MOTORING AND MOTORISTS

Evening Star, Issue 22882, 14 February 1938, Page 17

MOTORING AND MOTORISTS

by "Radiator”

LIGHTING-UP TIMES To-day 8-23 - Tuesday 8.22 Wednesday ... 8.21 Thursday ... ... 8.19 Friday 8.17 Saturday 8.15 : Sunday .... 8.14 A STEERING DAMPER It sometimes happens that in spite»of careful adjustment and tracking, undue “ liveliness ” is still experienced, and in this ease the most satisfactory remedy is the fitting of .a steering damper. Dampers are available in a wide variety or tyjies, from the simple friction design similar in construction to a friction shock-absorber, to oildamped models. In addition, At is possible to obtain dampers which are effective over only a small angle on each side of the straight-ahead position of the wheels. Thus, while providing an adequate degree of control under normal conditions, there is no possibility of the steering being rendered heavier when approaching full lock. CAR MEANS A SAVING In considering the cost of operating a car, there is one feature that frequently does not get the credit to which it is : entitled, and that is the many items of expense one’s family is saved by the ownership of a car. Modern living conditions are making greater and increasing demands for individual motor transportation whether living in city or country. The outlay for running a car is not altogether an expense that could be avoided by not owning one. Much of the expenditure on petrol maintenance is merely diverted from other forms of living expenses. Any family which perforce has to do without the service of its car for a month or so soon discovers this. The family purse soon feels the burden of an endless succession of small expenditures for fares in trams, trains, and taxis, delivery costs for parcels, etc., items which soon mount up, and in the aggregate, practically offset petrol charges incurred when running a car. Then again, time saved has an economic value, and in many instances this saving alone more than compensates for the outlay on the running costs of a car. TOD CUTTING A suggestion for reducing pedestrian accident figures in the States is to erect along all busy city streets high wire fences with spikes on top, thus keeping pedestrians off the roads. Vertically, operating gates will be working at specified distances. One paper points out that the gates sound nke guillotines, and that the fatalities due to pedestrians scrambling through at the last moment will bo larger than those due to the traffic. PETROL STATION ATTRACTION 'An enterprising garage proprietor in Los Angeles (California) has adopted a unique method of attracting business to his petrol station and the attention of the 36,000 motor drivers who pass his service house daily. He (purchased a large two-engined Fokker that originally cost £22,000, which, after 2,500 flying hours, had ended its flying days. The nuge monoplane, with its widespread wings, is now installed on a plot of ground in front of the station, where the wings serve as a canopy for the petrol and oil pumps. The grounded plane, which is maintained in exactly the same condition as when it flew, attracted so many visitors (who are welcome to get into it and inspect the mechanism, instruments, etc.) that the wooden floor in the machine has worn out twice and has been replaced by a steel plate floor. An attendant accompanies visitors over the plane and explains everything. The propellers of the big plane are fenced in for safety. Such is the attraction of the grounded plane that the service station is reported to be selling petrol to the value of over £2,000 a month. SUCTION WIPER IMPROVED

it is well known that the suction type of windscreen wiper suffers from one Very grave defect—it ceases work when the engine is under load, and only resumes when the motor is running

easily, with a partial throttle opening. This is because the suction to operate the wiper comes from the inlet manifold. When the throttle is opened wide the manifold is full of mixture, and there is not sufficient vacuum in it to operate the wiper. One Sydney motorist reports that he cured this defect in a very simple manner. From a second-hand parts or junk shop he purchased an oldfashioned vacuum tank. The interior mechanism of the tank was removed, and all inlets and outlets soldered up except the inlet valve, whose mechanism was also left in place, and one of the other inlets on the head. The tank was bolted to the engine side of the dash and the vacuum tube from the inlet manifold led to the inlet valve. The tube from the wiper was led to the other inlet aperture. Sufficient vacuum is thus built up in this tank to work the wiper for a considerable time, even when climbing long hills with the throttle wide open. Some such device is fitted to the latest, more expensive types of vacuum wiper as part of the standard equipment. STEEL BODIES One of the amazing things about modern industry is the manner in which research, development, and progress bring into being new industries or greatly enlarge old ones. A striking manifestation of this has been provided by the world-wide swing towards steel motor car bodies. The vogue of the steel body has created an enormous demand for light rolled steel sheets of a special quality suitable for moulding into the flowing contours of the modern car. This demand called for the laying down in the .United States, Great Britain, and the Continent of continuous sheet rolling mills and the necessary auxiliary equipment. In the United States alone steel manufacturers have invested over £70,000,000 in plant capable of handling this class of steel sheet, modern equipment that makes possible the production of steel sheets for car bodies, not only at a lower cost, but also with a marked , improvement in quality and uniformity. Great Britain also has a large sum invested in similar plants to supply the needs of the British motor industry. A continuous sheet rolling mill is also to be erected in New South Wales to take care of the requirements of the Australian body building industry, which is now yearly making- in the region of 60,000 car bodies. This annual output requires about 25,000 tons of 20-gauge motor body steel panels. The capital of the Australian company is £1,000,000. OILS DISCOLOUR IN USE At one time it was thought that the change in colour- of an oil was due to decomposition, but it is now realised that it is due to exactly the same cause as the dark- colour- or printers’ ink—namely, to the presence of lamp-black or soot. It has been found by the simple experiment of running an engine on another fuel, such as hydrogen gas, that blackening does not occur. Similarly it is not found with other applications of .oil even where the highest temperatures are encountered. Take, for example, the quenching of red-hot steel parts in the course of hardening. With a petrol engine, however, soot is formed during the course of combustion because in order to secure sweet running and good acceleration it is generally necessary to use rather more petrol than can be completely burnt by the amount of air which accompanies it. The mixture is 1 richer than is ideal. The soot is deposited on the comparatively cool cylinder walls, and, ns the pistons reciprocate, so some of the soot is carried down past the Tings and washed off into the sump. Once mixed with the oil it is not easy to remove it. Although the oil may not look very pleasant when discoloured, it is quite satisfactory as a lubricant, as the carbon is so soft that it can cause no harm. It can also pass through the finest bearing clearances and circulate freely. This is whilst it is in suspension, but if it is allowed to collect at the bottom of the sump and form into a paste, as it were, this paste may cause trouble and tend to choke up filters, etc. Hence the advisability of flushing the sump occasionally. \ • CLEAN THE SPARK PLUGS Spark plugs respond to thorough cleaning. Place the hexagonal body in the vyce, and with a well-fitting spanner remove the smaller hexagon. _ This enables the central electrode and insulator to be removed for thorough cleaning. Clean out all carbon and oily deposits, and replace the parts securely in the reverse order, taking care to nave the copper washers in position. Tighten securely, remove from vyce, and then adjust the gap clearance by bending ' the outer point, not the central one, if necessary. STOPLIGHTS AND COLLISIONS ENGLISH COURT’S DECISION The Appeal Court in Britain, by a majority decision, has ruled that it is not enough for a driver to give a stoplight signal. He must also giye a hand signal if he is to be free from claims for damages should a vehicle run into the rear of his vehicle. The judges were deciding on a particular case where an accident had happened, and their judgment does not affect the general position as laid down by law (states the ‘ Motor ’). That is to say, a driver commits no offence in law by not giving these signals, but—and this is very important—he does commit an Offence of negligence if in certain circumstances his omission to give the customary signals has caused, or might have caused, an accident. Even if he gave no signals and if another driver ran into him from the rear, there still remains on the following driver the responsibility to take alf reasonable precautions as to his speed, the distance separating the vehicles, the efficiency of his brakes,

and his alertness. Otherwise he, too, can bo charged with contributory carelessness. In the case in question the judges held that both drivers were at fault, and the real point at issue was the portioning out of damages. The deplorable part about the new judgment of the Court' of Appeal is that the vastly superior efficiency of the stoplight was not recognised. In modern closed vehicles the hand signal is not at all as effective as the mechanical signal, and for this reason the mechanical signals have been recognised under the Road Traffic Act regulations. Far too much stress was laid by the court on the fact that the stoplight does not come into action until the act of applying the brake is commenced. A driver in emergency applies his brake with' equal or less loss of time than ho gives the hand signal. It is only a fraction of a second for the stoplight to appear on the leading car after the first driver has moved to apply his brakes. This delay is far less of a defect than the total invisibility of band signals at various angles. A change in the law does not seem to be needed. It would be a reactionary step to make driving signals compulsory, for if they were confined to hand signals many cases would arise where they could not be seen at all. If both mechanical and hand signals were made compulsory the condition would be no better, for, with hand signals invisible in certain circumstances, there would be conflict of evidence as to whether both signals had been given. In either case accidents would probably increase. ~ , [The New Zealand Motor Vehicles Act provides that if a motor vehicle is equipped with suitable apparatus automatically signalling at the rear of the vehicle by means of a red light or other means, the intention of tho driver to stop or slow down, such driver may, instead of giving the signal of stopping or slowing down by hand, signal his intention to stop or so reduce, speed by means of the said apparatus. No driver shall stop or reduce speed suddenly unless he has previously given the appropriate signal.] SCHOOL OF MANNERS FOR BRITISH TRAFFIC POLICE , An entirely new type of traffic policeman is being trained in Liverpool, where two metropolitan police inspectors are teaching thq first batch of 100 men to become motor drivers, traffic experts, and patrol workers. The coure these men are taking includes instruction on how to discriminate between dangerous behaviour and what is merely a broach of good manners. These men are to undertake duty quite distinct from ordinary patrol or police work, the aim being to improve the standard of road conduct among all users of the King’s Highway. Punctiliously observing good manners themselves as they patrol the congested roads typical of week-end traffic to and frora.tne favourite beauty spots of Lancashire, Cheshire, and North Wales, these new police-motorists are to give advice,to cyclists, private automobile drivers, taxi drivers, truck drivers, and pedestrians. Advice will be given to those whose road conduct falls below a certain standard or whose road manners involve others in difficulty or risk. RUBBER MAGNATE'S DEATH MR HARVEY S. FIRESTONE Cabled advice was received last week of the death at Miami, Florida, of Mr Harvey S. Firestone, president of the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company, at the age of 69. Harvey Samuel Firestone was born on a farm in the small town of Columbiana, OhiOj on December 20, 1868, the son of Benjamin and Catherine Flickinger Firestone. He received 'grammar school, high school, and business ed-

lege education, winning the scroll of distinction from the Spencerian School of Commercial Accounts and Finance, Cleveland. In 1900 the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company of Akron, Ohio, was organised, Mr Firestone opening business in an old building that had been used as a foundry. He installed second-hand machinery and gathered 17 men. One week’s "payroll amounted to 80dol. By 1918 there were 8,000 workers, and 10,000 tyres were produced daily, and 10 years later 12,000 workers produced about 45,000 tyres a day. To-day the employees number over 40,000. From 1930-32 Mr Firestone was president of the Firestone Rubber Company of U.S.A., and from 1932 was chairman of the board. He held the same position in the Firestone Steel Products Company and the Firestone Park Trust and Savings Bank, and was an officer or director of many other subsidiary companies. He was largely instrumental in the investigation of the' rubber-growing possibilities of the Philippines and South American conn-

tries. In Liberia he obtained a lease of 1,000,000 acres of land for rubber plantations, and by 1036 60,000 acres had. been planted. KEEP THE OUTSIDE OF YOUR ENGINE CLEAN A dirty engine is the sign of a careless driver. Dirt is not merely unsightly—it causes trouble in the bearings, carburettor, distributor, and other places. Clean it off with a brush and kerosene. Do not allow kerosene or oil to come in contact with the hose connections, wires, or electrical devices. It is not practicable to keep the exhaust manifold looking clean, since, because of its heat* paint cannot be kept on it, and it is certain trt be rusty. MOTOR CYCLING FIXTURES. February 15.—Monthly meeting. March s.—Club run. March 15.— Monthly meeting. March 26.—Mystery run. April 3.—Social, run. April 15-18.—New Zealand grand prix. April 20.—Monthly meeting. April 30.—Five-hour trial. May 14.—Acceleration test. May 17,-i-Monthly meeting. May 28.—Scramble; June s.—King’s Birthday trial, j Juno 18.—Sporting trial. June 28.—Annual meeting. LOCAL EVENTS Practice for tlie hill climb has started, and indications are for an exciting day s racing. Some fairly good climbs were made at the first practice, notably by R. Coombes and G. Haggitt. Most riders concentrated on the S bend, which, is fairly rough. The rest of the course is in good order, and should cause no trouble. . , , ~ , The monthly meeting will be held tomorrow night after practice, and entries for the hill climb will close at 10 p.m. The hill climb will definitely he held on Saturday, February 19starting at 1.30 p.m. Practice to-morrow and Thursday is from 6 p.m. TOLD AT THE WHEEL COMICAL CANDOUR " How are your cars selling? ” (J We can’t make them fast enough. “ Well, at least you’re frank. ■