THE MOTORIST

Northern Advocate, 19 June 1926, Page 12

THE MOTORIST

MOTOR SHOW.

A GREAT SUCCESS. ( { Tlic big International Motor Show 1 which lias been in progress for over a I fortnight at the Melbourne Exhibition { building, and promoted by tho Royal I Automobile Club of Victoria and the Victorian Chamber of Automotive Ini dustrios has closed. I The show proved a great success; | over 100,000 visitors paying admitj tauce to the finest display of motor cars, motor trucks, motor cycles and allied trades yet scon in Australia, j Complete cars constituted the chief ; interest of the exhibition. Both open ; and closed models were well repre--1 Routed and there were many interesting ideas in bodywork, revealing once more the increasing vogue of the enclosed car.

THE WORLD’S MOTORS.

TOTAL NOW NEARLY 26,000,000. The latest figures of car registration certainly point to no foiling off in tile progress of tho motor industry. In this connection it is interesting to note that «4 Vices from New York arc more optimistic than ever. Now records in the motor and tyre trades are anticipated for the first three months of tho year. World registration of motor vehicles is now nearly 26,0000,000, an advance of 3,200,000, or 14 per cent on a year ago. Of the total the United States owns 20,000,000, or an advance of 2,000,000 on the year. The United States owns 83 per cent of the world’s passenger cars and 70 per cent of trucks and ’buses.

Foreign registrations number nearly 6,000,000. Relatively they show a larger percentage increase, amounting to 17 per cent in passenger cars and 50 per cent in trucks. Tho figures do not include 18,500 unclassified registrations for Russia.

Throe years ago Mr Henry Fird prophesied that the United States would possess 30,000,000 motor-cars before the saturation point was reached. He has just reiterated this statement declaring that there is no reason wiiy ho should revise his view.

CONSTANTINOPLE POLICE. UNIQUE SPEEDING CURE. Dr Emin Boy, prefect of police in Constantinople, has evolved a novel “solution” to stop speeding in the Turkish capital, according to information received by tho Chrysler Sales Corporation from the Near East. It appears that, with the influx of fast American and European cars, the young men of Constantinople have developed what the pilots of the speedways term a “heavy foot,” and Dr Bey is out to correct the evil. Ho and his police department 'have devised a plan that puts the question of speeding squarely up to the public. The police have been supplied with wide planks thickly studded with heavy, sharp nails, and given plenty of opportunity to practise throwing them. On the approach of a car that they believe is exceeding the speed limit they casually, but carefully, toss the plank in front of the car, taking pains to have the business side pointing skyward. If the motor car owner is unable to stop within the remaining space he has the alternative of driving away with all tyres flat, or procuring a new set all around.

Many car owners fail to make headway when lining up the front wheels because they fail to true up tho wheels and tyres separately. The front wheels may toe to the proper amount, but the rims may not run true, thus tlirowing the tyres out of lino. This can be determined by revolving the wheels separately and noting how true they turn. Any variation may he due to the wheels being too loose on the axles or to the rims being screwed to tbo wheels unevenly.

BRITISH MOTOR TRADE

The Board of Trade Returns for January, states the Motor (England) reveal a general falling off in both export and import trade, so that it is to be expected that the motor export trade would show a decline. There is a decrease of £120,695 in the values of motor vehicles exported in January compared with December. On tho other hand the figures for January contrasted with the same month of 1925 shows an increase of £59,062. Motor wehicle imports arc down. In January compared with December there is a drop of £18,534, and a decrease of £185,217 in January this year compared with the same month of 1925.

It is very satisfactory to be able to record that our export values for tho first month of the year were £804,584, and the imports £541,194, thus showing an excess of exports over imports of £263,390. Tyre exports have increased. In January the values exceed those of December by £5720, and the excess over January, 1925, is £76,577.

Tyre imports decreased by £25,561 in January contrasted with December, and increased by £95,268 over January, -1925. Again the export values of tyres are in excess of tho imports by £21,814. In January we imported 1,120,538 gallons of petrol less than in December; but there was an increase of 5,533,237 gallons last month compared with January of last year.

Duties on motor vehicles, tyres, etc., imported into New Zealand during 1925 amounted to £1,194,612.

A CAR OF SHEET IRON.

A revolution in motor car manufacture, bringing the ear absolutely within the reach of almost any family, may come if all that is said about the Fejes sheet-metal car proves true. The Fejes ear, the work of a Hungarian inventor, is built practically entirely of ordinary thin sheet steel or iron, of about 24 guage, electrically welded in the form of iron girders and linked together into a strong chassis by arms of similar section cross-welded. The engine is made of a sheet-metal welded crank-case, with cylinders of drawn steel tubing, with heads and water-jackets welded on. Valves are overhead, actuated by' side rods.

The car is by no moans a freak. It has been used in Hungary since 1922, and a scaled specimen on the Brooklands track on 2.3 rd March did oyer 50 miles in an hour's run at a consumption of an average of 40 miles per gallon. The maximum speed over a flying half-mile was 59.8 miles per hour. ,

The track was 4f.t wide, and the wheel-base 10ft. A flve-seater, according to Mr Fejes, could easily be turned out at £IOO. or under. Tire car tried at Brooklands was stated to have already run over 25,000 miles. The weight of the car is under lOcwt.

HARD TIMES. During the past few years Britain has experienced hard times pndeed. Her tremendous population of unemployed, which at times has numbered almost* 3,000,000, made a big readjustment of commercial and manufacturing life essential, for the very life of a nation depends upon the welfare of her citizens. British shipbuilding yards were harder hit than any other trade. Investments ceased —very few had money to spend on ships. It is pleasing to see that one Australian , manufacturing concern—-viz,, the Vacuum Oil Company Fty. (Ltd.) —has helped to solve the unemployment problem by placing an order for two 12,000-ton oil tankers in. England—the placing of this order with a Clyde shipbuilding firm has found employment for thousands of workmen for a period of about 12 months.

These vessels, when completed, will be the largest tankers in the Australian and New Zealand trade, and will be a bi'g factor in keeping supplies for this part of the world fully assured. We have not yet learnt the name of these huge tankers, but understand they are to reach Australian waters later in the year, when they will no doubt receive much public attention.

Proficiency comes only from practice. Practise safe driving, therefore, upon every occasion, so that when the test comes you will not be found wanting. • • • > American output of plate glass during 1925 was enormously greater than any previous total. The rise is largely attributable to the considerable increase in the popularity of enclosed ears.