MOTORS & MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2859, 25 August 1916, Page 9

MOTORS & MOTORING

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Straining the Engine, Are not motor-car manufacturers and dealers injuring themselves by putting so much stress on the hill-climbing qualities of their cars on high gear! 1 The amateur driver is told that his car can climb anything on high, and naturally he attempts to do it, with the result that he seriously racks his ear by hanging on to the high gear too long, and then takes a week's wear out of the gears in attempting a frantic, last second change, it is exceedingly poor policy, and bad practice as well, to hang on to the high gear on a hill until the engine begins to pound, in the hope of pulling up the last few yards without a change, as this pounding indicates that the engine is being strained in a way that will surely shorten the period or its usefulness. The gear should he invariably lowered while the engine is still pulling freely, and further lowered at the slightest sign of distress. The loss in time resulting from this system of driving can be counted in. secouds, while the increased usefulness of the car is measured by months. Adjusting tlie Carburetter. Carburetter adjusting, while it usually is left to an expert or someone who has had occasion to do the work frequently, often is necessary when no 6uch person can bo found. Carburetter adjustment is not such a difficult task if the operator keeps in mind the fucction of this part, it takes a measured amount of petrol and mixes it with air. If the motor is acting quecrly, due to a carburetter ailment, caused by a faulty mixture, the trouble can be corrected by altering the supply of either the air or tho petrol. It is best to allow tho motor to run while these adjustments are being made. With the motor running at an. idling speed, hold tho hand over tho air passage so the floiy of air is restricted to a slight extent. If tho motor seems to pick' up, then it may bo concluded that it JieeiJs loss air, and if there is an air adjustment, this can be manipulated slowly until the desired opening is obtained. If there is no air adjustment tho fuel nozzle may be opened a little at a. timo until the desired motor speed is obtained. If the carburetter has two jets, each of which is adjustable, the high speed jet should be adjusted while tho motor is running at a fairly good speed. Then the throttle should' bo opened wide suddenly and closed. There should bo mo backfiring or misfiring. Some owners allow tho motor to run and slowly turn tho needle valve first one way and then the other, noting which one gives the better results. It is advisable to make adjustments of'this kind, when the motor is hot. Here and There. Convertible cycle-cars are now being made use of in the French army a® an auxiliary to the Ked Cross cSrvice. The regulation motor-ambulances carrying four men lying are unable, owing to their size and weight, to get close to tho first-aid dressing station. Thus wounded men have to he first brought to the rear on stretchers' before they can be placed in tho motor-ambulauccs. Experiments which have been carried out in the Soissons district with twincylinder air-cooled cycle-cars show that tlioso machines can travel a 3 far forward as the stretcher men can penetate, and that they can bring wounded cases back much quicker than it is possible to do it by hand. As there is no fear of a machine getting into a. position from which it cannot be extricated by a few willing helpers, tho driver of a cycle-ear does not hesitate to gc forward where a motor-ambulance driver would hold back. The machines are twin tandem seaters, with tho motor in front and tho driver at tho rear. Only one wounded man is carried at a time. The stretcher is placed on the top of the body and attached to it by coil springs, so as to give additional comfort, the wounded man having 'his head towards the rear and his.feet over the motor. When weather conditions require, he can bo completely cvvcrctl with a canvas top mounted on a rigid frame. In the Vosges mountain district motor-cycles and side-cars cne rr.ado use of for bringing in wounded men from places inaccessible to the big automobile ambulances. On those mountain passes it is often necessary to travel over mule tracks where there is not sufficient width for an automobile, and where the soft earth would not carry their weight. Tho motor-cycles do this work efficiently. Although it is not an easy matter, means have been found to place a stretcher on the sidecar.

The Wairarapa Association is again urging tlio Railways Department to improve the dangerous railway crossing at tho Bank of New Zealand, Featherston, where several accidents have occurred, and others have been narrowly averted. A hitch has arisen over the land purchase involved, and the association executive decided at its last meeting to urge the Department, failing successful negotiation, to aeouire the land comptilsorily. Mr. P. W. Litchfield, a member of the Society of Automobile Engineers ,- iif the United States, speaking of the advantages of the over-size tyre service, says:'"The average car-owner never' knows what good tyre service is until lie equips his car with tyres one or two sizes larger than those furnished by the manufacturers. Punctures disappear like magic, premature tyro wear and carcass failure become things of tho past, and riding similar to that of a Pulman;car is afforded." He further emphasises the sarins 0 f expense to owners through the use of such tyres, and calls attention to the diminishing liability to puncture as the size of the tyro increases. In this connection great importance is attached to maintaining the relation of load per wheel to tyre inflation, I and tho following figures are given as tile most satisfactory:— 3>i inch: 501b. pressure, 5151b. load per wheel. 'I inch: 601b. pressure, 7501b load per wheel. 'IV inch: Culb. pressure, 9751b. load per wheel. 5 inch: 701b. pressure, 12251b. load per wheel. 5J inch: 751b. pressure, 15001b. load per wheel. Roughly speaking, ifc would appear that a 30001b. five-passenger touriii" car should have 4-I-incli tyres inflated to GOlli. For a 36001b.' seven-pas-senger touring car, the o-in. tyro inflated to /01b. For a 47001b. scvonpassenger louring car, SJ-in. tyres inflated to 751b.; and for a ooOOIIi". scvenpasKcngcr touring ear 6-in. tyres inHated to 7olu. Lighting-up lime-.-To-day, 5.22 p.m. Next l'ridny, a.29 p.m.