MODERN MOTORING

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 76, 2 August 1941, Page 2

MODERN MOTORING

PAINTING WHITE ON CARS ANOTHER BLACK-OUT SUGGESTION i A black-out precaution common in I England is the practice of painting j parts of cars white to increase the ease with which the vehicle so painted may be seen under conditions of restricted lighting. The usual procedure is to paint wheels, edges of running board. , front and rear bumpers, and a fair portion of the extremities of the guards. With these portions of the car painted white the vehicle is much more easily “picked up” at night. If the car should be parked unlighted it will be more visible to pedestrains and the lights of other cars and those of cycles will more readily be reflected by the white paint than by the usual finish. The first reaction of the average motorist, when it is suggested that he should paint parts of his car white, is that he is a little reluctant t,o do so on account of the difficulty of removing the white when it is no longer required. There is a good answer to this objection. Colour merchants have available what is known as waterwhite paint. This a form of whitewash which is "oil bound,” which makes it waterproof under normal con ditions. It is easily applied and makes a good, smooth, white finish of high reflecting power. The beauty of this paint is that it is easily removed with hot water, and no harm is suf fered by the original finish to which it has been applied. PAYING FOR "FREE AIR”

"Thank Heaven something is free in this country.” was the remark of a man from the East soon after his arrival to settle in Nelson. He was in a garage having his tyres inflated and had asked what the charge would be. The question of ‘‘Free Air” or "Paid-for Air” is by no means a new one. The matter has been before the Motor Traders’ Association again, and there is just the possibility that even air will not "be free in this country.” Certainly the garage people are at present by no means unanimous on the subject, and it is unlikely that they ever will he. Some feel that the provision of free air is a good service to the client and should not be discontinued. These proprietors say that the ! air for tyre service should be free, ! just as is the water for radiators. On 1 the other ham! there are those who j say that the motorist gets too many i “perks,” and it is high time that he I paid for the service. After all there is something in this side of the arguj ment. “Free’ air is not free; it costs j money to produce the “free air.” Com - I pressors are cosily and power has to : be paid for to operate them and again the attendant who is employed to serve the customer has to get his wages. • Taken over a period the provision of ! the free air service must cost the service station a fair amount. An alter--1 native is to allow the customer to use ; the air line himself free, but to make j a charge if the work is carried out by i an attendant. 1 It is probable, however, that, in i spite of the cost of production, altencl- ' ants’ wages and the cost of replacement ! of air chucks and gauges, air for the ; motorist’s tyres will continue to be i free. The course adopted by a garage proprietor in Auckland is worthy of comment. It might well be copied by others. Alongside the air lino is a collection box for the Fighting Forces Fund. Those who use the air line are invited to drop something in the box. The response has been generous. SPEED EATS PETROL High speeds use up petrol, and in view of the recent tightening up of J fuel allowances owners will be concentrating more than ever on obtaining the utmost in miles per gallon. Speed is the greatest enemy of economic petrol consumption, and if the average motorist realised how speed increased petrol consumption, apart from wear and tear on car engine, tyres and biakes. the majority would travel at more moderate speeds. SPECIAL TESTS Recently tests were conducted by the American Automobile Association on a number of representative cars with the following results: — Miles per hour. Miles per gallon. 10 189 20 18.7 HO 13.0 40 164 50 H. 6 60 12.6 70 10.6 t 80 3.6 It will be noted that the petrol consumption increases very sharply over o(i miles per hour, although remaining fairly constant up to that speed. Generally the sum total of all these agrees on the conclusion that the most economical speed for motor vehicles can definitely be stated to be between 10 and 30 miles per hour, and for most vehicles at 25 miles per hour. It should be remembered that one of the most important features is that of wind resistance. This increases in relation to the square of the speed. Double your speed and the wind resistance is multiplied by four, not by two. Raise your speed from 15 to 45 miles per hour and the wind resistance is nine times as great as it was at the lower speed. That is one reason for the greatly increased petrol consumption at high speeds. PETROL SAVING TIP Avoid the pumping action of the foot on the accelerator. Many carburettors arc fitted with an accelerator pump which automatically increases the ratio of petrol to air each time the accelerator is pushed down. This mixture gives additional power for acceleration, but is too rich for normal running. Thus it will be seen that pumping of the accelerator gives the same effect TIIE BATTLE BUGGY The latest addition to the mechanisation of the A.l.F.is the “battle buggy." This has now been adopted by the British army, and is to be built in Australia. The battle buggy is said to be the ultimate in modern reconnais- | sauce vehicles. The car. a six .water, : is steel enclosed and equipped with a sliding roof, three comfortable seats. ! desks and interior lighting for night work. Because the buggy carries a double petrol supply and the personnel can sleep in the car. it will be pos- j to carry out much longer recon- ! naissances than usual. The vehicle j can be adapted for camping pur- j poses. Large windows at the side. Lront and rear, in addition to the ! sliding roof, permit an uninterrupted | vision from all angles. Another ini- ' portant factor in the adoption of the j battle buggy is that it is not readily I iccognised from the air as a reconnaissance vehicle. It is hoped to have improved model in production in ; Australia within a few months. i CURRENT COMMENT How would you like a policeman to j takes your spare away? This is what

is happening to motorists in Italy | where all the spares have to be sur- , rendered to the authorities. Women now appear in the role of traffic police in the larger towns of | Russia. This gives them the last word.