THE MOTOR

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 66, 19 March 1915, Page 4

THE MOTOR

(By "Autos.") SOME USEFUL HINTS. As the winter is approaching the following useful hints, given in the latest, copy of the Motor to hand, may bo found seasonable by motorists :—: — The careful motorist should abvavs make a practice of looking round his car, say, every, week or so, in order to note the condition- of (especially) such things as brake" connections and the steering gear joints. An adjustment is always provided for the brakes^ and care should be taken to keep both the side lever and the pedal brake well up to then* work. In this connection it is well to point out that it is very much preferable to make a slight adjustment of the brake connections, say, every fortnight or three weeks, than to leave the brakes to their own resources for three or four months, and then make a considerable adjustment when it becomes absolutely necessary. For some inscrutable reason there is hardly a car on the market fitted with a really true movement for the brake shoes, so as to ensure an even wearing of the surface over the whole area of the shoe in question. Consequently, if the brake is left to its own devices for some three or four months, and an ' adjustment then made, the result is that only a small percentage of the shoe is in proper contact with the drum when the brake is applied. The result generally is that a "bedding-in" wear has to accrue before the brake arrives once* more at its proper efficiency. The defect is largely minimised by making the small and regular adjustments previously suggest* ed ; the point is one well worth remembering. The reason,. of course, is to be fountf in the fact that nearly all brakes are provided with a fulcrum point either ftt the top or the bottom of the drum, and the shoes are not brought into contaot with the brake drum with a trne parallel movement. The suggestion made is applicable to both types of brakes, but more especially to the contracting type, which is Usually not so efficient ad the expanding variety. Care should also be taken regularly to lubri' cate all the joints in, the brake mechanism, as otherwise they, are likely to rust up, which may cause considerable loss of efficiency— if nothing worse. i The brake pedal should always be adjusted so that when the maximum effort is exerted upon it there is something like lin clearance between it and the end of its available movement if it wer* not connected to the brake rod ; the side lever brake should be fully on when the lever has travelled over about threequarters the range of the quadrant. Whenever one finds the clutch getting^ "fierce" for any cause whatsoever, this little defect should be cured, especially if the engine is a high-p6wered one. Not only is extra strain put upon the mechanism, but the excessive wear of the tires is most marked. It would seem that few motorists take the trouble properly to guard th 6 welfare of the springs on their cars. It is, however, a fact that if they do not receive attention occasionally they will not perform their work in anything lik« the efficient manner that they would otherwise do. The leaves should be oiled every now and then, and about once a year the springs should be taken down aiid each leaf painted either with graphite or white lead. The coating must not be too thick, but if the spring* are properly treated ill this way they will not tend 4o Mist, and that squeaking which is so frequently noticed will not be apparent! the springs will also perform their work in a much more efficient way if they are properly cared for. Cars in which electrical starting, mechanism and a lighting outfit ai y e installed impose extra duty on the driver: and that is the occasional inspection of the wiring to see that there are no loose 1 contacts at terminals. Or damaged places' in the insulation. Defective insulation will not only cause loss of efficiency, but leads to more Berious trouble, such as short circuit, and in the one-wire systems only a single so-called "grbund" is necessary in order to cause a short circuit. Each wire should, *o far as practicable, b© carefully traced front one end to the other, ana all intermediate connections be prdperly examined. The steering gear as now Universally adopted is considerably more reliable than it used to be some years ago, which fact is probably responsible lor the lack of attention which this important unit of the chassis generally receives. If the car is not supplied with leather Cases for the steering joints, the prudent motorist will purchase these and fit them, as this is not only erthancing his safety, but is also an ecoftomy. AU the steering joints should be properly lubricated, and one should Always make a point of testing the steering wheel alignment every month or two so as to ensure that the wheels are not out of track. If they are, considerable extra strain is thrown on the steering gear, and the tires will wear O\\\ far more quickly than they would do when running under proper conditions. The supply of lubricant in the steering box itself is usually sufficient for «. lengthy period, biit, nevertheless, a little fresh lubricant supplied every how and then is a Very good thing. With regard to petvol, it is impossible to be too careful in excluding dirt. Most tanks have a fine wire-gauze strainer fitted at the inlet, some carburetters also have this accessory, and rto funnel should ever be used without it. It is quite usual also to fit a petrol filter somewliere between the tank and carburetter. The .importance of these precautions will readily be seen when it is realised that a speck of dirt smaller than a pin point in diameter might stop up the jet and rob your engine of all power. Nine times out of teh it is necessary to take the jet out to clear it, causing you a preventable delay. Hair, fluff, and chips of paint from the petrol cans chiefly compose the foreign matter found in carburetters. How it gets there is a mystery, but the fact remains that it does get where it is not wanted unless great care is exercised. The safest thing in the way of strainers is a piece' of ordinary washleather, which Will permit nothing but the spirit to go through. Should it be necessary to take the jet out, do not forget to turn the petrol tap off first, or in the unlikely event of there beihg n6 tap place a spanner or some other tool on top of the needle valve to cut off the supply. If by chance it is necessary to take the whole carburetter down for any purpose see that the joints are quite sound when replacing, as any nir leakage upsets the mixture. Mr. G. Hnmillon Grapes, who for some years past has acted as technical adviser on motors to the Government, has decided to establish himself in Melbourne in the motor business, and will leave for Australia in the near future.