THE MOTOR WORLD

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 10027, 19 July 1918, Page 8

THE MOTOR WORLD

FUEL AFTER THE WAR PLANS TO USE. DEN ATTIRED ALCOaOI/. Several of tie British ' motor Journal have expressed the opinion that the cni.. way to ensure anything like peace nu plentv for the motorist within a reasor able "time, after the end of the war 1 by means of that much-debated liqui< alcohol. It is stated that: so far as pi aont indications so. it is the only fuc that will.ever be permanently availab. , in unlimited quantities for the Kingdom, and if it must, oome, surely, the eooiif the better: It is considered that petro will be extremely scarce for many month: after the war, and that \ it is rathe; annoying that there is an almost un limited supply of fuel held up entire; , by antiquated Government restrictions o> < its sale—restrictions, by the way, in no way corineciod with its use by motorist*- \ as such, . After the war there is no doubt tha ' France, will adopt a mixture of alcoho and benzole as the national motor fuel particularly for commercial vehicles agricultural tractors, etc. Alcohol ii» r motor, fuel. is no stranger to Frenchm or. and would have been adopted years, n« , but for the laoW of a settled policy tprevent speculation-and violent fluciur lions- in prices. Before the war ther wore no vehicles running entirely on al-: oohol: but for two years the Paris Gene ral Omnibus Co. used a SO per cent, mix 1 ture of benzole and alcohol, and on]; abandoned it for benzole owing: to thr steady rise in the piico of alcohol. It i the intention of the French Government to sooure a monopoly of alcohol, and t- • encourage its use industrially, •■whs'/-' putting a high tax on its human coi, sumption. The project comprises- plaoiu: at the disposal of motorists a quantity oi S2 millions of gallons of alcohol per year together with the fixation of prices fo: periods of five years; the State wouli' cover itself against loss by means <> special taxes on all alcohol' used for human • consumption. It is estimate that the requirements of tho first yea> after the war will be ! 132 millions o gallons; thus the supply of alcohol alone will not bo sufficient to.meet the want, of French motorists, whose needs befovr the war called for tho importation of upwards of 60 million of: gallons of mote spirit annually. There appears to be nr doubt with regard to the provision of 2 millions of gallons of alcohol annually, for in addition to tho supply from beets, synthetic alcohol, oan bo. produced by calcium carbide faotories erected in large numbers in tho Alpine districts of Frailer since the outbreak of; war. Australia appears to be very muoh in the same position as regards shortage of motor fuel and would wolcome a revision of tlr Government restrictions on alcohol that' would render it available in a denahirei' state for consumption by internal combustion engines. '...;'. ■MOTOR LOCOMQTIVK3.

Tbo Baldwin Locomotive. Works, Phi' ladelphia, U.S.A., bos for some years heen experimenting with internal combustion ■ engines, as used on motor-cars, and recently effected' considerable improvements • to suit them for railway work. While it je recognised that loco-" motives propelled by internal combustion engines, having regard to the relatively high cost of' petrol and other minor fuels, are not. to '■ be recommended for all installations, vet they will bo found'of value in localities where water for. ateam-raising purposes is scarce, and where kho cost of coal nr oleotricity would make either steam or locomotives an expensive,, if not a'prohibitive, investment. Engines • for railway motors are, therefore, of special design. Wnere in the largest of theee motor* (23 ton* weight) a 6ix-6ylinder engine is employed, in' the standard sizes. the motive power is supplied by a- vortical watercooled engine comprising four soparate oyiirruers. the bore and stroko ranging from *i x 54in for 3J-ton motors to 64 1 Sin for the 9-tonner. For enginecooling purposes a largo radiator with fan is fitted ait .the'front otf the machines.' Ignition is by high tension magneto, or by coil and accumulator, as desired, while the lubrication system is a, combination of pressure-feed and

I splash. In regard to fuel consumption the makers state that, when running nnder normal or rated load, it works out at one-tenth of a gallon per horsepower hour, and that for most requirements it may be estimated on a basis of an average development of half tne «ratod horse-power throughout' the working day. SiX-CYIJINDEK CYClil-JENGINE. ' According to the "Motor-cycle" (Ensland), there is at least one private designer who has a six-cylinder V-typa engine in course of construction as a motor-oycle power unit. He- has spent "165 Saturday afternoons and 14 Sunday momin'gs on the job." 'l'-ho cylinders are. 60 x ©town., the total capacity being 1020 o.c, while the complete engine will occupy loss space in a motorcycle frame than does a four-cylinder "Henderson" engine. The foregoing is interesting, but many nsers of tueso machines would like- much . better " to know when the shaft-drive engine will materialise and enable them to dispense with both the chain and belt transmission. .