TOURING TIME

New Zealand Times, Volume LI, Issue 12008, 10 December 1924, Page 14 (Supplement)

TOURING TIME

KNOW YOUR COUNTRY WHICH IS THE GREATEST ENJOY. MENT OF OWNING A CAR? With the passing of the uncertain days of spring and the coming of summer and the holiday season, the old motorist begins to think of furbishing up his >ar and looking after his impidementa, and the new motorist looks forward to fresh experiences. It is to the latter no doubt, that these remarks will particularly appeal and to whom they may be useful. ' When considering the suggestion of a touTj the first question that presents itself is,- “Where shall wa go?” and the next, “How far is it?” And to many a tyro in motoring, these two . questions summarise the whole matter* To many, the primary enjoyment in motoring is driving, and with this is - coupled speed. Not that they would admit it for a moment, however. Yet you will find them giving more attention to getting ’he most out of the cars than to 6cenery, and talking afterwards only cf the miles they coveroa and the time they did them in. Whilst that -is motoring, it is not touring; for tonring .and its true enjoyment mean something more than mere distance covering with a nicely running car. MOTORING OR TOURING. - The idea of the true tourist is to make his car a means to an end and to kill two birds with one stone. To explore the country and to see sights arid places and scenery which are worth seeing, and which are new to him and to enjoy the delightful freedom and healthfulness of travel and enjoyment which motoring provides. To confine one’s travel, to the main roads to make a point of covering set distances —and long distances—each day, finishing up at certain towns, is a great mistake. For one thing, as a rule, the true charm of the country is riot found, on the main roads. Around almost ‘every town and village in the country there are beauty snots and places known outside the locality, and it. is the discovery of-these, as well as making the acquaintance of wellknown things, which makes up the diarm of touring. The uncertainty and'unexpectedness of tbeir discovery add vastly to their interest and enjoyment. ORDERS OF THE RAY. ' The tourist’s “orders of the dayt should be “Stop, or linger, when there is anything to see:” By following such a method the daily mileage will be lessened, it is true, but the tourist’s enjoyment will have been vastly more than if he had travelled by “forced marches” to a set scJindnia

1925 CYCLES

FEW MODIFICATIONS EFFORTS TO CHEAPEN SELLING PRICE. Already the majority of big firms are considering their 1925 programmes, aiwl many of Ihfiahave defimtefyd* cided on their future policies. There appears to be a distinct tendency to retain orating models with a few modifications in the way of up design Mid eliminating minor i^ bleß rh. cropped np in 1924. were will, of cotnse, be more overhead valve models than ever before. There win he little change hi pricesunless some unforeseen event occursManufacturers have already reached trie commercial limit in giving /value tor money, and such attempts at price cutting as are in contemplation will be made passible by removing from epea&ations those items which are re. garded.more or less as luxuries. .Other firms win make alterations in trie layout of their imiAiiim in order to - cheapen assembly and machining operations without interfering with results, out generally speaking there will be no great changes in design, (UlO6 or quality. One hopeful sign is the. . aljmost universal adopting of mechanical lubrication (says the “Motor Cycle”).' In some cases manufacturers have been so satisfied with the results cffitained from mechanical pumps that.no auxiliary systems will he fitted to their 1925 machines.

SILENT MOTORING IDEAL

EFFOR TS TO PRODUCE IT. , the course of air article in the ‘Motor’ on “Silent Motoring,”- Mr Henry Sturmey writes:— “ - Apart from the grinding of the gears and the noise of the engine, we suffer from the .increased vibration due to the accelerated engine speed. Can our engineers ever entirely overcome these objectionable featured which are present in even the very beet cars, although they .may be lees accentuated <thaa in the cheaper and lees refined" models? Is noise really irreparable from motoring? “For 30 years now engineers have been working to produce silent gears, and although by tho use of shew gears on the final drive, by improvements in the-shape-of-tooth-in our change-speed gears, and by refinements in. accuracy of fimA, they have greatly reduced noise* in these, parts and largely eliminated them when the load on ihe gems is light, they still leave much to be desired when.eerions work is being done. I confess that I have my doubts shout the possibility of attaining complete success with a system in which, as with the internal combustion engine, the power for serious work can only be obtained by high revolutions, combined with the passing of the power through a. system of toothed gearing, to which high surface speed is anathema.”