THE MOTORIST

Northern Advocate, 20 June 1925, Page 11 (Supplement)

THE MOTORIST

GARAGE HINTS

POSITIVE 'AND NEGATIVE.

T>oii't omit to replace split-pins "through nuts and bolts from which "tlvey have "been removed. "They' have ntft'been fitted by the maker'of the car as a joke, or merely for the .Vake -of Tinaking the nuts difficult to remove. He 'has considered them necessary in *the interests of safety. If one is hopelessly damaged while being remove 1 and a new one is not available, 1133 half of the broken one 1 ent over at "both ends, or even a piece of wire as •a temporary substitute.

Before attempting to rerpove a split pin and even "before its gaping ends are punched together, make sure that "there is no ditt or paint between its legs, especially where these converge. If'there is any clear it away with a knife.

Don't, in removing a split 7>in, attempt to haul "it out without 1 closing "the parts together and assuring that they aTe straight, otherwise a turn off Tiead' is likely to result. If tins does take ■ place, try 'to draw the remains •out from the opposite side of the nur.

Unless the pari, concerned is located where the ends of''the split pin may "tear one's hands or clothes, don*t open the legs Of the pin unduly. Bending them -around the -nut as far arid as tightly -as possible or knocking them both at once out 'Of the line of the pinhole makes them no more secure than just separating-them a quarter of an inch or so. In the' latter case, the pin is much more readily straightened and withdrawn on any subsequent occasion. CONCERNING SPANNERS. 'An 'ill-fitting spanner or an adjustable wrench that is not tightened~propefly on the nut may not only result In an abrupt contact ' between the bands and something more solid, but in taking the corners off the nut and making its removal harder.

A propefly-Htting spanner will save! a faiir amount of time in "the long run.

Even this is liable to slip. It is gener-

ally safer to pull the spanner than to ■ push it if practicable. Greater effort can be applied in most instances when pulling, and the danger of barked knuckles in the event of the tool slipping lessened. A big, adjustable wrench should not bo used on a small nut or bolt, for it is almost impossible to judge with a heavy tool and the long leveraage it affords whether the nut is tight or being over-tightened. The latter is as bad as not tightening it enough, or worse, because the threads may be partially stripped, and render both nut and bolt unreliable. Observe that fixed-jaw spanners vary in length according to the size of nut for which each is intended; tliat length in every case has been decided upon as the best in the light of a century or more of engineer-, ing experience (states the Autocar).

Don't use pliers to turn nuts or bolts; they are most ineffective for that purpose when the nut is tight, or has to be thoroughly tightened. Moreover, thev roughen and burr the edges and flats of the hexagon, and make it

extremely difficult subsequently to a, spanner on the same parts, without filing awav the irregularities as a proliminnrr. Their use, too, leaves permanent indications that the ear owner

is a novice, and a car bearing such i " traiV-mavks'' mav be held suspect j "When it is o'ffercd for sale secondJ hand. I theti? use and 'ABUSE. When tightening the fan belt on don't lean he.uvily, or at all on the bare front Wings while wearing a coat with uncovered "button liable to scratch the paint: don t do it, fit all events, if there is jniy <ftesirc to preserve the good appearance of the car. Take the coat off and spread it over the wing with the buttons outward and lean on that, or throw a rug over the wing of even a. large duster. The paint will be preserved from hammers and other tools accidentally dropped, as well fs from clothes buttons.

Mention of hammers reminds one

th :.t there are Tight "and wrong ways

of using the simplest of tools. For example, when delivering blows on a chisel or punch, don't look at the top end of cither of the last mentioned. There is a great temptation to do so, to "look wire re you are hitting," but don't do it —if .you would spare the knuckles of your'left hand. Keep the eyes directed upon the bottom end of the tool that is to be struck. To the novice that may appear wrong; but lot him question any experienced mechanic

on the subject, and he will obtain emphatic confirmation of this advice.

ENGINE STARTING,

If. !o obtain, an easy start from c>ild, an air-st rangier or a piece of rag stuffed int..) the air intake has been used, put this means of increasing the mix-

ture st.'ona'th out of use immediately

the engine,. commences to run. Don't

leave it operative just because popping in the carburetter is otherwise prone to occur for the first few minutes; the popping can probably be stopped by closing the Ihrottle slightly, and that is a far better way than keeping the air supply choked, for the latter in a comparatively short while will result in sooted plugs and consequent misfir-

Tt is unwise 1- run an engine at "idling" speed for any length of time. If it must bo run for a while to warm it after starting from cold, it should be speeded up above the normal idling rate br setting the hand throttle open rather wider than usual; this may cause popping for a few moments; but in one respcct that is a good sign, for it indicates that the mixture then being supplied by the carburetter is on the weak side, considering the engine temperament. Par better weak mixture when idling than a rich one, such as issues from the carburettor when the latter is running on the pilot or starting jet. Incidentally, the warm-ing-up process in the garage can be greatly accelerated by covering the radiator with a coat or rug, or even blanking it off with a sheet of newspaper.

WOMEN AND CARS,

A NEW INFLUENCE.

When speaking at the twenty-first anniversary dinner of the Coventry and Warwickshire M.C., Professor A. M. Low, the well-known scientist, emphasised the important' influence that woman had exerted on motor-car design. In days gone by, a motor-car principally appealed to mechanically minded men or those who worshipped apeed, but today the widespread use of cars by women had "brought about -a great change. Increased comfort should now be the aim of the motor-car manufacturer, who for this reason was urged to adopt a more sympathetic attitude towards innovations, among .which specific mention was made of the supercharger. In ten years' time, the professor prophesied, a car without this addition would be out of date, the importance of developing it lying in the need foj producing a car whitih would do practically all iis work on top gear and therefore would be "more comfortable to drive than a car requiring

much gear-changing. Reference was made to the impending advent of the American manufacturers into the light car market. Uhe

professor urged the British trade to get ahead of their American competitors by concentrating on the development of comfort, under which heading he included top-gear hill-climbing abilities and still more simple methods of break-

There isa great deal to be said for the Professor's view, and eveu in such well-accepted and standardised details as steering and gear-changing mechanism improvements can be made to lighten Ihe work of the driver. Then one could take such simple and everyday operations as the raising of a hood or the changing of a wheel, to perform which might require much more strength than some women possess. More important still perhaps is the dcvelopmc7?t of an all-weather body finish requiring less constant care and maintenance than the popular paint and varnish covering of today. Progress is being made in all these directions, but the point of the professor's remarks was the importance of these developments towards greater comfort being perfected and adopted in England vjoth the least possible delay.

THE ONE-PIECE SCREEN.

In Britain windscreen development has advanced steadily from the simple fixed one-panel type to more elaborate an adjustable two or three-panel designs c.f the sloping flat or V-fronted form. The details, by means of which

the move expensive screens are rendered waterproof and transparent under bad Aveatlier conditions, are extremely ingenious and satisfactory, even if visibility :s somewhat restricted in consequence, but when one comes to consider the fitting and design of screens as applied to the cheaper form of cars, it is obvious that there is room for further improvement if the means provided for keeping out the rain at the joint between the upper and lower panels and also between the base of the screen and the body of the car.

In America an interesting new type of one-panel screen is being developed { with a view to solving some of these problems in a simple manner. The screen :s operated by a winder in the same way as a window and drops into a space behind the instrument board as it is opened up. Perhaps the principal claims attention that this new design possesses are its simple control, the unrestricted view which it provides and the claim that it is practically weatherproof. It is also claimed that by lowering the screen slightly an adequate control of tlie "warmth and ventilation of the interior of the car can be obtained, while on these few occasions when an absolutely unimpeded view is desirable, as, for ir.stance, when travelling in fog, the complete screen can be lowered away. That the one-pieee screen provides an unrestricted view is admitted, and with the almost universal fitting of wipers there will be less call for an adjustable panel. Indeed, in the States some caTS are now actually equipped with fixed single-panel screens, which, in conjunction with an automatically operate! wiper, are said to be giving satisfactory service. Although it is I not obvious what happens to the wiper in the case of tlu: sinking screen it | may be .supposed that this world would remain attached to the framing nnd would be quickly swung into position as soon as the panel was erected again. This would appear to be a simple solution to the problem. GENERAL. The dilution of oil in the crank-case is due to unburned benzine working its way past the piston rinpv into the oil. When rasoline vapour eomes in contact with lubricating oil it is absorbed, and the piston rings are lose, and the gasoline air mixture too lich, or if the engine is operated for long intervals with the choke closed or if the cylinders do not fire regularly, the dilution will 'be rapid. The oil must be changed frequently. Dilution of the motor oil is a waste of gasoline. It cannot be overcome by changing to heavy motor •oiL