MOTORIC NOTES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 3 February 1930, Page 8

MOTORIC NOTES

MOTORING HOSPITALITY GIFT 01 s THE "GADGET" (Bv- Gerald Elv, London, for "The 'Mail",) When the rite of giving birthday presents is observed, motorists have some slight advantage over non-motor-ists inasmuch as they need not cudgel their brains overmuch as to the kind of gift to bestow upon one another. Short of a whole car. there is no present a motorist appreciates so much as some accessory or article which will embellish his car or add to its comfort. The practice of giving a whole car as ii birthday present is. largely confined to the very wealthy or ly car manufacturers, but those' whose lot it is ti> occupy a less opulent sphere also have it in 'their power to gladden the hearts 'of car-owners'by the judicious choice of one or other of the many gifts that come within the ambit of motoring equipment! Naturally some discretion must be employed. It is useless tt» expect a friend who does his motoring ill the Tropics to appreciate the gift of a radiator cosy or foot-muffs, but the overseas motorist is on common ground with the home motorist in being able to appreciate such accessories as thermos flasks, spotlights, motoring rugs, ton or luncheon cases or any one of the hundred and one other articles that suggest themselves, TOKENS OF APPRECIATION At first glance the choice of some suitable accessory is not easy having regard to the lavish manner in which tins modern car is equipped. There was a time ivhen almost everything about a car except the chassis was an "extra, and even a luggage grid was not included in the price of the car. But nowadays even the lowest-priced cars bristle; with accessories of every kind (the lower-priced the car the more abundant sometimes the accessories) and one is hard put to think of something with which a car is not equipped. The problem becomes simpler when it is borne in mind that the standard fittings included' in the price of a cur usually correspondent in quality to the cost of the car. This applies particularly to.the tool outfit. . . JACKING DIFFICULTIES \ Take for instance the average wheeljack to be found on any moderatelypriced car. It .is usually a small, inefficient, bothersome apparatus that makes jacking-un a laborious and nd-i dling process. I imagine that the car owner who received from an appreciative friend a compact, high-efficiency hydraulic jack to replace his standard" jack would certaml.f be .very grateful for the gift. The same may be said of tyre pumps. I am one of tlios'ev finnicky motorists who pay great attention to their tyres, and accordingly make pretty constant use of their pumps. I keep my pressures always slightly above those, recommended by the makers and experience has taught me that in this way I can' add some thousands of miles to the life of my tyres. ' There is nothing more* exhausting than tvfe pumping and the type of hand pump supplied as part of the kit ot the average car usually leaves much to be desired. I therefore invested some years ago in one of those small foot numps that call for so little exertion in comparison. I suggest a small, efficiency foot-pump as an admirable present to a car-owner. A more modest, but very useful gift in this connection is a tyre gauge p which manv ingenious examples are now on the market. Another suitable gift is a hydrometer for testing the batteries, while in the same category of in-, expensive gifts may be included, such things as a feather duster, a really good washleather or even a really good sponge. ', ' NOVEL "ACCESSORY" The other dav I was told of a "gadget" which was entirely new to me. it fs known bv the .somewhat cumbersome name of a "decelerometer," but it seems a decidedly interesting and useful accessory which deserves to be included in mv list of acceptable gifts. _ • 'This device measures the efficiency ot the brakes in a very simple way. In front it has a glass tube like that of the ordinary*' thermometer, below the "0" are marked figures up to 32.2., and at the side is a table showing the stopping distance in feet from a speed ot 20 miles per hour. The instrument is accompanied by a chart giving stopping distances in feet from other speeds. , ■ The decelerdmeter can be attached to any windscreen by means of three rubber suckers, and must be set so that it reads "0" when the car is stationary and on the level. When a given speed of, say, 20 m.p.b. is attained, the brakes are applied whereupon the fluid iri the glass tube at once falls and it is possible to ascertain the distance taken to stop. " If the fluid drops-, for instance, from 20 m.p.h. to 18 the table shows that the car has stopped in 23.9 feet; similarly, from 30 m.p.h. the distance would be 53.7 feet, and from 40 m.p.h-. 95.5 feet, ft is stated that for really good brakes the reading should be 22 to 24 It much lower figures are recorded the brakes should obviously receive attention. Thus the instrument is not only interesting of its own accord but contributes to the safety of the car. L have not had the "Opportunity of trying the decelerometer myself and cannot therefore confirm the validity of the claims made for it, but it strikes me even from its description as being sill-' ficientlv novel to merit notice. Some" people make a habit of sending books to their friends, but where motorisU are to be the recipients discretion must again be exercised. A volume ot "Hints on Driving" or ' Care of the Car" might be resented bv some owners as an impertinence. On the whole a driver who is inclined to be touchy over such things had better be made the recipient of a set of maps.

FLOOD PRECAUTIONS Motorists who are liable to encounter flooded roads will do well to remember that the best. vav to. negotiate them is to engage low gear and proceed very slowly, as the water thrown up by the front' wheels may put the sparking plugs and carburetter £>ut of action. As a rule it is safe to venture through water up to a depth of about 18 inches, but. that is onlv if there is firm ground underneath. The possibility of muddy patches into which the wheels of the car may sink must not be overlooked. It is dangerous to proceed through flood water unless one is tolerably certain that there'are no doer, ditches on either