REPAIRS TO A CAR.

Waipa Post, Volume XXI, Issue 1210, 25 February 1922, Page 5

REPAIRS TO A CAR.

CLAIM FOR PAYMENT.

MANY DEADS INVOLVED

At the Magistrate's Court on Thursday, Ibefore Mr H. A. Young, S.M,. (Holmes Bros. (Mr Swarbrick) 'claimed from Kenneth Thorns the sum of £297 for repairs to a 1910 Cadillac car and affixing a Smith Forma truck to it. A counter claim for £375 was involved. The claim, said Mr Swarbrick, was for alterations made to a passenger motor car to convert it into a motor lorry. Plaintiffs were agents for the Smith Forma truck. Defendant Thorns was driver of a motor lorry, and was often in and out of the shop, and having frequently inspected a Forma truck asked to have it attached to a Cadillac body. All the time the work was in (progress Thorns was in and out of the shop, and though no terms >were mentioned, and though engine repairs were stipulated and carried out, Thorns when pressed to pay made no complaint re workmanship or charges, alleging only inability to pay. Mr Oliphant stated that the defence was that the work was done, but done so negligently that the truck was useless.

Mr Swartorick said that most of the money owing was for benzine supplied. "William Henry Holmes, garage manager for plaintiffs at the time the work was done, stated that Thorns, having seen two Smith Forma trucks in the garage, gave an order for the conversion of it and an old model Cadillac to a truck at £147. The 'firm was instructed to repair the Cadillac engine and gears. The differential gear was broken, and fresh gears were cut in Auckland at a cost of £22 Is 6d, including the firm's profit of 10 per cent. The many small items particularised in the account were for material taken out of stock. Regarding hack saws, the frame constituted the tool, the -blades being refills and of no use after having been used on a job. The engine was painted at defendant's request. The item of £7 16s was for work done (by Helier in Hamilton. A new carburettor at £5 5s was installed at defendant's request. Plaintiffs' agents had charged them with £8 15s insurance premiums on the car, which they now sought to Obtain from defendant. Defendant seemed pleased with the truck, and delivery was made in May. Thorns said he would pay for the truck in three days. Knowing him personally witness did not mention a lien on the truck or other guarantee of payment. Thorns after delivery expressed himself as pleased with the truck, and even went so far as to say that when it was paid for he would order another. On one occasion he saw the truck pull 30 cwt of sand out of a pit. It was not until sued for payment that Thorns complained of the workmanship.

To Mr Oliphant: Onion was present when the sand was pulled out of the pit. Witness had been doing repair work for eight years. This work was done under the supervision and instruction of Gibson. Witness did not tell Thorns that he was going to get the best job in Te Awamutu for £l6O. The work was not done for four months, not because of delays, (but because Thorns said he did not want it till then. The price of a Smith Frma attachment in Te Awamutu in April, 1921, was £147. The truck was not given a trial run on the road before delivery. The position of the benzine tank was agreed to by Thorns, who, however, never utilised appliances in conection with it advised by witness. Armitage and witness' ibrother Ernie were young mechanics, and their work was all supervised by Gibson. He would value the truck 'when it left the shop at about £4OO. He was offered it for £l5O, but the offer was made /by the man owing £297 10s on it. He would not be surprise dto hear that the truck was sold for £l5O outright, or that it would cost £IBO to put it into order, because it had been six months on the road. Everything was tightened up when the car left the shop, but on a second-hand r tightenings-up were necessarily periodical.

At this stage His Worship suggested that it would shorten ,proceedings if defendant would admit that the work was done.

Mr Oliphant Objected that a general overhaul had not been carried out. Robert Wilson Gibson, engineer, with over twenty years' experience in Glasgow, and outside and shop foreman in Auckland for four years, stated that the Cadillac car (brought in by Thorns was a 1910 model. The differential gears were smashed, and the engine much worn. He had seen the account, and the whole of the work there set down was done at reasonable charges in his opinion. To Mr Oliphant: The car when it came in might have been worth £SO. When it went out it should have been worth more than £l5O. A week or two after delivery witness saw the car at Te Rahu, and a stud had carried away. Witness did not say that that was what came of employing boys, or that the car would not have gone out of the garage if he had known. The effect of a low-placed benzine tank might be that on a steep grade the full capacity of the tank might not toe available. Witness timed the magneto, and found it correct, and tightened down the main bearings. The engine could still knock if the bearings were tight. Bends in the induction pipe were to clear the steering gear column. They would not matter. Armitage's work required overlooking. Each workman gave in his own time. The steering column was not repaired nor overhauled, although it was taken down and re-as-semtoled.

To Mr 'Swarbrick: Thorns was advised that the new carburettor would not be fully efficient without special appliances. Ernest Holmes, a partner of Holmes Bros., stated that Thms was frequently in the garage, and said, in the presence of Gibson and himself, that he was ©leased with the work. He said in regard to paying for the car that he would "fix up with Billy," witness' brother.

To Mr Oliphant: When Gibson was away Armitage and witness were alone on jobs with the exception of William Holmes.

Deighton Walden, traveller for Smith Forma trucks, stated that on 18th July, 1921, the price was £145 in

Wellington. On one occasion, with Holmes, eleven weeks after delivery, he heard Thorns say that he was perfectly satisfied with the truck. To Mr Oliphant: Witness took it that Thorns meant the complete outfit and not the attachment only.

Henry Vivian Holmes, one of the plaintiffs, stated that on two occasions he saw Thorns in the shop. About six weeks after he got the truck he heard Thorns say the outfit was all right. Thorns never queried the charges. Mr Oliphant said that the defence was briefly that the truck had proved absolutely useless [to tote client, wh

had had to dipsose of it. Kenneth George Thorns, formerly a carrier, now a labourer, stated that he had owned a four-cylinder 1911 Cadillac, a second-hand two-seater with a light truck body. He bought it early in 1920 from W. 'Gomez for £IOO. Holmes Bros, agreed to overhaul the car, put a truck body on it, and guaranteed one of the best jobs in Te Awamutu, not to cost more than £2OO, probably under. In addition to the amount now claimed there was an account for £47 10s for a body. Witness took delivery of the completed truck on the road in front of the gar* age on 24th May. The job was far from satisfactory. The engine would not pull and made a noise like a steam tractor. The first trouble arose on Taylor's Hill, when Gibson had to come out. He had expected the tank to be in working order when he paid for the job. Witness had 'been fourteen years among oli machinery. The induction pipe froze on frosty mornings owing to too many (bends in itWitness had not effected any repairs save during stick-ujps. The thrust fork of the clutch was put in wrong way about. This was detrimental to the gears. He put that right. The stud holding the manifold and exhaust pipe drew out. Gibson said that that was what one got from trusting boys in garages, and that the truck would not have left the garage like that if he had known it. Witness had had a good deal of trouble with the carburettor, and the induction pipe leaked. This was repaired with adhesive tape, whereas in witness' opinion it should have been a face joint packed with asbestos. Through defects in the truck witness lost contracts,, one of £72, with the Waipa Timber Co. The car was driven to the garage for fitting the truck. This was impossible if part of the carburettor was missing. He could only surmise that Holmeses had lost a part. They induced him to put on another carburettor, which lae found did not suit the Cadillac engine. The steering gear was very loose, had never been overhauled, and had never been off the chassis. Witness had to pack the pillar on the road with (bits of steel. Looseness meant extra wear on tyres and danger from skidding. The reason some parts became loose was ibecause ordinary, and not spring, washers were used. He had also to get the magneto re-timed by Brown and Maedonald. Witness lost £3OO through the disabilities of the car, including the closure of a firewood business'. Witness offered Holmeses the truck for £l5O, and also to pay the account for £47 for the body. The truck was finally sold for £l5O. The item of £2O was for lost time caused by defects in the engine. The item of £IOO consisted of the £72 contract with the Waipa Timber Co., and of firewood and sand-carting lost Witness had entered into no contract with Holmeses for payment of interest. To Mr Swarbrick: Pomeroy's account should be included in Holmes' account. He -got his first bill a week after he got the truck. Witness queried some items, and Holmes said ihe would see about it later. The job was to have taken six months, but took twelve. If four witnesses said he had made no complaint he would contradict them. Holmes on one occasion said, " No, that's right. We can charge what we like." To Walden, witness was speaking only of the Smith Forma truck. The truck was not supposed to be a 30-cwt truck, though on occasions he had taken 26 cwt and 33 cwt. All trucks had a 'SO per cent margin of freight weights, tout the truck was a 20 cwt truck. He considered that "first-class order" meant making the car fit to do work. If the position of a tank adversely affected the running of a truck he would consider that overhaul should include replacing it The induction pipe was guaranteed to be satisfactory with the iStromberg carburettor, but it was not. The reason that the stud came out was because the thread had been overscrewed. The metal was bright and it was new work. The nut on it was square, and there was no washer of any kind. He would dispute the statement that the carburettor was broken when it went into the garage. With any ibreakage in the carburettor the car would not run. The steering column was a vital point in any overhaul. He had given particulars in his claim of only 23 hours, but the claim for ten days' work on the car was justified, as he had lost that amount of his own time over it. Witness did not take some of the repairs to Holmeses because they had failed to put the car right after several trials. While run by him for four months before transformation the engine ran well, at least 50 per cent better than Ibefore Holmes Bros, overhauled it. John Ernest Redgate, farmer.of Te Rahu, stated that he knew the car. Thorns was to get financial assistance from witness if the car proved satisfactory. It did not. Witness went in with Thorns to see it run. The engine made a clicking noise. Later at Te Rahu witness heard Gibson, after looking at the car, say that that was the result of having boys on a job. He did not come forward with financial assistance. To Mr Swarbrick: He was not an expert, 'but the noise the engine made, and the fact that it would not stop or start, was enough for him. It would not pull out a boxthorn hedge. The wheels went round, but there was no result.

Hewston James Armitage, motor mechanic, of Te Awamutu, employed at Holmes Bros.' garage in December, 1920, remembered the Cadillac car brought in by Thorns for overhaul and the attachment of a Smith Forma truck. A boy, E. Holmes, and witness were on the job. Witness had the most experience. One of the cylniders was cracked. He heard Gibson an.] Holmes talking about it. It was replaced cracked. Holmes and

Gibson, when witness was present, told Thorns that a Stromberg carburettor would give more mileage than the old one. Witness heard Thorns ■ask what the whole job wou'ld 'cost. Holmes said under £2OO, and that the truck would carry 30 cwt. Gauze over the breather hole was mislaid at

(Holmes Bros'. The effect would he for dust to get into the engine and cut, the cylinders and bearings. Witness had had live years' experience, and was competent to do the work.

William John Bailey, motor engineer, with an engineer's certificate and two years' experience of motors, a partner in a Hamilton firm, said that Thorns came to see him about (buying a truck at Te Rahu. Witness did not think much of the truck. He turned the engine and felt that it was no good. The hearings were all slack, and the number of bends in the induction pipe was a bad principle. The magneto drive could have been improved upon. When his staff saw the truck they advised him not to buy it, hut he offered to take it and £l5O in (part payment of a tractor, which defendant agreed to. Subsequently witness swapped the truck tor a car, and had since had £SO worth of turning work from its 'present owners in connection with it. To Mr SwaHbrick: A 1910 Cadillac was an old model. Cadillacs were the best wearing cars that ever came out of America. Witness had no faith ;n» converted cars as a ttn.a.'ica.i principle. It wr." impossible f-.-r tiim to give an opinion on ttie charges without having seen the car b"fore the work was done.

To Mr Oliphant: The steering gear would be included in a general overhaul. There was nothing better than the old type of carburettor, as fixed. The straighter the induction pipe the better.

To the magistrate: He considered the tractor worth £4OO. He took £l5O cash and the truck, valuing the truck at £250. He swapped the truck with Russell's motors On a basis of £2OO value. The tractor had not cost him £4OO. The truck was still ibeing overhauled.

Thomas Launcelot Dalziell, foreman motor mechanic in Russell's motors. Hamilton, stated that Russell's motors were the present owners of the car. It would cost about £l5O to put into repair. The condition of the car in Bailey's garage was 'practically a wreck. The engine was in a bad state, the gear box very bad, and the differential practically done. The induction pipe was a crude sort of thing connected with bits of plumber's gear. It had sharp bends in it which would prevent the flow of gas. The car was now being re-fitted with the original carburettor and induction pipe. 'He would consider £sl cheap for a complete overhaul. The magneto drive was not the best in the condition of the car when he first saw it. The magneto was on the engine, and the shaft to the chassis. In road shocks the engine, which 'was swivelled, would give more than the chassis, so that the drive chain of the magneto would at times be tight and at times slack. The work put in on the car had a crude appearance. To Mr Swarbrick: The gears put on by Price were still good, but the spindles were knocked about. This might be through running without oil, which showed gros's incompetence on the part of the driver. He had replaced the tank below the chassis, but had put in a vacuum tank also. To Mr Oliphant: The way in which the Stromberg carburettor was put in looked like a temporary job. To the magistrate: His firm would have spent £IBO on the truck when it was overhauled, and they had signed np a man to pay £SOO for it. When they got it its exchange value would be about £3OO.

At this stage the case was adjourned until 23rd March.