Motoring Notes.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXV, Issue 3374, 6 October 1931, Page 2

Motoring Notes.

STOWING OF LUGGAGE. It is quite possible to stow a considerable amount of luggage on the running boards, and special fittings can be obtained to make the luggage secure in this position. Care should be taken that the luggage does not overhang the edge of the runningboard. Such articles as suitcases, placed on edge, golf clubs, and so on can well be carried in this position. Some thought should be given to the question of weight distribution, as too heavy a weight at the rear is likely to render the car less comfortable to drive, owing to its effect on steering and road holding. If it is* an oil-ru'nning clutch, as some are, and it begins to slip after the oil has been replenished, it does not always mean that the clutch is worn out. The use of too heavy an oil will result in slipping.

WATCH THE ACCUMULATOR. Don’t neglect your accumulator in summer time. Just because it lies neatly hidden away under its cover and seems a harmless straightforward component, many motorists give it little or no attention from year’s end to year’s end. Now if there is one thing more than another that does bring on premature senile decay in accumulators it is allowing the acid level in the cells to sink too low. On hot summer days evaporation takes its toll, and unless the cells are topped up every now and then the solution sinks below the level of the plates, which show their thirstiness by sulphating. As soon as sulphating sets in, the capacity of the accumulator begins to be reduced, and if heglect continues a time will come when it won’t hold its charge properly. Topping up must be done with distilled water, obtainable from any chemist. Don’t use tap water, for this is invariably full of impurities which may give rise to local action on the plates with dire results. And remember that it is only the water part of the electrolyte that evaporates, so that there is no need to add acid. When topping up, remove the vent plug of each cell and pour in just enough distilled water to ensure that the plates are well covered.

PETROL CONSUMPTION.

POINTS FOR ECONOMY. Useful advice on reducing the running costs of a motor-car was recently given by an English motorist of many years’ experience. The hints are simple to follow, and do not in any way interfere with the enjoyment of driving. Rather, they tend to make it more interesting. By following these directions, the motorist will save up to 10 per cent, in his petrol bill. The first thing to do is to give attention to the setting of the carburettor in relation to the accelerator pedal. It is most essential that this should be shut definitely to the lowest point. at which the engine will idle when warm. Do not set the carburettor for the engine to idle when cold; if it does idle under that condition it is proof that the mixture being used is unnecessarily rich; \ in other words, petrol is being consumed uselessly, and therefore extravagantly. . Having made quite sure that the setting is right for only warm engine idling, see if the throttle shuts with a snap when the accelerator pedal is released; if it does not, here is another point where petrol extravagance is happening, and adjustments must be made to stop that leakage. Such are the essential points that require watching in this regard, so far as the carburettor and throttle settings are concerned. But in the course of a run substantial petrol saving can be gained also by following a few simple and non-irksome rules as regards the actual driving. As far as possible, keep an even speed; driving with violent acceleration with full open throttle is merely another way of increasing petrol consumption. Learn to adopt the habit of coasting down safe hills, where one can see well ahead, with the gear lever in neutral, and if the nature of the country admits of this coasting being frequently continued until the speed drops to, say, 30 m.p.h., you will gain at least a 10 I per cent, advantage alone. Some motorists may experience a little difficulty in getting back into gear at the end of the coast. The procedure is really simple, and consists in accelerating the engine so that in top gear the engine speed will synchronise with the speed at which the car is co’asting. It takes little practice to hit it off neatly, but once learnt it becomes second nature to coast all safe hills, and get smoothly into gear again when the speed drops below 30 m.p.h. This applies to those who normally drive fairly fast, but if the coasting speed is allowed to drop to 20 m.p.h. or less, then the saving in petrol becomes even greater. There is also an economy of lubricating oil when the engine is just ticking over while coasting down hills.

Even if you let your engine stop and have to start again with the selfstarter, there is, at any rate during summer months, so little call as a rule on the battery for current that

no harm is done by a reasonable use of the self-starter under such conditions. In addition to the saving in petrol and lubricating oil, there is less wear to the tyres and mechanism generally when coasting, to say nothing of the pleasure one obtains in the pleasant change to the smooth, silent, gliding sensation, as one economically drops to the level road below.