Motoring Notes.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXV, Issue 3371, 29 September 1931, Page 2

Motoring Notes.

CAPTAIN FRANK HAWKS.

"THE HUMAN BULLET." Occasionally cable reports reach New Zealand of the exploits of Captain Frank Hawks in his aeroplane, the "Texaco 13." Hawks, who has fully earned the title of "The Human Bullet," seems to spend his time endeavouring to break every speed record he can discover. In the past year Captain Hawks has made a series of one day tours of most of the capitals of Europe. He flew recently from London to Rome and back in one day, cruising along at 190 m.p.h. This was his second attempt to perform this feat. He would rave accomplished it easily the first time at 174 m.p.h. if his fuel had not run out 150 metres south of Paris. Evidently the first failure accounted for the speed of his second successful attempt. About May 27th Hawks decided that the dull routine of having three meals in one place the same day was becoming a little boring. So he breakfasted in London, mounted his trusty "Texico 13," lunched in Berlin and dined in Paris. Speed did not interfere with Hawks' appetite. But for head winds he might have clocked a better average than 190 m.p.h., but this seems to be his favourite cruising speed. On another day he loafed over from Heston, England, to Baldonnel, near Dublin, to have a look at Ireland. His speed was a trifle of 182 miles per hour. Before making his tour of England and the Continent, Hawks saw his own country first —but not in the accepted tradition. He broke the American East-West record by covering 2500 miles in 14 hours 50 minutes, beating the previous record by 3 hours 50 minutes. Then he

flew west-east in 12 hours 25 minutes, 2 hours 20 minutes better than j it had ever been done before. He then went down South and bolted to New York at an average speed of 190 m.p.h. The 1400 miles went past in 8 hours 44 minutes, so he was not sight-seeing. Another day, while in New York, he thought it might be a good idea to have a look at- Boston. He climbed out of his

'plane into the midst of America's

cultural centre just 52 minutes later. Captain Hawks is the director of the Aei'onautical Division of the Texaco Company. He was named America's premier aviator in 1930 by the awards committee of the International. League of Aviators.

ABOUT WHEELS.

Contrary to usual ideas, the wheels of an automobile do not merely support the weight of a car while in motion, but are subjected to enormous lateral pressures and stresses when cornering, skidding, or driving at high speeds. Consequently the safety of passengers depends in a great measure upon the stability and correst design of the wheels. As in most matters motoring, early designs followed horse-drawn vehicle practice, using heavy wooden wheels, and the artillery wheel of to-day has been evolved from this ancient type. There are, however, four distinct types of wheel in general use—the wooden artillery wheel, pressed steel artillery type, wire wheel and disc wheel. Of these, the wire wheel is generally considered both the safest and the most efficient.

STITCH IN TIME.

CUTTING REPAIR BILLS. Without doubt, the philosopher who first claimed that "a stitch in time saved nine" should have waited for the twentieth century and motor cars, states a motor correspondent, for it would be difficult to imagine anywhere wherein the phrase could be more admirably or practically applied. Half the repair bills accrue by reason 'of neglect or procrastination in the initial stages of trouble. Take such a simple matter as the plating of fittings. After a week of alternate rain and sunshine, small i bubbles may appear upon headlight rims, beadings, door handles, and radiator shell. This means that forever after the new car appearance is banished, all by reason of failure to spend three minutes on each of these rainy days with a piece of cheese cloth smeared with vaseline. So we go through the list of troubles and defects that cost money from time to time and prove that in each case the fault lies at the door of neglect. Summing the position up, the longer one has burned petrol, the more one realises the absolute necessity of doing or having done every job on the car, however trivial it may appear at the time, immediately the defect becomes apparent. For thus the annual bill is kept low, and what is equaly important, one is then capable of depending upon his gear in any emergency.

CARE OF THE CAR.

One of the most common abuses is the "cutting" of the front wheels while the car is motionless. One incorrect tyre size on the front wheels will change the correct camber angle and cause what is known as "wandering," hard steering, and "spotty tyre wear." Front wheels are never perpendicular to the road. This is known as the "camber," and in some cases is reduced to a one degree angle, and unless this angle is propei-, the steering is noticeably impaired. Much depends upon the steering gear at high speeds, and particularly on rough and irregular roads. The ability of the car to hold the road at high speed is another vital element of safety, and the undue shocks, also the abuses outlined above, in most cases imperceptible, are largely responsible for the steering difficulties. It is a serious matter when anything goes wrong with the clutch. At stated periods this unit should be inspected to make sure that it is in good running condition. One of the simplest ways to test for a slipping clutch is to set the hand brake and try to run'the car with a transmission in high gear. If the engine stalls immediately the clutch is not slipping; if it races for a moment without moving the car, the clutch is slipping. If the car moves ahead as if nothing were wrong the handbrake is out of order.

The steering gear is relatively easily damaged, through the simplest forms of neglect, sue has brushing kerbs too severely, cutting or changing direction of wheels while the car is parked, incorrect tyre inflation, and other unnecessary stresses. In order to obtain maximum efficiency in steering gear operation it is most essential that the camber, the chamfer, axle alignment, which governs the king pin angles and all linkage from steering wheel to front wheels, tyre sizes, tyre inflations, and so on, be 100 per cent, correct.

A complete cleaning of the car's surface will often reveal small dents, small patches of the body from which the paint has been scraped, and small rust spots which gather at the top drip moulding, about the fender, splash guards, around the fender edges, and on the rear part of the body. With the surface restored to its -original contour, quickdrying should be applied to bring back its original colour. When the car is properly cleaned the owner may readily determine whether he should provide the new paint job that he has been contemplating. Painting not only improves the car's appearance, but often saves the surface and metal from destructive effects of weather.

When overhauling the car, be sure to tighten cylinder head bolts, floor boards, fender bolts, running boards, splash apron, muffler, steering wheel, rear wheel axle nuts, spring shackles and clips, and clean and tighten battery terminals. Check wheel bearings and king pin bushings when the front wheels begin to wobble. Lack of oil will cause these parts to wear. Frequent lubrication and periodic adjustment will keep them in good condition.