GEAR CHANGING.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 13 February 1926, Page 15

GEAR CHANGING.

THE WHY OF IT ALL

WHAT NOVICES DON’T LEARN

No doubt the time will com© when the motor car will not bo t-n© three■geared vehicle of the (present type. Already some makers beast that then car will do anything “on top, ’ and experiments have' proved that this is possible. Cars with locked gears have negotiated specially selected lu.ls on top, so that even to-day we have the car that can be used for all work cm one gear (says C. S. Clancy in the ,-vdnev Sun). , , , ' That is sufficient tor the car s advertisement, but all the same, the- pre-sent-dav car, especially the -light ears, are three-geared, and can only be use-d as such, though many drivers make a mistake often made by the salesman and expecting it to climb without changing down. That, too, in some instances, is possible with the light car, but it is not altogether fair to the car. One great mistake often ni aed by the salesman when impressing the novice is what the ear will -do. Probably it will do all tjoat is claimed for it, but it is not frfvTng t’h© car a fair deal. lor instance you will hear the salesman say that a car can do 30 miles in second .rear. True enough, hut who wants to test the flexibility _of the engine by tearing aong at 30 in second gear! The new driver of to-day as he is tam-iit to drive by the seller of the car learns about one-fifth of what he should know about driving to get the best out of the car. The first thing taught is how to change gears, and, of course, this comes with the steering part of the training. Naturally there is nothing in steering th e car but it is a big item for tlje novice when, besides steering, lie has to change gear, it then becomes very difficult. As a matter of fact steering takes more- of the attention of the novice than does gear-shifting. . . To the novice is just a necessary evil, and has very little to do with the di*iving of the car. Most novices hav e no idea of why the gears should he used at all, but they quickly find that a change is necessary when the ear begins to rock and jump Lut the quicker the gears are moved and the car is in top where it will not, be necessary to change again, the better for the experience. . And with the idea of not having to change gear again the novice bounds off into second, and as quick as P°ssible into. top. There he is content to move a lon 2; untfl, with, a, dreadful feelmg, he notices that it will he necessary to slow down. This he does, and so much so that the engine commences to labour. Here the lesson is mcomo'et? insofar as the instructor allows the pupil to accelerate and .pul] along on the terrific strain that is placed on the engine. , \ n <J this preliminary lesson shapes ih e destiny of the novice- as a driver. On that * abhorrence- for the gear change he goes out into the wor d with his car, and always he fears the gear change. In most cases he has nevei learnt the change down from top to second when in slow traffic. I here lias never been time to teach him that. How many drivers who have been taught when purchasing their car havelearnt thoroughly the us e of the gears. Very few, and it is one of the faults of tire modern driver that he has litt-e idea, of the- use of the gears-so- far as getting the best speeds out of the car is concerned. * 1 , What a wonderful advantage to the car when it is driven with judicious use of gears! What freedom and comfort can be gained by rapid ancl noiseless when the car’s pulling power needs a different or change or gears! Proper gear change, with accompanying acceleration and gentle manipulation can never damage the engine. It is an art that should be practised at all times by the -driver, and only a competent driver can enjoy the simplicity with which the car is handled when lie knows the .satisfaction to he gained from a gentle change. , Ll Of course, with the gears there is this to be noted: One must have perfect carburetion and must understand relative engine speeds. The correct revolutions of the engine when changing down must be given quickly with the sHghtest touch of the accelerator, and if the response from the engine is not perfect you may have great difficulty in getting a perfect change. -The proper carburetion which tunes the engine up to the .right pitch and allows the engine to tick over perfectly is most necessary, as the caiburrettor, which will not idle the engine and causes it to race, prevents at all times any chance of getting a perfect change. ‘After all, though, this merely amounts to tuning the carburettor.' and often that is the work of a few minutes. With the attempt of the novice to get the car to pull on top when the engine is labouring the clutch often comes in for abuse, or often when it is being allowed to come in as the engine is .pulling away it is made to puTl by means of acceleration at the same time. This is disastrous, for it causes slipping and wasted power and should be avoided at all times. Yet how often do you see even the experienced, driver making his car pull away on top out of heavy traffic so as to avoid a change into- second gear?