MOTORS & MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2698, 18 February 1916, Page 9

MOTORS & MOTORING

U3i Clutch.l Ths Mission of the Motor. A great future for the elicao motorcar as an aid to pleasant living is foretold by tlie Now l'orlc "Evening l'ost." As the automobile has grown more common, it remarks, as tne more durable' of the tastes it helps to gratify assert themselves, its truer, quieter usefulness appears. It suffered at first from being a luxury for the few. But it is no longer an implement of fashion, lior a plaything whose interest lies in its speed, but a utility and recreation to hundreds of thousands. Despite the immense sale of automobiles to the farmer, the greater number of cars are owned in the cities and towns; and their owners' chief employment of thorn is to got outside. The most inexpensive cars have become veritable public benefits in raising the standards of health of great bodies of people. If tie price of automobiles decreases in any considerable further degree, clic.ip cars will bo one of the main factors in making existence in our ever more enormous centres attractive by making it less strictly urban. Whether it is mountain, shore, or "the checkerboard squares of farm land" of which Georgo Ade wrote, to which they carry people, they will help to kep alive in us country tastes. Another View—Cheapness Versus Quality. There are not wanting, however, determined opponents of the view that tho price of the motor-car will henceforth show a steady downward tendency. One prominent American manufacturer recently declared himself strongly of opinion that the , era of "price-slashing" through which the industry has been passing is at an end. "We have always believed," he said, "that the demand of the' American public was lor a high-grade quality automobile at a moderate price. The American man wants an automobile that will run, day ill and day out, for a long time, practically without attention. Mo wants a car which will bo economical in its consumption of gasoleno and oil, and easy/oil tires. At the same time he does not want to be skimped on size; he_ wants a roomy car in which his whole family can ride comfortably. Sales arguments as to the number of cylinders in the motor, or tho particular kind of rear axle or fender which a car should 1 have, do not appeal to him nearly so much as tho assuranco of dependable service. This means quality, and wo believe that the manufacturer who skimps qnajity in order to offer-the public a sensational price is making a serious mfstakc. Tho trend of tho motor-car business to-day, in' America, is against low prices without quality. Competition is compelling every manufacturer to produce tho most car possible for the least money. The public will not pay ail" excessive price, but the public does demand quality, and tho fact that an increasing number of motor-car manufacturers are talking quality is evidence, of the very healthy condition of the industry."

Progress in Creat Britain. . The general idea, says an English writer, is that we have made progress in 1915 only with the high speed, high efficiency engine, such as is needed particularly for aircraft work, and such as has figured prominently in the New AVorld, where motor-racing lias been pursued to an extent that more than compensates for tho absence of such trials in the Old AVorld owing to the war on tho Continent. This, however, is too narrow a view. The slow-er-inoving, heavier, and large varieties of motors have likewise been developed to a notable extent in many directions, the chief of which are for marine work, foi' transport by road, and for agricultural purposes. The continual drain on our stock of - horses has not only compelled the industrial community to employ motor, vehicles to a constantly increasing extent; it has also educated the farmer to the possibilities of the | agricultural motor, which 'is already available at a variety of prices for nearily all tho work that has hitherto been done on the land by horses. Aiui whereas most steam utility and agricultural vehicles are largo and heavy machines; another notable feature 01 1915-1916 internal combustion 31131110 machinery.for. these purposes has been tlie making of medium-size, and, 111 somo eases, quite small machines, particularly for agricultural service. Hero simplicity is of extreme importance' not on account of initial cost alone, but because the conditions of employing tho machinery are necessarily in the majority of cases such that the men placed in charge have at present little inherent mechanical aptitude. • Nor are experts close at hand to eke out the deficiencies of such labour as is available for farm work. Of course the mechanical sense will he evolved in less than a generation for agricultural work, even as it has been in other directions in which the motor has been developed.

The Pressure Cauge. To obtain the best and most economical results in the use of, motor tires, it is necessary to keep them always inflated to the pressures recommended by the makers. It is impossible to test the pressure accurately by inspection of the tire, and the ordinary gauge fitted to the pump are in most cases inaccurate, as they talce into account the resistance of the valve. Many pressuregauges easy of application and procurable at a low price are now available to motorists, and there is little excuse for running tires under-inflated. As more than 50 per cent, of tires that are brought under the different makers' notice for inspection show unmistakable signs of being driven under-inflated, it behoves motorists to pay more attention to this important factor in tire life. Satisfactory service from motor-covers cannot bo expected unless tliey are kept hard. Tho trouble is that want of attention in this direction the average motorist blames the tire when it gives trouble through misuse, whereas the responsibility rests on his cwn shoulders. The remedy is to obtain a reliable tire-pressure gauge, and use it. Women Drivers. AY omen drivers are steadily increasing in number in this country, and many of them have attained a high dogreo of efficiency. The same is true of many other countries. In England, especially, and largely, lio doubt, as aii outcome of war conditions, women drivers are increasingly in evidence 011 the highways, and excellent accounts are given of the fasliion in which they acquit themselves. The great majority of them, according to one observer, realise that, oil tho one hand, scorching is bad form, and that, 011 tho other! appearing to bo bored to death does not necessarily give tlio impression that one is an exceptionally competent driver. I hoy are not ashamed to sit up ami give attention to the matter in hand when they are driving a car. It is better so for all concerned, as well as lor.the insohanisiii. With the certainty that motors will be increasiuglv used after the war, because more aild more highly specialised types w jU become available, including many Varieties particularly suitable for women to use without the necessity of their being accompanied by a man, tho call to take cue's uml.or-driviiig seriously becomes imperative. Here and There. Lighting-up time for motor-cars and motor-cycles: To-day, 7.3 p.m.. Next Friday, G. 03 p.m. A novel method of dealing with motor* cyclists who exceed tho epeed limit has

| been adopted at. Los Angeles (California). Instead of fining or iniprkuning tlio rider, the authorities impound the machino for such a term as tlie Magistrate thinks' lit. It has been noted as strange that 1 hough the Americans are booming multi-cylinder engines, sixes, eights, /Hid twelves, they do not use them in' their speed tests. In England the six and twelve cylinder cars were used for speed purposes, and although wonderlul feats were recorded by tlie 12-cylin-der Sunbeam, it has not yet been marketed. Jn the United States speed tests most or tho American machines are four cylindered, the multi-cylinder engines being left severely alone. Is it that iu.i many working parts involve extra n.,5. of something going wrong, in tne ■. :;peed contests? Hie Ameri-oai-K holding their own in i competitions, and in the ■ miles races for the Aster u i> ■ island, the first and sec<mii i. ~.ji American built, averaged " lU - jier hour for the full distance. In tho early days of the war abandoned motor cars were to be seen In conoiderable numbers on French and BelSjmiii roads, especially on those roads leading to the coast. Some of these derelicts -.voro left in perfectly good running order, the evident explanation of their abandonment being inability on the part of their owners to obtain petrol to iexill exhausted tanks. The total [lumber of cars abandoned in this way is said fcu have been large, and not all oi them fell into enemy hands. "Two cars, each worth about £1000, were found by a couple of Englishmen, who ultimately had them shipped across the' Channel. Automobile comfort, according to an American producer, is not dependent ?n wneel-base. Design, ne contends, influences comfort more than wheelbase. "iears ago, the longer the car tile more comfortable it was supposed to be. Consequently the buying public have judged automobile comfort' by wlieelbase because they have been taught to do so by tlie manufacturer's advertising and literature. A close survey of the marifco win show that this method of ascertaining the comfort of ono car over another is going out of uato, because there is a new influence at work to the contrary. Since tho advent of the medium-priced car on the field, manufacturer* have been forced to translate comfort. in different teriss than* heretofore. Design is the deciding element at this time. Any number of examples conld.be cited to show that comfort is not dependent on wheelbase."