MOTORS & MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 198, 16 May 1919, Page 2

MOTORS & MOTORING

(By Clutch.) The Trend in America, The effect of tlio war upon the United States motor industry, according to r.n 'American' writer, has teen to f;ive, not ro much a better knowledge oi design,, but a hbttcr knowledge of mimufacturing jnetliods, better mrtlioiis of innkiug parts, (juickor and.more accurately. It has learned how to produce good units in quantity. "But," he adds, "while the industry was aiiiiking engine; and tTitcks and iiassenger cars and tractors and trailers aud what not, it was also busy observing, and the. observations havo taught it much. While (hero was rot time (luring the war to nut the knowledge thus gained to useful purpose, tha next few months will see the engineering departments working at top spsed tn verify, their observations, and the whole -conglomerate mass of data obtained during the past years will be reflected in the next crop of oars. Briefly, thoso cars will be much than the. present ones; they will use more aluminum and pressed steel parts; they,.will have better bodies, be more comfortable, far more economical, cheaper in price, ,and. show, general refinement in detail all through. Engines will bo better lubricated. They will run hotter and more of them, will uso thermostatic ■ control. Ignition will certainly be improved, bearing trouble will- be a thing of the past in these en- j gines,. because of what has been learned about making bearings and oiling them, There will be a. few changes in clutches, in transmissions, or in axles, wheels of the disc and wire types will attempt a fr&sh drive toward universal adoption. 1. Car Delivery and Aviation. Motor-ear manufacturers, the London "Financial News" observes,- ure gradually settling down to peace-time conditions, and several announcements are made of post-wa-r models in the anticipation of soon being- able to meet the Demand, which in some cases is impatient at the delay and unreasonable. The manufacturers are bravely grappling with the change-over problems, which mean h complete alteration' of the workshops ana sto-ft's. Some manufacturers have been exclusively employed on munitions t|U(.to foreign to the motor trade, everything in the workshops having to give way to war requirements. To get back to manufacturing motor-cars and commercial vehicles as speedily as possible is the aim and object of nil tho established motor-car manufacturers, and not a few engineering firms are - turning tiieir attention to the manufacture of inotor-car and aircraft engines. The iiriprovc-ments in the motor-car occasioned by war experience necessitate new machinery which, requiring absolute accuracy, lakes time to design and manufactured U is questionable whether many firms will attempt the production of the complete car in their own workshops, though the tendency is towards the manufacture of one type of chassis enly, adaptable to pleasure car and commercial vehicle. Indeed, the manufacturers of aero engines are hopeful of an engiut , capable of the , trio ssrvice. Whether the motorist accustomed to the'highest grade of car will be satisfied with motoring only, or will go in for aviation as additional recreation, remains to hi seen; but if. would st'ein Ihiit aviation.is going to be ii keen competitor, and it will bs interesting to see which .offers the best inducement. In any case the owner of an aeroplane will scarcely be permitted Iα keep it at home it'Uiving in town, and in the country there will bo fixed stations for starting and landing, so that an aviator will also require a motor-car, no other form of land locomotion being so expeditious and comfortable Here and Thero. It is hard to restore . blemished kluminura to its pristine lustre; especially is it difficult to get the.frosted finish back again. An American trade journal recommends the following: "Try dipping the aluminum parts in a bath of- water slightly acidulated with sulphuric acid, allowing them to remain in the fluid for some time." ' . Dou't let your motor pound. On" hills this, is'generally due to the- spnrk beingtp> far. advanced, and if the retarding of the spark does not remedy it one should look for loose, crank-shaft bearings or a loose flywheel. Pounding will soon loossn a motor, and should be remedied at once. When the crank-shnft turns over with a steady and unusual' resistance it probably means that there is a deposit of gummy eubstritice under the piston rings.. This may be. removed by putting an ounce or two of kerosene through (he pet-cock of oiio cylinder at a time .and running tho engino with the spark plug wfre disconnected to that cylinder for a few minutes. In the official announcement of the inaugural meeting , of the newly-formed British' Motor/ League it is • stated that the league offers for a nominal subscription; "nil organised force for obtaining the. redress of all injustice to motorist'*, anl is lighting for equitable taxation, tho maintenance of good roads, fairer laws, driving licenses freed from endorsements , two years old, cheap and good motor fuel; mi.l the democracy of motoring." High speed shortens the life of a. motorcar. When.you double the speed of-youV car you far more than double the force ■"of the shocks to which it is subjected. ' Kven when reasonably clean water is used in the truck's cooling system scale is certain to form in time, and for this roason the system should be-dminnd ence a week aud flushed out with clean water. A simple compound for use in tombating scale is made from six pounds of washing soda in five gallons of boiling water. Pour this into the radiator and use it for a day, then drain and flush tho cooling system well with clean water and then refill. Where pet-cocks arc provided they may be used to detect missing cylinders. Open one at a time and look for flame. If no flame is seen open throttle and speed up a little. The. cylinder may bo missing at low throttle. If no flanie is seen with throttle opened the cylinder is missing. It.is hard to believe that In 1800 there werp but four automobiles in the United States. ' ' . In detecting "dead" cylinders, some drivers prefer to hold down one-vibrator at a time, nothing the effect, on the engine. If tho engino slows down it js a live cylindor. If no effect is produced it is a. dead cylinder. This is the same reasoning as we use when short-circuiting tlio plugs, with a screwdriver. The statement of J[ajor-General Seely in the House of Commons that we have under construction, conceived by a brilliant brain, aud entirely novel in type, , an aeroplane that,, it is estimated, will attain speeds hitherto (juito undreamt of, and having qualities of a kind dilferent from anything wo have ever seen, is cone'tusivo proof (says an exchange) that Great Britain intends to maintain her supremacy of the air, despite the frantic Dflorts of American aviators to snatch the laurels by one-miniito speed contests. Tho Liberty engine was heralded in typical Yankee style, and wo wero told that nothing on earth would equal it. Yet its achievements are practically unheard of, siivo that it is found to be convertible to tho motor-car, which- is perhaps ii happy rotation for tho disposal of the thousands of Liberty engine's made for. the liberation of the world. All the same, credit must bo given to our cousins for speeding up the plilegmatio Britisher, who may havo continued tho waiting policy, i Lighting-up time; To-day, .1.43 p.m.; next .ftiday, 1.37 p.m. . .