Novice and the Car

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 836, 3 December 1929, Page 6

Novice and the Car

Being some elementary hints on driving for those who are just learning.

“NERVES” | "When the object on the right has > been successfully passed with the right wing, there is a peculiar ten- | deucy to steer farther away from it. It is difficult to account for this otherj wise than by suggesting “nerves. If •the front of the car passes there is j no need to alter the steering direction; the rear will follow through, as I the width is no greater. Another little idiosyncrasy m steeri ing is responsible for a considerable I amount of bad driving, and it appears Itobe on the incerase. This is a j defect, to which the novice is susI ceptible. and unfortunately it appears that in many cases the habit dies hard. In overtaking other vehicles it is frequently necessary to get on the wrong side of the road to pass. The trouble arises from the fact that the novice j is in too great a hurry to get to the j left again and “cuts across” -the vehicle overtaken, frequently to the inconvenience and danger of the driver of the latter. Unless some emergency necessitates cutting across,” tjie practice should be avoided. DRIVING FAULTS Many mistakes are made in driving -which, do not result in accidents, or even occasion them, but which nevertheless it is desirable to eliminate to the end that the individual carowner may save himself distress, unnecessary expense, and. for the rest, get. the very best out of his vehicle. The class of owner who needs instruction of this sort requires aspects of the subject to be dealt with which the average driver of experience has almost forgotten about, because he deals with them subconsciously. Therefore to read anything about them would bore him. But in these articles we are addressing ourselves to the new driver, who has all his experience to gain and who is desirous of getting the best out of liis car. under which head economy of running is important. Statistics reveal, and experience on the road confirms, that unprecedentedly large numbers of new motorists are now being recruited. THE ENGINE AS A BRAKE With the great degree of flexibility in standard modern engines it is possible to set the throttle for tile engine to run at very slow revolutions, so that when desiring to reduce the speed of the car, as when approaching cross-roads, it is unnecessary to apply either set of brakes, but merely to raise the foot from the accelerator, so that the engine ceases to puli the car, and, being retarded, acts as a brake. That is the real use of the engine as a brake. The foot or hand brake should be used at need to supplement the retarding effect and prevent the car over-run-ning the engine in driving downhill. Any average modern engine will act as a very efficient brake if the direct drive is kept in service and the engine is throttled down to the lowest revolutions at which it will continue to fire regularly. No matter how steep the descent, little if anything is to be gained from switching off the engine. The lover of efficiency objects to anything calculated to dirty his power plant.

Car with 6 Gears

Electric Change is Secret of Paris Show

A French mystery car was smuggled with great secrecy into the Grand Palais for the Paris Motor Show, which opened last month. The car was brought from a suburb during the night and pushed into the great building when only a night watchman was about. It was conveyed, concealed under heavy coverings, in a lorry. ( A‘ll through the day the mystery car stood near the doorway, under its dust-sheets, without attracting attention, although other cars were arriving and experts were standing about. This car has an electric-magnetic gear-change for altering the back-axle ratio. It has an ordinary three-speed gear-box, but, as there are two backaxle ratios, this makes six gears in all. The car concerned is the Voisin. This firm is not only famous throughout the world for its road vehicles, but is also intimately connected with the airplane industry. For the past year Voisin’s have fitted what is known as the relav. which is really a small additional gearbox fitted in the back-axle behind the conventional gear-box. This has two speeds, which were formerly brought into action by the suction of the engine, but this year an electro magnetic device is being used so that at a touch of a lever the gear-ratio can be altered. % BRITISH EXHIBITS One of the features of the show is the effort of British manufacturers to capture the Continental market. Last year only two English manufacturers exhibited, but this year there is an addition of at least four. Three of those four owe their presence at the Paris show to the enterprise of Messrs. Rootes—who are probably the world’s greatest exporters of motor-cars. Those three are Bentley, Humber and Hillman. The other new British contender is the Armstrong-Siddelev. Bentley Motors are famous throughout France, as they have won the great; Le Mans 24-nour endurance race so often, but this is the first time that the French people will be able to see them at tlieir own motor show. Humber and Hillman have cars that will be able to compete favourably with anything that America can produce on the Continental market. The new Humber “Snipe” sells at a low price and is guaranteed to do more than 75 miles an hour. FASHIONS FOR ALL Bodywork always plays an important part at the Paris Show, and the coachwork section will be as resplendent as usual. Paris sets the car-body fashion in much the same way as it sets dress fashions, and women always congregate at the Paris Show' for that reason.