OVERSEAS RACING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20722, 15 November 1930, Page 14 (Supplement)

OVERSEAS RACING.

FRENCH GRAND PRIX. I The French Grand Prix, run over (lie Pmi circuit recently, was by far tho "jisi'cht on record, average speeds of nearly 'OO m.p.h. t)fing mado by tho leaders )i many laps. From start to finish tho

:aco was lull of excitement and interest, a hili: the magnificent performance of the lone British entry, H. 11. S. Birkin, with bis supercharged Bentley, in finishing only 3 minutes 26.2 seconds behind tho winner, Etancclin (Bugatti), toused considerable enthusiasm. There were 23 starters, of whom no fewer than 15 drove Bugattis. Williams, the. brilliant Anglo-French driver, following his usyal tactics, shot uway ut a terrific speed on tho first hip in an attempt to detach himself from the field, but although ho completed the circuit at 94 ni.p.h., half tho field appeared to bo equally fast, and ho could not get far ahead, for Bouriat, Zanelli and Birkin were closo ori his heels. Although Williams increased speed and made a lap at 96.73 m.p.h., half a dozen compel itors still dogged him. Some idea of the hard-fought nature of ihe race may be gathered from the fact that right up to half distance the seven leaders were all running in the same lap with only seconds or minutes separating than. At the start the only driver left at the post was Scnechal (Delago), but although stuck for a considerable time he travelled *o fast when ho got going that tho later stages of tho race saw him running fourth. Tho Final Stages. Williams kept his lead with his Bugatti Until the eighth lap, but thereafter had constant trouble and retired. The Bugatti driven in turn by Chiron and Bouriat, then took tho lend, followed by Etancclin and Zanclli, Birkin, who had steadily worked up from seventh, being now fifth. Chiron, who had constant tyro trouble, lost his place to Etancclin, which let Birkin into third position. Sencchal closed in a little on him, but fell away ligaii), and Zanclli came in for what appeared to bo change of plugs. This guva Birkin his opportunity. His Bentley was obviously faster than any of the Bugattis on the straight, but ho lost time on the corners. His success in getting second place was a complete surprise and a very popular ono at Pan, The speed of the race may be gauged from the fact that the fourth man averaged nearly 139 k.p.h., and even the eighth as much lis 131.154 k.p.h.. 'f'he length of tho course was 395.875 kilometres. The' results were as follows;

Etancplin (2-litre Bußatti), 145.177 W.p.h. 1 H. It. S. Birkin (Ben Hey). 14'1U9 k.p.h. 2 Zsnelii (Bugatti). 142.3 k.p.h. . • .. 3 Csavkowski (Bugatti) .. ». \ Do l'lispee (Bugatti) .. .. * • ?. Seneohal (Delasro) ... -, •' i' De Maleplana (BueaMi> I Stoffel (PphscoU .. »• . • •• 5 i'errand (I'euseot) •' THE WOLSELEY "HORNET." A lively Euglish light car which recently made its appearan.ea in Auckland, in the Wolselcy " Hornet," a six-cylinder machine rated at 13' h-P* R.A.C. Motoring authorities in England were loud in their praise of the "Hornet" when it first appeared on the road, ami the Inodel which has reached Auckland shows that their approval was by no means misplaced. The six-cylinder engine, with Ihe valves operated by an over-head camshaft, has a bore and stroke of 57 m.m. and 85 rn.m. respectively, giving a capacity of 1271 c.c. Tliu3 it will be seen that although the 'car is not large, it is far from being a baby," and has a degree of flexibility usually associated with much more expensive and larger models. The three-speed gear-box provides ratio? isuitable for tackling any grades likely to h(i encountered in New Zealand, and a fairly high second gear enables steep bills to. be climbed at speed. With three up the " Hornet " climbed most of Pqr« noil rise on top, a change to second being called for a- few yards short of the summit. ,This was with a new car, and it is probable that a run-in model would go right over on top. Lockheed hydraulic brakes are fitted, and these are smooth yet very definite in action, and ensure absolute control at any speed. The steering is exceptionally light, and t»o road shocks are transmitted to the steering-wheel. The car is well sprung, ar)d has hydraulic shock-absor-bers. The. " Hornet " is neat in appearance, the model tested being a four-! peater fabric saloon iri brown and cream, with black bonnet and mud-guards. Altogether it is a delightful little car, and (should met with g«rieral approval.

NOISY COMMERCIAL VEHICLES. V f! Excessive noise is one of Hie greatest Wvils of modern lite, trying both to {lie nerves and temper of ovl*h the hardiest, and while much of the noise is necessarily unavoidable, a considerable proportion could easily be. reduced in volume. Many of the sounds can, tinfortunately, be traced directly to road transport, and i» (be fat* t.ercsts of every branch of this Important industry, designers; fleet managers and drivers should do all in their power to nlleviate the situation. Vehicles of modern construction produce at first very little noise in themselves, but unless care be fixcreiscd iri their maintenance it may develop, while the load i 3 often an important Hon fee. The biggest, offenders, however, are the aged, solid-tvred vehicles, which ore often very little more than " runners.' 1 A prime factor in the development of noise is the running of unloaded vehicles at cessivc speeds.