which may yet serve to turn the wheels of national, Imperial, and international commerce.”

WATCH THE AMMETER If you should observe that your ammeter appears to be showing a higher charge than usual, ask yourself whether you have “topped up” the battery lately. A very badly neglected battery may have its electrolyte so low that there is very little resistance in the circuit. Go at once to the nearest chemist or garage for some distilled water.