HIGH ROAD AND BY-ROAD

Waikato Times, Volume 102, Issue 17008, 22 January 1927, Page 20 (Supplement)

HIGH ROAD AND BY-ROAD

fßy “Crank.”

ON BUYING A CAR. In considering the purchase of a new oar the first thing- which must he decided are the size and cost of the vehicle which the prospective owner can reasonably afford. It. is, of course, generally understood that items of expenditure such ns the insurance and tax increase (roughly) in proportion with the rated horse-power of the engine, while, again, the bigger the car the heavier becomes the expense of petrol, oil, tyres, and, possibly, garaging. Consequently, the prospective purchaser, although naturally wishing to obtain a car of sufficient power 1o give him a good road performance, must limit his choice not only in accordance with the easity ascertainable list price of the car, but also with an eye to what it will cost lo run. Accurate figures as to running costs arc not very easy to obtain, chiefly because so many motorists do not trouble to keep any exact account of their expenditure, and really do not know just how much a car is costing them.

The expense of running a car can he divided into running costs and standing charges. The first of these includes petrol, oil and tyres, and expenditure in these directions can quite readily be. worked out on a mileage basis. Tiie most important of (he standing charges are fax and insurance, and lo this must be added the cost of garaging. Many people are fori unale in possessing a garage built on. their own premises, in which case a ear can be garaged for a year at the expense of perhaps only a few shillings on (he rates, while others may have as much as 10s or even 15s per week for a lock-up in a public garage. There, are various small sundries the expend.ilure upon which depends upon the amount of work which the owner is willing to do himself. For example, to get a car washed and polished costs about ss, and this item alone may easily run to £lO or £l2 per year if the owner never does the job himself. There is also the cost of getting the car greased and replenished with oil, etc., but work of this kind can quite easily be undertaken even by the most inexperienced of owner-drivers. Repairs and overhauling should, in most cases, cost nothing during the first year of a car’s life, or, say, during the first 8000 miles. At the end of this period a certain amount of overhauling may be necessary, but at a cost of only a few pounds it should be possible to put the car into such good trim that it will cover a further 5000 or 6000 miles without trouble. The best time at which to sell a car and replace it with a new one is matter for considerable debate; it is certainly true, however, that it does not pay to keep it so long that extensive repairs and repainting are necessary before anything like a reasonable sum can be obtained in a resale. Of course, if the car is of the really expensive class, the finish and the mechanical parts will stand up for a considerably longer time than those of a cheaper vehicle.

SOME MOTOR HISTORY. j 900. —Motorists quit steering with a broom handle. 1903. —Engine was moved from under front seat, much to driver’s re■licf. , , 1 905. —Petrol waggon entrance to tonneau abolished. Many could not get, used to the change. 1909. —Left-hand drive adopted. It was formerly the custom to drive with both hands.

1911, —Self-starter invented. Doctors looked upon it as restraint of trade. 1913. —Vacuum tanks appeared under the hood and under the driver’s hat.

1915.—Fabric universal joints introduced. Reformers tried to have them closed. 1917. —“Down and Out” finance inaugurated. Pay so much down and drive out. 1925.—F0rd changed models.