NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19660, 11 June 1927, Page 10 (Supplement)

NOTES.

The 24-hour race for the Rudge-Whit-worth Cup will be held at Le Mans next Saturday, June 18. To prevent the use of " doped" fuels, the racing authorities will supply all petrol in sealed containers. If the engine misses when idling on a light pull it is an indication that the gaps at the spark plugs should bo wider. Missing at high speed or when pulling hard usually indicate that the spark plug gaps need to be narrower. Two sports were uncertainly flivvering their way home from the county seat. " Bill," said Henry, " I wancha to bo very careful. Firs* thing y' know you'll have us in the ditch." "Me ?" said ! Bill. " Why, I thought you was driv- | in'." At Calcutta a police order is in operation restricting the hours during which bullock-drawn vehicles are allowed in the streets. This, it is believed, will stimulate the demand for motor vehicles, particularly if other important cities in India follow suit. Although a penalty fare of 50 per cent, operates on omnibuses running on tram routes in Plymouth, the bus revenue for the year endeVl March 31, 1927, was £55.000, or £19,000 moro than in the previous year. A novel trial from Rome to Copenhagen, organised by the Royal Danish Automobile Club, will start on June 23. No definite route has been fixed, each competitor being free to work out his own course. Prizes will be awarded to the first to arrive in Copenhagen. The motorist had been fined and his right to drive suspended for a year for reckless driving. " Your Honor," shouted his attorney, " I will appeal in this." " On what ground ?" asked his Honor " On the ground that to sentence a man to become a pedestrian is cruel and unusual punishment," replied the lawyer. At the monthly Executive Committeo of the English Automobile Association, held on April 26, 11,120 now A.A. members ivere elected. This number constitutes a record in the history of the Association, the total membership of which is now well over 325,000. These figures indicate a boom in British motoring during the coming season. Several American cars are appearing with fabric spring shackles in place of the usual metal couplings. The fabric is strong, incompressible material, similar to that used for fabric universal joints, its use prevents noise, obviates lubrication, and affords a certain flexibility to the mounting of tho body. American taxi-cabs have used a rubber cored shackle on rear springs for some time. The garage man started to give Mr. Newrich some much-needed advice on the future handling of his damaged car. Mr. Newrich interjected pompously: " That'll do, my man. See here, it's my car, and what Ido or say goes! Understand ?" Then it was that the fed-up mechanic under the car drawled: ' g°°dness sake, mister, say ' engine'!" Motorists are not universally appreciative of the manner in which the Bombay ' deviation has been constructed. Although the maximum grade in the new detour is 1 in 20, it is thought that some of the curves are too' sharp. It is stated bv some who have walked over the new clay route that it would have been better to be content with a grade of 1 in 15 if tho road could have followed a less cerpentino course. Many car owners fail to make headway when lining up the front wheels because they fail to true up the wheels and tires separately. The front wheels may toe in the proper amount, but the rims may not run true, thus throwing the tires out of line. This can be determined by revolving tho wheels separately and noting how true they turn. Any variation may be due to the wheels being too loose on the axles or to the rims being screwed to the wheels unevenly. Sir Archibald Boyd-Carpenter, who passed through Auckland with tho motor tiade delegation this week, is uncle to Mr. F. 11. Boyd-Carpenter, an enthusiastic competitor in junior motor racing events in England. Mr. Boyd-Carpen-ter's best recent performance was the winning of a " double " at the Surbiton Motof Club's meeting on Brooklands track in April. Driving a 7 li.p. racer Mr. Boyd-Carpenter won a s|-mile race at an average speed of 74.2 m.p.h. In an event he averaged 76.4 m.p.h. Municipal tramways in Great Britain arc feeling the pinch of omnibus competition, and some authorities are invoking powers similar to those given in New Zealand by the Motor Omnibus Regulations. The Portsmouth Corporation recently endeavoured to enforce a penal fare of 2<i on any service in competition with the municipal trams and buses. The Minister of Transport held that this was excessive and it was decided that the penalty should be Id The corporation retaliated by granting 45 omnibus licences instead of the 76 applied for by the company running the services. Used cars have very little value in America. At a recent used-car sale in New York, 36 cars were sold in 20 minutes. A 1923 tourer was the big attraction. It was offered for 66 cents to the first man to enter the showroom when the sale opened at 8 a.m. The purchaser waited in a queue for 45 hours. There were another 12 cars under 100 dollars, f>or those who waited all night on the doorstep. Fifty-five cars ranging in price from 66 cents to 1050 dollars were offered, and nearly 50 of them were sold in the first hour of the sale.