MOTORS AND MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 61, 6 December 1918, Page 9

MOTORS AND MOTORING

(By Clutch.)

Economy. '•'•:-. • ■Economy! .is .werydmportnnt'consideration in'connection with the use of Motor-ears e'veif now : tJitif.tli'e war. lias ceased,...TheroVare:' various in which K .'ccqhomies cah.be effected, so as to--compensate, to- some- extent:,--for the abnormal cost of petrol and oil. The carburettor-Ms .the -ihst -point • to ' deal with. -In'most da'ses of cars' which have been 'used .lor it \ 'considerable, period 'it will -be found.that''the,carburettor is'exceedingly.. :w.astefu'l,. and .'that-tha petrol coiisumptiotiv.-has steadily -risen.-,-- The remedy is to time up the-carburettor specially, with "tlib' object'of-getting.the best, fuel r<!siilts,;-iih.djn»g'.it-up to-con-cert pitch. Many motorists v ar.e. quite capable of undertaking this work; others are not.. .The"latter? case"-should go to an expert,ji'liq.is used to dealing with carburettors'. _/An additional.running oi live or six miles., to. iho..gallon has been obtained' in some cases by experts who understand their 'work, ■ An- extra airvftlye is-nnother.method of effecting economy, but. "itsVsuccdssfiil operation' '' depends on the driver, It" tho latter does not take tile-trouble-of--.learning : by. experience the positions- which approximately give -the best results under '-'varying,veircun)stahce¥ ;Ke"had,bptte.r : be. without the appliance: In buying:; a-.new car -the- man-who finds "it necessary-to economise should?make sure that- it.is fitted'with a car.buro.ttar'.'. which has; a .reputation' for- : -economy. . ■' •: - i.v.-.-\ Driving "Hint?.;:''-.;.;..-. .. = ,:.'.';'•."•. '""■• _' Both• 'and-car speed -are important, factorsr'as.;' regards •the'-coh-sumption of petrol.. Tub air .'resistance iiic'reaseis ns -the Sqiiaro of velocity, and, consequently,, at-high car Bpbeds. it takes a great ileal., of power to-overcome .this resistance...-.On the-other hand,-the internal cwn.bVistio'ii engine .works' 'at.'Jts greatest."efficiency; at its normal ■ spe'ed. t'opse'cjuMitly; "frow; an' economy .point -of ■view it" "is to' drive either y.Bty fast .or 'very.'slow.. . -The.motorist .'•should -dri'ye at-a "car speed_ which .-.entails' running the- engine- 'at in or about its:--«ormal. speed;, so "far,--.of course, ns is consistent with:-his-.convehienco'. and w'ith the sifety of'the public..- Ho should.aLsp bea.r in :niind. that to continue too'long on the high' speed is .verj-.'waste-ful of -spiritr. as -the" -engine,.is then .labouring with-- fully open • throttle while the car:istravelliug-.at a slow.-pace. ;It is bettor, to change 'dawn 'and .-.run the •engine : 'atHts-normal'speed". • This'..'wi.ll make a.big tUff.erenc.o. in : petrol, cbhsuniption, and'in many cases, the car, will'actually, travel., faster "than, it'did "when the. .engine was labouring on the higher speed. , ;-" ■-. Here and There, When introducing a small quantity of petrol intoithß.compressiontaps to facilitate startijg operations, "which is usually described as "priming- the cylinders," it is very difficult to avoid spilling the ipetrpl, over-the.-tops'of the''cocks, and about -four times -the" amount '"of '.spirit actually required is, wasted in tho'.' process. A;,very; .cpnyemmt priming device iufoundin a dustrcap covering tne.'valve of an. ordinary-car tj re, the only alteration necessary being to drill-a small hole about one-sixteenth inch in diameter at -the'! extreme'end. "Whilst filling the cap with petrol the hole is covered up, by 'a finger./-'then, by holding. it.:betwee'i the fingers, the thumb is used as' a check valve, for so long'as tha air is excluded from the cap by the .thumb, no petrol can pass.out of the hole. As soon as the thumb is raised a thin and well-directed 'stream posses out. The depression of the thumb "check valve" cuts off the i supply- at 'any required moment, and the-amount of petrol .contained in an ordinary sized dust cap is-'-'snlci'ent to, prime "all' four cylinders of an. average touring-car engine. ' .....

.In "the.trada" there is a distinct tendency, say* an English expert,-to consider that the-air-cooled car is nearer realisation.'than it has ever been.' No doubt ..tlw'.experlence; oi.'.many. car firms who. hiive.; Jieen: .'connected;' 'directly and indirectly,with the production of .aero engines will.have-solved:.many of the problems of .tho' air-cooled engine. 'In an emergency it sometimes happens that a motorist., has to-use his jack oh ground because of its softness or other peculiarity, makes a largo base desirable, if not actually necessary.- . But in the majority- of. oases an abnormally large baso '.woiild bo merely a.nuisance; no one. wants-to be pormancntly burdened with a jack that takes*, up a deal of room in the-tool just because once in a while such' a tool would ' corao in handy, ■ Tho_'obvious answer, to. .this double.demand is.*.jack with an adaptable base. -.: This of itself is hardly - n practicable suggestion; but there is no reason why. we- could not have a: jack with a supplementary base. When-the regular base attached permanently to tho jack is not adequate for the.job in hand,- an additional foot-piece -could bo put in position beneath the regular one and .clamped, in. place by tho turn of a screw. ' .The .motorist, would then have a jack -with sufficiently large-base to got him, ont of-any difficulty in which he may find himself. And when he is safely out, his .supplemental- base is flat, andean be packed 'away'against the bdtty™- .pr- Sl <le. of. his. tool compartment .without occupying, any' great amount.'of space. ~..'. An idea of the tremendous use of the motor-car. in Amerk'.i may.' be gathered trom tho.fact that three of the leading American tyre manufacturers have, during the past year, ..had between, them a turnover of about' "for tyres. Lightnig-np p.m. Next Friday;.-7;-18:D.m-.. .- . '