MOTORING & MOTORISTS

Evening Star, Issue 21631, 29 January 1934, Page 13

MOTORING & MOTORISTS

[BY RADIATOR.]

Brief accounts of holiday trips, roads, and places of interest are invited for this column.

LIGHTING-UP TIMES To-day ••• Tuesday °’’|J Wednesday Thursday Friday 8.4 U Saturday Sunday ••• KEEP TO THE LEFT ■ “ If the first ' requisite to the cultivation and encouragement of road courtesy is a .full , knowledge ol national and local driving laws, the second is the fullest observance ot the elementary rule of keeping to the left,” says the Canterbury Automobile Association, in a safety-first message to motorists. “ As a matter of lact, tins message is for all road users, because all classes of traffic' come under the first rule of the road—keeping to the lefthand side of the street, road, or highway. But if there is to be the fullest courtesy shown by one road user to another then all must keep not only to the left-hand side, of the centre-line ot every thoroughfare, but as near as practicable to the extreme left-hand side of every thoroughfare. “ it is because motorists, motor cyclists, cyclists, and the drivers of horse-drawn vehicles fail to keep as close’as possible to the extreme lefthand channeling or kerbing that so much heart-burning is caused. And.it is because of this neglect that many accidents are caused, so much risk is taken, and there is so much congestion of thoroughfares. it is unfair, discourteous, and dangerous for slow-mov-ing traffic to hug the centre line ot any roadway. . “Cvchsts, whether travelling slow or fast, should not travel in the centre of the roadway and force over-taking vehicles to travel on to the incorrect side of the road against oncoming traffic. Some road users take up a position in the centre of a roadway and, stay there, ignoring what traffic may be following, it is one of the worst forms of discourtesy, and one which can easily be corrected by the simple .application at all times of the rule of keeping aiot only well to the left ot the centre line, but-as near as possible to the extreme left-hand kerbing. DRIVING AH ART WORTH-WHILE IDEAL The man .who looks upon his .driving as an art will be quick when he wishes to be quick, and slow when he wishes to be slow. His acceleration from rest will be rapid if he is at the head of a traffic block. If he is turning towards ’the right he will edge towards the right of the traffic stream first, and not stay at the- left-of the- -streams and -delay, others who may be overtaking him. ■ If he is turning to the left at a crossing he will first filter towards the left of the traffic. If he is being overtaken he will pull to the left and not crowd the overtaken Xo man who can drive will compel others to overtake him wide on the offside; and he whose dnv-. ing leads some exasperated overtaker ti come up ou his near side stands doubly condemned. Far too many people are quite unable to judge the amount of “daylight” they leave on their near sides. Driving is so much more than merely sitting 'behind a steering wheel and controlling the direction of the car. It s a most fascinating art, full of compromise, of compromise between : the desire of the driver and the limita-

tion of the machine he is controlling, and between his own actions and those of all others in charge of the various units of traffic with which he is involved. The tree artist in driving is one who can most nearly bring liis average speed up to the car’s maximum speed on a long journey and at the same time never take a risk, never hold up quicker traffic, always concede the right of way to whom it is due, never allow the mind to wander seriously to other matters than the fact of driving, and never cease to be master of the situation. CORRECT ANGLE OF VISION LESSON FOR THE OBSTRUCTIVE DRIVER Middle of the road drivers—the persons who will not drive reasonably close to tbe nearside of the road to afford overtaking and oncoming vehicles more room to pass—can be divided into two classes—viz., those who, consider they are entitled to half the road width and pugnaciously reluse to concede any of it to other drivers, and those who doubt their ability, to judge within two or three feet, or two or three yards, the line updu which their nearside wheels are running at any moment relative to the edge of the road, says ah Enclish authority. The wilfully obstructive drivers arc. apparently, beyond being persuaded that it is to their own interests that they should “ give room ” that may or may not be theirs by rights; and yet it ought not to be impossible to convince them that often their own free passage would be facilitated if they, as a class, adopted the policy of give-and-take in this matter. As regards drivers in ,tlie -second category, the persons who are willing •but afraid to.'“hug” the nearside when it would enable other motorists to get on instead of being held up, the writer urges them to practise “ kerbside driving.” Here is a suggested plan that lias been effective in many cases.

FOR BEGINNERS, fake out the car, especially for the purpose but without critical or querulous passengers, and drive to a quiet aud straight road, in town or country, where there is either a kerb or a welldefined verge of some kind on the nearside. Keeping the eye on the road edge as near at hand as it can be seen, drive to a standstill, trying -to bring the car to rest parallel with the kerb and as close to ,the latter as is considered possible without touching it. Get out of the ear, , and note the result. .Prob- • Mv the wheels will be 12in or maybe min or more from the kerb. ,

Now drive on and try the same thing again; but this time steer and stop while looking at the keiffi 20yds or ■ 30yds in front of the car. The probability. is that this time the nearside wheels will be closer to or farther away from I .the kerb * than, on the first attempt. Then make several more tests on the same lines, but varying the distance ahead of the car on which the eyes are directed at the edge of the road. Tt will probably be found that there is one angle of vision that enables the best results to be obtained. If, therefore, the individual driver finds out in this way bow far ahead, approximately, 'is the best point upon which to concentrate, and acts accordingly in the' ordinary course of driving, be may find his skill in “ driving to an inch ” greatly improved, with benefit to himself and other persons.

NIGHT GLARE DISPARITY IN BRIGHTNESS A PROBLEM When motor cart pass each other at night time there is often a blinding glare in the drivers’ eyes. ‘ Science Service ’ states that in the United States the Bureau of Standards has been conducting an extended research on headlights to discover how glare can be avoided. _ Dr Dickinson, of the Bureau of Standards, concludes that the most important difficulty in obtaining safe •lead-lighting is the great disparity in brightness between beams from different lamps One headlight beam is frequently ten times as intense as the other. The driver with the dim lights experiences an almost complete lack of visibility when his car plunges into the bright light of the approaching car. Dr Dickinson suggests that if the lights were kept so that no headlamp was more than two or three times brighter than another, most of the glare problem would be solved. Most drivers rely on what, they can see of the kerb rather than what they see of the oncoming car. Hence the 'ght is increased for a hundred feet in front of the car and the beam is widespread horizontally and slightly depressed. Jfew motorists realise that it is more dangerous to pass a car that is standing still than one that is running fairly fast. A driver, in judging whether the road is clear, relies on what he has seen during the last few seconds bv the light of the oncoming, car. But the road immediately at the back ol the car is not illuminated in this way, and so danger mav lurk there unseen. Exposed lights along the roads sometimes increase the risks or night dining. They often make objects almost invisible which could easily be seen b\ the headlights alone. , LIGHTING A TRAILER Motor campers who make use of trailers must provide an efficient taillight for the trailer’s number plate. A convenient and dependable attachment can be installed without difficulty. A length of twin insulated wire, preferably one with a heavy protective covering, is run from the battery to the rear of the car, connections being made with the two main terminals of the battery and with a small adaptor which is fixed at any suitable place on the rear of the vehicle. , Similarly, another twin wire isa taken from the ‘tail-light of the trailer to a second adaptor mounted on the trailer pole. The circuit is completed by using a short length of twin Hex with a double contact plug of a size to fit the adaptors at each end. In this way the wiring is well protected, and the flexible loud between the ear and the trailer can be stowed away when not in use.

CLUTCH CONTROL CENTRIFUGAL SYSTEM A centrifugal clutch in combination with a free-wheeling unit has been standardised by leading American car manufacturers. A dash control permits change to conventional clutch operation without any automatic performance, if desired. The clutch engages automatically and smoothly, with a small slipping period, starting at 600 r.p.m. of the engine, engagement under full engine torque being completed at 900-1.000 r.p.m. When the engine is slowed down, ?t becomes disengaged conpletely at COO r.p.m. Tin's is accomplished by means or centrifugal weights, and the only factors that control clutch engagement and disengagement is the engine speed. When used with conventional transmission, this clutch eliminates use of the pedal at all times, except momentarily when shifting from one gear to another with the car in motion. It is not necessary to depress the clutch pedal to make a change of gear when the car is sit rest and the engine idling because the clutch is then disengaged. WHERE SOME OLD CARS 60 Describing a visit to Jamaica, Mrs Arthur Robinson, in a lecture at Birkenhead, said one of the most amusing episodes of her tour was a short stay at on hotel where every single piece of furniture was made from the spare parts of cars. The settees were constructed from the hack seats and the, chairs from the front seats of the cars. AJS-BRIVEM EH6IHE

An engine designed to derive power from compressed air that is replenished as it rims and to develop a speed of 125 miles au hour is nearing completion at Atlanta (Ga.). It is a railroad model, but its invovitov, Mr "\Vilham Boyette, said that he had demonstrated the success of the engine in an automo-. bile. , . , Outlining revolutionary changes in transportation systems that lie hoped the engine would develop, Mr Boyecte declared that he had been threatened “ in every conceivable manner, including lunacy proceedings,” h he proceeded with the experiment. The inventor said that he hoped to make a test run to Jacksonville with a minimum expenditure of 12s which Would be the cost of recharging the battery of an auxiliary power unit. Patents were secured on April 18, 19311, Mr Boyette skid, on the showing made by the automobile model. _ The model now nearing completion is a steel chassis approximately 40ft long with three sets' of railroad wheels. It resembles a huge bus'mounted on railroad wheels with all of the body removed except the front cab section where the driver sits. FIVE “ feOB " EACH REALLY CHEAP CARS When a German motoring journalist visited America recently he was intrigued to read an advertisement announcing many interesting bargains in used cars. There were some cars advertised for under five dollars, and a selection was offered at 99 cents, which is approximately five shillings. Easy payment was also obtainable. The cars included 1925 sedans and roadsters and a 1922 tourer. Under this list were printed the words “ new rubber.” The visitor inspected a sedan at 99 cents, and though he tried to obtain it cheaper failed to get the price reduced. It was ■a little worn, but quite serviceable, so he bought it. and one of the treasured souvenirs of his trip is the receipt. SIR MALCOLM CAMPBELL TO ATTEMPT 300 MILES AH HOUR Sir 'Malcolm Campbell, who holds tin world’s land speed record of 272 miles an hour, which he created in the famous Blue Bird on Daytona Beach (U.S.A.), has announced his intention of making a further attempt to attain a speed of 300 miles an hour in July or August next year. This attempt is to be made on the dned-up bed of the Great Salk Lake near Salduro, in Utah (U.S.A.I, where A. Jenkins recently maintained 120 miles an hour for 500 miles. The Blue Bird is at present being remodelled for the attempt, and will probably incorporate four-wlieel drive to improve the traction. .

INACCURATE INSTRUMENTS In these days of crowded dashboards it seems a pity that manufacturers do not aim at a higher standard ol accuracy in the instruments which they employ (says the ‘Motor’)). While a last speedometer does no harm to any man beyond making him wittingly or credulously yet one more perverter of the truth, there can be actual danger in the inaccuracy of other instruments. Consider the petrol gauge which may register a gallon or so too much, leaving the unknowing driver stranded with an empty tank. The inaccuracy ol it may even cause a lire if the tank is overfilled and the petrol runs on to a hot exhaust pipe. Oil pressure, engine temperature, and battery charging rate are all factors of great importance, and it is not always easy to have full confidence in other components when a speedometer register ten miles an hour more than it should. AFTER-HOLIDAY TOUR Hack from the holiday tour the car usually reveals a few defects requiring attention, the most usual of'which are chassis aiid body noises and dirt. Begin with a thorough chassis lubrication, for this will reduce not only squeaks, but rattles as well. Considerable noise will result from shackles with side play, and all spring-eye bolts should be taken up if possible. Do not overdo this, causing the shackles to work stiffly. Most other noises originate in the body, guards, doors, and bonnet. Get under the car and try all the body holding-down bolts. Then tighten mudguard stays, lamp brackets, running boards, and bonnet boards. Lubricate the bonnet clips if they squeak or work stiffly, and replace the bonnet lacing if necessary. New woven lacing is obtainable from most accessory dealers for a few pence. Two sources of heavy thumps which often are puzzling to locate arc an engine loose in the frame and a loose radiator.

Another point to inspect is the attachment of the springs to the axles: These bolts must be really tight, otherwise there is risk of breakage ol springs at their centres. Shock absorber mountings should be inspected . and tightened, as they are noisy if loose, and may break.

The treatment of rattling doors is quite a science in itself. Wear of lock parts aiid hinges and distortion or settling down of the body framing are general causes. In adine cases parts must lie replaced, but usually a little lubrication and the nse of rubber packing will make a transformation. For lubricating the lock tongue , ordinary yelldiv snap is excellent, as it will not fitjil one’s clothes. For packing purposes strips of old inker tntjb are usually recommended, Wilt a better and neater method is to use pieees of rubber cut from the tread of an old tyre. This rubber is much tougher and more durable, besides looking neater. Where extra thicknesses are needed use a complete section of tyre, fabric, and rubber. , Although dry cleaning of lacquer is generally sufficient to remove city dust, the thick layer which accumulates after a fdw hundred miles of some country roads requires washing off. A few minutes spent in jacking tip all wheels before Washing is started will make the job quicker and more thorough, afld for wire wheels a spoke brush is essenlil. Use petrol Or soft soap solution

for removing grease, and keep a special sponge for places where it is likely to be encountered. Wash under the guards. For cleaning surplus grease off axles and chassis use petrol, kerosene, or a one-in-eight mixture of phenyle and water, followed by hosing at a good pressure. It is best to wash the car after greasing. O.M.C. LIGHT CAR SECTION ' FIXTURES February 6.—Monthly meeting. Farmer: “So this horse lias no vice.” Dealer; “No; he is so docile he will follow you anywhere.” Fanner: “ But I don’t want a horse that needs me to lead him—l want one to pull me along.”