THE AUTOMOBILE.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LV, Issue 13921, 27 March 1909, Page 5

THE AUTOMOBILE.

THE OIL FREEZES. USELESS ON THE BARRIER. The motor expert who went to Antarctica with the expedition, Mr. B. C Day, gave some interesting details of his experiences with the-car. It will be recalled, says a special to The Dominion, that the use of the automobile as* an adjunct to Antarctic* exploration was one of the features of the British

j Antarctic expedition. The car did { about 450 miles, remarked Mr. Day, m f depot-laying between Cape Royds and I Glacier Tongue. Continuing, Mr. Day said that the class of country travelled over was sea ice, with patches of sijqw which varied from about six inches in depth. He had a bit of trouble with the lubrication of the machinery, find*ing that the oil froze at- minus 30 degrees; that was the lowest temperature at which he had driven the motor. It was absolutely useless to expect the car to run on the surface of the barrier, as the surface was so soft. It was composed of compressed snow, in layers about one foot in depth, into which the wheels of the car sank to the axles. As to the motor, he stated that the heaviest was contained in two sledges, and .weighed about ,1800 lb., in addition to three people. Half the weight was on one sledge, and the other half on the second one. The rate of progress was about six miles per hour, but if the surface was good, the car sometimes did nine or ten miles an hour. Without a load the car could do thirty miles an hour over sea ice. The surface of the sea ice was practically a smooth sheet of ice, the only break in the smoothness being caused by snow flowers, heaps of jjnow about the size of a man's hand, ywhlch made the surface a little heavier." ' y " ' Mr. Day stated definitely that motorcars were absolutely useless on the Great Ice Barrier. No car could 'meet the varied character of the country .tobe travelled, 'and no car could ; be built light enough ,to go over the deposits of snow. He was, of oprnioit that motor sledges similar to those that are to be used by the French Antarctic expedition, under Dr. Charcot, would be very useful in Antarctic exploration. The car taken on the Nimwd had been brought back, and was at thar. moment on the boat T skids. It was not damaged in any wav, 'and there had been no breakages. He explained that when He to start thekjar when working on the ice he had had to warm the engine with a blow-lamp. For work on the ice, he had lightened the car by taking the body off and any gear not necessary for driving purposes.