MOTORING & MOTORISTS

Evening Star, Issue 19310, 24 July 1926, Page 16

MOTORING & MOTORISTS

[BY RADIATOR.]

LIGHTING-DP TIMES. To-day ... 6.21' Sunday 1 5.22 Monday 5.23 Tuesday 5.24 Wednesday 5.20 Thursday 5.27 Friday 5.28 Publication received; The ‘ Radiator ’ for July. HINTS AND TIPS. —Watch For Loose Rivets.— The difference between parts which are bolted together and those which are riveted lies in the fact that with rivets tho junction of the two parts is in a state of greater compression, and they will only loosen under ektreme stress or after, very prolonged use. Still, it is well to keep a wary eye on the riveted parts of tho chassis, which should be examined every six months. If this routine is observed tho motorist wall spot any looseness before the parts have had time to develop serious play or to fracture. Loose rivets must bo attended to promptly, preferably by tho garage man. —A Flexible Petrol Gauge.— Tho petrol tanks on many cars have fillers so placed that- it is impossible to insert an ordinary dipstick owing to the contour of the filler. One can therefore make a flexible one. Procure a piece of narrow bicycle chain about 16in long, and with tho pins exactly half an incli apart from centre to centre. Having thoroughly cleansed it by successive washings in kerosene and petrol, work the chain about link by link until it is perfectly supple. With tho tank empty fill up a quart at a time, insert tho dipper, and note at which pin tho petrol level appears. With this gauge one can measure easily to about a pint at any moment.-widen is quite good enough for all ordinary purposes. FREE GARAGE SERVICE. The latest move in the motor trade in Australia is towards tho elimination of free service at garages. The proposal is to bo reviewed at an early date by members of tho Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce, when the advisability of making a nominal charge for tyre inflation, battery attention, and the draining and refilling of crank cases, gearboxes, .and back axles will be discussed. Tho plan has much to recommend it, although some motorists will think that the scheme is a cheese-paring one. In this connection it should bo remembered that tho only concern upon which a car owner has any call for a limited amount of free. service is the firm from which he acquires his vehicle. When he pulls up at a wayside garage for a couple of gallons of petrol and a pint of oil, ho often receives free service in the direction of battery “ topping,” tyro inflation, and other odd jobs. The fact that this work is free causes many motorists to tip the attendant. The attendant pockets tho tip, and the employer who supplies the service receives nothing.

As in other businesses, time is money in the garage trade. While the attendant is carrying out non-produc-tive work his wages go on just the same. The compressors which supply air for tyres cost money to buy and maintain; but at present do not con-

Brief accrants of holiday trips, roads, and places of Interest invited for tills column.

tribute a penny towards tho rent of the establishment.

Actually, free service is a misnomer. Motorists pay for it in increased repair charges, which in, costing have to carry the burden of free service. Something for nothing is a term which does not exist as a business principle. ELECTRIC WELDING. A very interesting branch of welding science which has recently _ come into prominence is the repair of alloy-steel parts by means of the electric welding process. Crankshafts, camshafts, and similar highly-stressed parts are made of a special steel which cannot always successfully be -welded by tho oxyacetylene method, owing to the carbonising action of the flame, but with electric -welding perfectly satisfactory repairs can bo made, as the metal which must be added to the weld is supplied from specially fluxed rods of an alloy similar to that of tho part under repair. PARKING A CAR. Probably not more than one driver in ten can properly park a cur. The best method ol parking in a limited space is to pull up parallel to the car behind which it is proposed to park and about a foot away from it. The front wheels should thou ho locked sharply towards tho kerb and tho car backed slowly until by swinging the steering wheels hard over on the reverse lock it is just possible to clear the rear mudguard of tho other car. BRITISH STRIKE TRANSPORT. One of the most important lessons learned from the recent general strike in _ Great Britain was the undoubted ability of motor traffic to maintain the essential transport of the nation despite almost complete dislocation of the railway and tramway services. The Automobile Association, which put its whole organisation, the membership of which is now over 275,000, at the disposal of the Government, estimates that, exclusive of public service vehicles, there are available in Great Britain about C-10,000 cars, with a total pas-senger-currying capacity of 2} millions of people, about 600,000 motor cycles with a carrying capacity of about 700,000 people, and about 230,000 motor vans and lon-ies with a load-carrying capacity of something like 460,000 tons. During the strike some very interesting individual performances were recorded. One of the London newspapers secured limited printing facilities in Newcastle, and copies -were conveyed to London by aeroplanes and motor cars. Among tho latter was a five-year-old Vauxhall, which actually carried 10,000 copies of the paper from Newcastle to London in less than six hours, returning the same evening, which made a total of 570 miles for the day. The journey from Newcastle to Grantham occupied exactly throe hours, whereas the fastest non-stop express train takes 3h 25miu. A BATTERY HINT. Occasionally when a lot of night running and short-distance runs are made the battery becomes practically fully discharged and has to bo boosted 'up again from an outside charging source. When refitting tho terminals it is necessary to note that the contact portions aro perfectly clean; otherwise the starter motor may bo unable to obtain sufficient current for its need. A case of this kind happened recently where a battery was t emporarily exchanged for another of exactly similar type. When it was fitted the terminals appeared to be quite clean, but while tho lights functioned quire normally tho starter would not. An investigation was made and the taper ends to the battery wires were closely examined. For about half' an inch up tho taper tho metal was quite bright, but at the top end it had tecome slightly sulphated, which was sufficient to hold the two surfaces (which should bo in contact) very slightly apart. By scraping off the sulphate the taper portion fitted farther into its socket, ami the trouble at once disappeared. In this particular instance the lighting connection was taken through additional wires fitted under the bolt heads, which normally secure the tapered portions into'their sockets, but the contact was, of course, insufficient for the heavy discharge demanded By tho starter motor. BALL BEARINGS. Of all branches of engineering the automobile employs a greater quantity of ball aud roller bearings than any other. Gearbox, rear axles, steering, etc., are universally equipped, but in very few cases are they employed in the construction of engines. However, it has been conclusively proved by experience that many of the most successful racing engines have been thus fitted with ball or roller tearing crankshafts. The advantages are important; nevertheless, mechanical construction difficulties have made it impossible for them to be adopted for standard models. Ball bearings permit a considerable saving in volume, and consequently weight. Another important point in favor of ball bearings is the extreme simplicity of lubrication and the absence of danger of the bearing seising immediately through insufficient oil or a momentary stoppage in the oil circulation. Some engineers say that plain bearings, when supplied with an efficient quantity of oil, offer less frictional resistance than a ball tearing, clue to tho film of oil between the two surfaces, but there cannot be a very serious difference between the two types as applied to any standard engine w'orking under normal touring conditions. FRICTIONAL SHOCK ABSORBERS. To ascertain whether the frictional shock absorbers on a car have been tightened sufficiently before starting on a journey, it is necessary to test them by driving the car at usual touring speed oyer an average road, tightening or slacking the shock absorbers to suit requirements. If one habitually drives fast, the beat plan is to lighten them up fairly well, so that there is very little movement when you jump up aud down, standing on the front or rear dumb-irons. For town work it will probably be found more comfortable to slacken the absorbers a couplo of divisions. PROGRESS IN DESIGN. Progress in the design of cars may appear falter, but actually it never stops. Year by year, iu scores of drawing offices, hundreds of clever brains are steadily evolving new methods of production side by side with new details of design. No real improvement ever bursts on the world full-blown. A thousand tiny steps of testing, experiment, and road experience go to the malting of the perfect car that some day the public will drive and wonder why it took so long to evolve. Evolution applies to cars very much as it works in tho world of Nature. Progress is more by a process of elimination and replacement in detail than by fundamental alteration in design. Cars still betray their origin from the old coaching days even qn the most elaborate examples of modern design. This, obviously, must be true of tlie coachwork, and not of the mechanjsm that projpplg & Thorq would seem

to be still too wide a gap between the work of the engineers wno design the chassis and the coachbuilders who make—or mar—the final result. Cars are still built as though they were to have'two separate entities, and were not intei’linked at every stage of their joint evolution. STOCK CAR RACES. Among French aud Italian motor manufacturers, races for touring model cars are the most important sporting events. The view is held that the buying public is particularly interested in the performance of marketable models. To this end, competing cars are equipped to line up with the full equipment of everyday usage—hood, windscreen, mudguards, and so on. The winning car in a 200-mile touring car race, held recently at Nice, France, averaged sixty-eight miles an hour. MOTOR SPEEDWAYS. FAMOUS TRACKS. After a few months’ nso the Maroubra speedway, Sydney, was sold by auction recently for £10,850. The purchaser, Mr J. S. Taylor, of Junce, is going to make an effort to stage attractive racing. The Maronbra track cost in the vicinity of £BO,OOO to build, and 11,000 tons of cement were used. It is five-sixths of a mile in circumference and 43ft wide. The steepest banking is 48deg. The track opened to a record crowd of 75,000 a.t Christmas, but interest seemed to wane after a few meetings. For a while motor-cycle events renewed public interest, but it soon failed ogam. The shareholders came to a prompt decision to sell, and investors certainly did not reap handsome profits. Critics of Marouhra track 'say that the circuit is too small for safety at speeds in excess of eighty miles an hour. It is also stated that it is not situated to best advantage, and that the races could be seen very well from outside the enclosure, thus detracting from tho gate receipts. Sydney Speedway, Ltdis a new project to construct a racing track in the suburb of Blacktown. The capital is £IOO,OOO. It is proposed to acquire 300 abres, and to build a track two miles long and 100 ft wide. An optimistic prospectus has been issued, in which an annual revenue of £126,200 is forecasted and a net profit of £71,400. The Melbourne Motordrome is about one-third of a mile long, and the Melbourne Olympia is miles. Brooklands track, England, is the world’s most famous speedway. It was opened in 1907. The cost was £150,000. The track is 2-J miles long and 100 ft wide. The banking varies from 1 m 25 to 1 in 30.

The Montlhery track, Paris, has been the scene of many world’s records. It is H miles round, and from a spectacular point of view it is probably the finest in the world. It was opened in 1924, and already over £2,000,000 had been involved in its development. The Miramas track, near Marseilles, was also opened in 1924. It is three and one-tenth miles circuit, but owing to the slight banking is not conspicuously fast. The Monza track, Italy, is six and one-fifth miles long. It was opened in 1922.

American tracks arc generally built for spectacular rather than scientific racing, and driving is more dependent on nerve than skill. The Indianapolis track is If miles, and is surfaced with boards. The, Culver City trank is of board, and has a circumference of miles. It has held speeds of over 13S miles an hour. The Laurel track has held equally high speeds. The banking at Culver City is 45deg, and the Laurel track of li miles has a bank of 48deg. The Culver City and Laurel tracks are the fastest in the world. Montlliory is the fastest in Europe, with Brooklands a close second. Monza is slower, and is comparable with Indianapolis. It is considered by experts that Miramas could bo faster than either Brooklands or Montlhcry if it was resurfaced.

WHERE THERE IS NO SPEED LIMIT. New South Wales was the first State within the Empire to abolish the speed limit for motorists and to throw the onus upon the driver, and it is interesting to note that the new rule, is working well. The public has been anxiously waiting to see just how the innovation would work out. Pessimists declared that the pedestrian would be given over to the “ road hog.” The traffic authorities, however, insisted that nothing of the sort was being done. They pointed out that they were actually tightening up their control of motorists by making the driver of a motor vehicle responsible should he drive at a speed dangerous to the public on any road and in any locality. The clause in the regulations that deals with this matter clearly states that the motorist must’ regulate his speed to the point of absolute safety, not only on roads where tho traffic is congested, but also on roads where such a condition may reasonably bo expected. Tho roadside discs indicating siieed limits proved to bo useless, and often worse than useless, as it often happened that traffic conditions would arise on a section of a road where fifteen miles an hour was indicated as tho limit when such a speed would ho both excessive and dangerous, whereas on other occasions a car could ho driven over the same section without risk to anyone at double the speed. CAUSES OF ACCIDENT. An interesting analysis of the causes of motor accidents has boon drawn up by tho Royal Insurance Company, Ltd., of Great Britain. It shows that 20 per cent, of all accidents occur during lighting-up hours, and 80 per cent, during daylight; 81 per cent, happen in a town or village and 19 per cent, in the open country; 9 per cent, at junctions of cross roads and 14 per cent, at junctions other than cross roads. Other percentages are 6 per cent, at bends of roads, 6 per cent, overtaking and passing in the same direction vehicles other than tramcars, 3 per cent, in connection with tramcars, 4 per cent, pedal cyclists, 4 per cent, pedestrians, 1 per cent, dogs, 3 per cent, horses and cattle, 3 per cent, through incorrect signalling or absence of signals, 14 per cent, tiirongh skidding, and 1 per cent, through blinding headlights. CLOSED CAR DANGER. A keen motorist who had covered many thousands of miles in open cars recently purchased a saloon. From tho very first, however, he began to experience ill-health, mysterious headaches, and general sickness, which caused him to bo confined to bed on several occasions. Tho doctors diagnosed his ailment as gas poisoning, and workmen were called in to examine the anthracite stovo in his office. All was found to be in order, however, and the symptoms still persisted until some minor trouble led a friend to raise the bonnet of his car. While tho trouble was being rectified it wits noticed that the gasket between the exhaust pipe and manifold was faulty, and further examination showed that one of tho felt washers sealing tho pedal slots had bo como displaced. The cause of tho mysterious illness was then manifest, for the deadly odorless carbon monoxide fumes from the exhaust had filtered up through tho pedal slots in sufficient quantities to cause partial poisoning. Fortunately, this is a rare occurrence, HERE AND THERE. A battery service station in Texas acquires tho goodwill of local motorists by having available for free use several jugs of distilled water and a number of hydrometers. “It costs us 15 confs in labor to water your battery. If you want the water free, help yourself,” runs a prominently displayed notice. * * # » Two rules in force at tho Aspendnle (Victoria) track provide for disqualification of (a) competitors who look back during the progress of n race, and (b) drivers who come to the lino attired, in the opinion of a special dress steward, in a dirty or untidy manner. An American visitor to London was enthusiastic about the facilities granted motorists To park their ears in the streets, until he learned that ho had been looking at a traffic block. * * /■» # Brake drag is usually due to insufficient .strength in tho releasing mechanism. Release springs or the brake connections may bo too tightly adjusted, or there may bo insufficient clearance between the bands and the brake drums. If flic brake (in proper order) of a car are suddenly applied with full force when a car is travelling at any speed, they will bo sufficiently powerful to stop the wheels rotating, Tk -if- 4. Chevrolet and Dodge cars are most popular with motor thieves. The Dodge cars selected are usually old models with ordinary ignition locks. Since 1924 all Dodge cars have been equipped with a lock which keeps the gear lever in neutral. This type is proof against theft. Unfortunately the Chevrolet still retains tho hjyitli-kcy system. * * » # Sing a song of cylinders, A sump devoid of oil, Four-and-twenty engine knocks, or Water on the boil. When the “ lid ” was opened The engine dropped the load. Isn’t that a cheery thing To happen on tie road?