MOTORS & MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2431, 9 April 1915, Page 9

MOTORS & MOTORING

[Br Clutch.)

Motor Unions Defended. Recently there appeared in The Dominion a report of a discussion at the Auckland Automobile Association as to the advisability of joining the Now Zealand Motor Union. Some criticism was passed on the union and to this the secretary, Mr. W. Beauchamp Platts, ( makes the following statement in reply:— In a recent issue of The Dominion there appeared some comments by the secretary of the Auckland Automobile Association as to the utility of the New Zealand Automobile Union, and purporting to give the result of an interview with me. The facts are that the secretary called at my office pne morning for a few moments and made an appointment for the following morning to discuss the union. This appointment was not kept by the Auckland representative. and therefore no interview took place. The assumption that the apparently sole use of the union was political is incorrect. It is not in any sense a political body, as a glance at its objects (already fully advertised) will shoiv. The Auckland Association appears to be under the impression that the union must of interfere with local enterprise. , This is not so, the union being formed for purely "national" matters and in this connection I would point out som'e of the several ways in which it has already made its influence felt:— (1) The union has moved in the direction of obtaining uniformity in by-laws of local bodies, dealing not only with motor-lorries, etc. The union asked the mctor-lrries, etc. The unin asked tho Minister to treat it as the Government treats the R.A.C. in England in the matter of conferring with it on all affairs affecting motoring and motorists generally, and particularly the matter of by-laws by giving the union an opportunity of objecting to any by-laws proposed by local bodies and submitted to the Minister for his approval. (2) On the question of taxation the Minister was good enough to hear all that the union had to say on the different methods of taxation proposed, and the proposals made in the Bill of last year, which has not yet resulted in anything, were to a large extent the result of the conference which the Minister held with the union delegates. (3) As to speed limit, the union was able to satisfy the Minister that it is better in the interests of the public to have no defined speed limit, but to leave the law very much as it stands, namely, that the driver of any car is subject to penalties if he goes at a, speed that is excessive, having regard to the traffic on the road and other conditions. (4) The union has been able to bring about a reduction in the charges made by the coastal shipping companies for carriage of motor-cars. (5) The union is also extremely useful in conferring with the Government on the matter of Government roads. It is obvious that the Government is desirous to avoid dealing with Government roads on behalf of one association in a manner that would not be uniform with their method of dealing with such roads in parts of tho Dominion not influenced by such association. (6) The _ question of securing statutory provisions requiring all vehicles to carry adequate lights has also engaged attention, as also has that of the licensing of drivers, a uniform code of danger and other road :signs, and road improvements, etc. • Mr. Beauchamp Platts adds that owing to the war the majority of the matters more directly 'concerning legislation have been 'held over until a more suitable occasion. Hie war has rendered the union active in assisting the Defence authorities in the providing and equipping cars. etc.. for tne front, both for military and ambulance purposes. In conclusion Mr. Platts points out that a remark made by him as to the finances of the union was apparently misinterpreted. What he desired to convoy was that more income was needed—not that a heavier levy would be made—and the increased income would come_ through the few associations remaining outside coming in. West Coast Road. Both the Makara and Hutt County Councils have been improving the portions of the main West Coast road under their control of late. Some of the worst corners in the Ngahauranga Gorge and on the. Pahautanui arm of Porirua Harbour have, been eased and dangerously narrow pieces of formation have been widened. There is, however, still plenty of room for improvement in the road, and there are one or two matters to which attention might be given. For instance, there is a particularly unpleasant corner a mile or so this side of Porirua; Just at the ■bend is a small plaiik bridge which it is necessary to take with the wheels on tho turn, and the effect is to set up a general shuddering through tho car, particularly lighter cars, and put an unnecessary strain on tires and mechanism generally. If tho planking were renewed, or, better still, the bridge were replaod by a culvert, a considerable improvement would be made. At nearly all the corners around the shores of Porirua Harbour there is evidence of considerable wear and tear on the surface. Numbers of county councils up-country are now banking up road corners, and it would 1 doubtless be good business to follow suit on this Btretch of road now that motor traffic is such an important factor on it. A little banking up would enable *he cars to take the corners without skidding, and would enable motorists to turn safely without the wide and dangerous sweep on to the wrong side of the road too often seen under present conditions. The wear andi tear both on the road surface and on the car tiros should also be appreciably lessened. Overhauling a Gar. Although a motor-car may be cleaned at short intervals and appear externally to be in the best possible condition, the mechanism requires to' be periodically overhauled. This is- a long aud tedious job, and should only be undertaken by enthusiastic motorists who have plenty of spare timo and a fair knowledge of the mechanism of a car. Many country car-owners reside far from the nearest garage, and a few hints on tho proper way to overhaul a motor may also be useful to them. It is not only in overhauling the motor that the knowledge will be handy, but in the event of any breakage occurring it is much cheaper to dismount tho damaged part and dispatch it to the workshop for repair than' to send the complete, car, for then tho bill will be swelled by the time occupied in taking apart and reassembling the automobile. For overhauling purposes a large bench and vice are almost indispensable, and plenty of room is also desirable. The bonnet and 1 running boards should be removed, cleaned with' kerosene, and carefully put aside, together with the small fittings, such as spcedmometor, lmnps, and liorn. It is also advisable, while tho engine is in working order, to flush out tho circulating system with a cleaning preparation, a number of which are on the market. In order to do the work properly it is necessary to remove tho body, and if the motorist lacks a block and tackle he should obtain outside assistance. Tho body should be rested on trestles or packingcases, as nearly as possible tne same height as the chassis frame. Before commencing to shift the body a journey should be takou around the car for

the purpose of making sure that all wires connecting the chassis with the body and the petrol pipe (when the tank is under the seat) have been disconnected. The motorist should always replace ovory nut upon its bolt after the parts have been' removed, for if they bo left lying about a considerable amount of inconvenience may result

System Needed. In commencing work on the ohassis it is advisable to remove tho radiator, l.lien the fan, magneto, pump, undershield, and tank. Keroseuo should then be applied with a stiff brush to all parts of the engine, and frame members—in fact, auywhere dirt and grease have collected. System should be observed in dismantling, in order that each part may be assembled in its proper order. The best plan is to lay the pieces in a row, and to begin assembling at the end of the row, working back to the starting point. Each part, with its nuts and bolts, should, if possible, be put ill a box by itself, and for this purpose empty petrol cases are invaluable. With the wheels jacked up the springs should be removed at the shackles, together with the shackle bolts and grease cups. The bolts should, be examined for wear, and all grease passages thoroughly cleancd. In taking the leaves apart, care should be taken to mark the leaves so that in assembling they may not be placed with ends reversed. After being cleaned and scraped the leaves should be treated with a. stiff lubricant and replaced, care being taken to fill tip all-grease cups with good grease. _ In dealing with the wheel and axles it is-essential that the wheel bearings bo thoroughly cleaned by petrol being run through the ball races. After being replaced the wheels should be tested for alignment. In order to clean the differential properly it is usually necessary to take tho halves of the back axle apart. The teeth of the gears should bo smooth and bright. Every part should be cleaned with kerosene and wiped dry, and no interference should bo made with tho bevel adjustment so long as tho drive is reasonably quiet. In worm-driven axles, particular attention should be paid to tho ball thrusts for the drive. If there is any wear, new ones should be fitted. _ ' _ , Any looseness in tho big or little ends should be attended to, the compression tested, and, if> necessary, the valves should be re-ground or new piston rings fitted. The cylinders _ will most likelv be found to have a thick deposit of carbon, and this should either be chipped out with a screw-driver or burnt out with any oxygen flame. _In examining the gear-box the motorist should look carefully to see if the teeth show signs of wear. It is advisable to let the magneto alone 'until it begins to give trouble. The carburetter, however. should- be taken to pieces aud thoroughly cleaned of the dirt deposited by the petrol. In assembling, the joints' should be made very tight to prevent the mixture being upset by the leakage of air. All the old oil should be drained out of the crank-case and a liberal supply of new lubricant inserted. After all the parts, with the exception of the body and the accessories, have been replaced, the engine may be run for a while to see that it goes well, and minor adjustments made where necessary. The owner should go carefully over tho car after the first day's run on the road, to see that none of tho nuts has worked loose, and that there are no split-pins missing. Hints and Tips. The metallio filaments of the modern high efficienoy electric lamps are very delicate, far more so than the carbon filaments of their predecessors. They are also much more expensive, so that, should an epidemic of- breakages set in, it is worth while to go to a little extra trouble .to discover , the-reason. It is most unlikely that the ordinary vibration of the car is the cause, at any rata if the car is modern and the springing is moderately good. In one case a writer in the "Light Car" states that he found an explanation in.the "sloppy" fit of the bulb in the bayonet catch fitting of the lamp holder. It appeared that the resultant looseness and rattling must have conveyed to the bulbs a number of sharp raps which would speedily, shorten the life of any delicate filament. The trouble can be overcome either by pinching the mouth of the holder to make it hold the bulb better or by strengthening the spring behind the contact pegs. Suspicion should be focused in tho latter direction if the light produced should happen to be intermittent. Dirt in various forms is undoubtedly the greatest deterrent to consistently good running of any motor-car, and it is advisable to strain everything—petrol, oil, and water—when filling up. Dirty water is perhaps the least injurious of the three, but even so foreign matter is liable partially to clog the various water pipes and radiator tubes unless a strainer is used. It is good policy once a month or so to empty the radiator completely and put your hosepipe in ' the filler, letting fresh water run right through for two or three minutes. This process clears- away a lot of deposit and rust, and assists the cooling of the engine. _ With regard l to petrol, it is impossible 'to be too careful in excluding dirt. Most tanks have a fine wire gauze strainer fitted at the inlet, some carburetters also have this accessory, and no funnel should every be used without it. It is quite usual also to fit a petrol filter somewhere between the tank and carburetter. The importance of these precautions will readily be seen whon it- is realised i hat a speck of dirt smaller than a pin point in diameter might stop up the jet and rob your engine of all power. Nine times out of ten it is necessary to take tho jet out to clear it, causing you a preventable delay. Hair, fluff and chips of paint from the petrol cans chiefly compose the foreign matter found in carburetters. How it gets there is a mystery, hut the fact remains that it does get where it is not wanted' unless great care is exercised. The safest thing in the way of strainers is a piece of ordinary washleather, which will permit nothing but the spirit to . go through. Here and There. Legal lighting up' time for motorcars and motor-cycles;. To-day, 6.35 p.m. Next Friday, 5.25 p.m Following the mild boom in eightcylinder cars that is being experienced in the United States, rumours are current that one or two motor manufacturing concerns are experimenting with twelve-cylinder engines.. A motor tire new to this market, hut well known in America, is the Firestone, which Messrs. Hatrick and Co., Ltd., are introducing. It is stated that Firestone plant at Akron, Ohio, has been for several years back the largest in America devoted' exclusively to tire making and is ev-Mi now being much enlarged. The Firestone Tire and Eubber Company makes only tires and rims. The rim factory is separato, and is said to be also the largest of its kind. As far as the veil of mystery Surrounding Belgium can be pierced, it would seem that very few of the car factories in that country have been seriously harmed, and there is no reason why manufacture should not be re-' sumed soon after war finishes. According to the annual report of the Automobile Club of Victoria,, its membership is 1412 strong, thus maintaining its position of the body of its kind in Australasia, if not in the Southern Hemisphere. Notwithstanding heavy mid non-recurring expenditure, the profit on the year's operations exceeded £461, which is the more satisfactory seeing that during the term the entrance fee was waived, and from which in the previous year £455 was netted.' Henco it would appear that the club is in a sound position in every way.