SPARKS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 24 March 1928, Page 14

SPARKS.

Since the first motor plant was built in Canada in 1904 a total of 1,206,929 motor vehicles have been produced in that country, estimated value of this output is £177,133,580. Statistics on motor fatalities in the United States of America disclose that 58 persons were killed each day in .July in motor accidents, as compared with 60 a day in July, 1926. In June of last year the average was 69 fatalities’ a day.

It is a good practice to go over all the lx>lts and nuts of a car’s springs about once a month and tighten any which have become loose. Many a “rattle” or “squeak” will be prevented by doing this, No matter how good the locking devices used to prevent the nuts from turning, these boits will loosen, as, because of the constant pounding to which they are subjected, thev will stretch a little.

The easiest and best way to clean a windshield is to wipe it off with a wet chamois and then rub with, a clean cloth. A little kerosene in the water will help if the glass is very dirty. Tnis method of cleaning glass is to be recommended for closed cars, as it does not scratch.

When arranging a rope for a car to be towed, never attach the rope to the axle. The rope should be fastened to one of the front portions of the frame, so that the pull comes on the chassis. The same thing applies to the car doing the towing, except that the rope should be fastened to some part of the rear frame.

When feeling a radiator to see if it is hot, don’t just feel the outside shell; put your hand on the radiator core itself (the centre of the radiator). First feel the top, then the bottom of the core; the latter should be a lot cooler than the top; if it is not, inspect the fan belt to see if it is tight. One of the best investments for a car is a motor meter.

' Already known in Great Britain as the “Patron Saint of Aviation,” Sir Charles Wakefield lias just made a magnificent gift to the motoring world. Cable advices received by the Christchurch branch of the Castrol firm state tbat the gift consists of a 1000 guinea gold cup, supplemented by £IOOO a year for three years. The award is to be made for the world’s highest motor speed each year. It was only a few weeks ago that Sir Charles presented the first “Sir Charles Wakefield Gold Medal,” for the designing of apparatus that will make for safety in flying.

FACTORY EXTENDS. With approximately 20,000 unfinished orders on hand at the beginning of last month, the Willys-Overland Company found it imperative to increase production. Contracts were made for additions to plant running into £250,000, to be completed in 60 days. These additions are planned to bring the daily output up to 1550 cars. The company’s line of cars comprises • ‘W i Ilvs-Kn ight, ’ ’ ‘ ‘Ealcon-K nigh t, ’ ’ and the popular “Whippet,” and for these the February demands exceeded 25,000 cars. March requirements were estimated to call for from 35,000 to 40,000 cars. With the completion of factory extensions the company will be better able to meet the increased demand for its line of cars.

THE DARK DAYS

Modern motorists scarcely realise the significance of the date, November 14, 18d(5, the date which marks the end of what has become known as the lied Flag Era. Until that time the law was that mechanically propelled vehicles should not proceed at more than four miles an hour on open loads, a requirement which, until a short time previously, was ensured by the necessity for each such vehicle to be preceded by a man on foot bearing a red flag. What emancipation from those requirements has meant in the intervening 31 years is apparent to ah'.

TY RE; INTELLIGENCE. Overloading.—Avoid overloading the tyies. Inflation. —Learn the correct air pressure for tyres and check it with a gauge every few days. itepair Tyre Wear. —Anything which causes a tyre to drag with more or less side motion instead of running true will grind the rubber tread away faster than is normal. Chain Abrasions. —See that skid chains are not so tight that they gouge into the tread and fabric carcase of the tyre. Tube Care. —The destruction of a tube is often started when it is being pinched under the tyre tool or’ under the head of the tyre.

SPLASH-PROOF WHEELS. Fashionable Parisiennes may now patter along the narrow sidewalks of their city’s winding streets without fear of having their chic gowns splashed by passing automobiles. Recently the police prefect issued an edict obliging owners of motor vehicles weighing more than 3000 kilograms to provide their cars with mud protectors. The police have orders to arrest drivers failing to comply with this regulation, and pedestrians whose clothes are spoiled by mud splashed over them by passing cars may claim heavy damages. Paris is the first European city to make mud protectors on motor \eludes obligatory. In its narrow streets, passing automobiles frequently deluge with mud and water from the gutters -not only passers-by, hut fruit anil vegetable stalls. The police have not specified any particular kind of mud protector. The result is that trucks with all sorts of devices are now racing through the streets. The best protectors’hang from the hub in the form of rubber brushes. Others consist of a rubber flange projecting slightly from the tyre rim. The latter have been in use lor many years on the Paris buses, where they have proved fairly successful. ' At present the police are fully occupied testing the. infinite! variety of splash guards called into existence by the prefect’s order, amid great excitement in the automotive world and to the vast amusement of the “protected” public. Splash-proof devices have been compulsory in Japan for some years.