MOTORDOM

Greymouth Evening Star, 21 December 1934, Page 4

MOTORDOM

NEWS OF THE ROAD

(By

“Gearbox” )

COMPRESSED AIR CAR.

CLAIMS FOR DUTCH INVENTION.

AMSTERDAM, November 2.

A motor suitable for omnibuses and vans, as well as for lighter cars and ether machinery purposes, which requires no petrol, oil, or water is claimed to have been invented by Jan Warden icr, an engineer, 22 years of age, living in the Friesian village of AVoivega. It is stated to have Avon the approval of leading engineers and Government and municipal authorities. The motor is worked by compressed air. Those who have witnessed tests are so enthusiastic over its possibilities that they declare that it may revolutionise the motor industry. It is said that the motor will only require to be thoroughly oiled every three months. Including this, however, the cost running is expected to be not more than between £3 and £4 a year, even if the motor is run the whole year round. M. Wardenier already has the financial backing of a syndicate with a capital of £1,500,000, and the local town hail has been placed at his disposal for meetings. Next year a factory which is expected to provide work for 13,000 people will be erected at Wolvega, where motors suitable for cars and omnibuses will be made. Later another factory will be erected near Amsterdam for the construction of heavy stationary motors for factories, as well as others for aeroplanes, trains, and vessels.

CLEAN YOUR ENGINE.

OBJECTIONS TO DIRT.

Dirt is not only objectionable in itself; it is the sworn enemy of efficiency. The engine room of a fast passenger liner is kept bright and shining, because there is nothing else for the junior engineers to do on a long voyage of the marine engine. The remarkable cleanliness is brought about by the necessity for efficiency. Many motorists are totally unaware of a defect until the engine shows signs of distress or until it stops altogether. Defects in a marine engine are discovered and rectified immediately, and are not allowed to develop to an extent which would interfere with the progress of the vessel itself. A fault in a clean engine is easily found and put right; it may take an experienced motorist hours to discover a fault in a dirty engine, and in the process dirt is spread generously over the whole tool kit, it finds its way into delicate compartments such as the magneto and the dynamo, and the unfortunate motorist’s suit, overcoat, and gloves may be ruined.

Clean collars and shirts are worn more because one is uncomfortable with soiled clothes than because one wishes to impress other people. On the other hand, the car with a dusty or muddy body is just as comfortable — and may be just as efficient or more so —as the car with a spotless exterior. Unless the engine is perfectly clean the daily hosing and polishing of bodywork is sheer snobbery; and, in any case, the knowledge that he has impressed people with his prosperity or with his desire to “do the right thing” brings no lasting satisfaction to the true motorist. A clean exterior and a dirty mechanism will never give confidence, for at any moment the propeller shaft may come adrift or the magneto drive fail, or brake rods or cables snap. In keeping the engine clean the magneto coupling will have been rubbed over, and any defect oi' slackness will be discovered immediately. With floor boards up and oil can and rag in use, the propeller shaft universal joints will have been oiled or greased and cleaned, and in cleaning any unusual play will be brought to light. In removing dried mud from the brake gear any weakness in the cables or rods will be seen at once.

Cleanliness of engine and chassis is not only the safest guarantee against breakdown on the road; it is the most reliable method of avoiding big repairbills. The "stitch in time” proverb is particularly applicable to car maintenance. When cleaning under the bonnet one cannot help seeing, for example, an electric wire with the insulation showing signs of wear as it rounds a bend or passes over an edge of the bodywork. It is only the work of a moment to wind a piece of insulation tape round the damaged part, pending the replacement of the whole wire at a convenient time; but unless cleanliness below the bodywork is a habit it is possible to drive for hundreds of miles in blissful ignorance—and then there may be a short, the electrical equipment seriously damaged, or the car catch on fire. A CAST-IRON ROAD. Many are the novel road surfaces which inventors have put forward as a solution of the difficulty of laying down highways which are so durable that they win stand up against the wear and tear of fast and heavy traffic without the need for expensive maintenance and periodical renewal. One of the most novel consists of a series cf slabs of cast-iron which are interlocked in a stone foundation. A sample of this form of surfacing excited much interest at the 1934 Paris motor show, and it is understood that a short experimental strip has been laid down m the French capital. If, as the inventor claims, the surface will have an indefinitely long life, the extra cost cf installation might be discounted, but no details are given as to the tractive adhesion which it affords or the possible complication of its becoming very slippery because of the polishing effect of rubber and metal tyres.

blind spot.

PECULIARITY OF VISION.

Safe driving depends upon sight. Good or safe sight, however, does not depend only on being able to read letters at a given distance. The good driver sees everything, and of couisc anticipates everything. For this reason wind-screen wipers and mascots require consideration, and especially the question of the angle piece between the front and the side of the car. The actual field of view of the human eye has definite limits. It extends horizontally and vertically, and can be increased by swivelling the eye, and still further by turning the head. Each eye has its own field, and the two fields of view overlap. The possession of two eyes gives us binocular vision, so that wc get the stereoscopic effect of depth. We see things in three dimensions, but probably the motor driver really works in four dimensions, because time is so important, especially as regards the time before two moving vehicles will meet—this is where speed estimates come in. We are used to considering the eye as being a perfect piece of machinery. So it is. But we must know its limits. Vision itself depends upon certain minute cells known as the “rods and cones,” which make up the retina, the sensitive layer of the eye. At the point, where the optic nerve enters the eye there are no such rod and cone cells, hence there is no vision possible at this spot. Here we have in every eye a blind spot. Thus, for everyone part of the field of vision is really non-existent, because part of the eye is physiologically incapable of seeing. Fortunately, the two eyes, or their fields of vision, overlap, and what is unseen by one eye is recorded by the other. Sometimes one has temporarily to close one eye, and here is where the danger lies. With one eye shut the blind spot of the open eye at once means that part of the field becomes invisible. As the eye is swivelled or the head moved the blind area moves about, so that by these means one can actually see all that is present. To keep the eye fixed in one position would introduce a very real danger. This point is of such importance that everyone should make the following simple experiment. First, make two small black marks one-eighth inch in diametei’ about four inches apart (horizontally) on a post card. Hold it 9in. from the face. Focus the left spot with the right eye. Having closed the left eye, it will be found that the right spot disappears. Next, make one spot on a sheet of: paper. Lay a pencil point on the spot and focus the dot. Close left eye. Move pencil slowly to the right along the paper. A point will come when the pencil tip disappears and only the shaft is visible. By moving the pencil still further to the right the tip will reappear.

Thus we marked out the width of the blind spot area 18in. from the face. Its vertical extent could be found by adapting the same means. Whatever the area is- at this distance, it will be less nearer the eye and greater farther away. The second possibility really means that with one eye closed temporarily because of dust, etc., and with the other fixed ahead on one spot, the blind area, which everyone must possess, may be so big that a pedestrian, cyclist, or a car may virtually disappear. This is the explanation of many accidents which happen for no apparent reason—“the driver didn’t see it.” Being possessed of this blind spot, the motorist must realise its significance, and under* those conditions when it is of most importance take every precaution to ensure freedom from the danger it may lead to. With one eye closed it is essential that the other be used in such a way that the field of vision is fully explored. Only by this means is danger avoided; but simple as it may appear, it is seldom done, either because the driver is engaged in watching one particular car or object, or because it is not easy to remember, and still less to apply physiological instruction while suffering pain with a dust particle beside which even a pigeon’s egg must surely be microscopic! HINTS FOR OWNERS. A change to a lighter grade of lubricating oil will prove wise now that warm weather has arrived. Use the grade recommended by the makers of the car for summer running. It should be remembered also that the water in the battery will evaporate more quickly in the summer, so more frequent attention will be needed. Although cold weather does most damage to batteries, it is possible that trouble may be caused .in the summer by overcharging. The charging rate can be quickly adjusted to meet the requirements of summer running. The painting of a car is an expert’s job, but if the novice attempts it he should take care that the paint is absolutely dry before he uses the car. If the paint be at all damp the heat of the engine will quickly cause severe blistering of the bonnet coating, and much painstaking effort will have been wasted.