ILLS THAT COUNT.

Marlborough Express, Volume LX, Issue 229, 28 September 1926, Page 6

ILLS THAT COUNT.

LEARN FROM EXPERIEN CE. Attention given to- the car at the l'ight tinie might he the means of making your motoring days happier. Too many motorists leave the car to itself for weeks, and while it is npparently running all right, never worry about an overhaul. It is a mistake not bo look oveithe essentlal paris of the car eccasionally. A block in the petrol system or trouble with the electrieal system of the car can causo inoonvcnience which. will enta.il towing to a garnge and consequent expense. Although advioe is given not to tinker with the car, j't is well for ©very motorist to know soniething ahout the mechanirsm of the car. To •learn he has to tinker to a certain extent, but if common sense is used, thejo is little dangei' of causing trouble as the result of tinkering. The average mechanic will often find it difhcuLt to trace the origin of trouble in the car. If you wa.tch him closely you will find that he generally attacks trouble at the carhurettor, and from there he moves to the magneto. After that there is very little to be learnt in the car. The ills which cause the car to stop on the road can generally be traced to the petrol system or to the ignition. CARBURETTOR FIRST. An examination of the ignitior

system, whether it he magneto or battery, will be helpful to every motorist, but few take the trouble te examine the intricacies of these ©V •sentials. The carburettor is generally the first section of the car which has to he understood by the motorist, and the knowledge* of ihe working pnrts of ihe carburettor will often get a driver out of trouble. Bad feed can he readily checked, and every motorist soon learns. that the carburettor ha® to be watched closely. The fnilure of the ignition system, which is more rare, does not ca.ll for the same ,attention from motorists, and consequently when isomething does go wrong tliere they are at a loss to disoover the trouble. The small ills which can cause a total breakdoAvn to the car are nqt so numerons, vet it is often difficnlt 'to trace the exact section of the car which is causing the trouble. The mechanic, although more exiperienced, need not know any more about a car than the owner. Oue thing he does know, and that is the operation of the parts, and by a system of checking he can so bring the trouble down to> its location. An experienced motorist the other day had a breakdown at night time, and immediately thought that the trouble was in the carburettor, as tlie car when it stopped felt as tliough it was not getting the petrol The carburettor was examined thoroughly, and it was soon hstahJished that the petrol was all right. Next was the ignition, and an examination of tlie distributor was made. The battery was in good condition, and a spark was received in the distribiitor, but it didn't seeni to be reaching the plugs. Numerous attempt® to start tlie car failed. Finally it had to be alandoned, as it was difficult to see what wa® wrong in the had light. Next day the car was again examined, and attempts made to start it without success. F'lLED THE POINTS. Finally the car had to be taken to a mechanic, who had the same difficulty in getting it to- start. He went over all the work previously done by the owner, but oould not give a reason why the car would not start.

At last he fiied the points ot tlie distributor and the car started immediately. Such ,ai small ill and vet so stubborn that the car had to he abandoned when she stopped. Even the most experienced driver with a thorough understanding of his oar oould not have succeeded in this instance, or if he had, would have found the trouble difficult to remedy. That is why the car owner should learn all he can about his car while she is. in good running order, and not wait for a breakdown befdre he commences to learn. Many cars will run for years, and will never hecouie so stubborn that after stopping on the road they have to b© abandoned. But the same oxperienoe is likely to. hefall you at any time, iso that you should be prepared for the emorgency. Knowledge of the car is not a burden to carry, and it can be gained hy studyiijg the oar in the back yard. Week to week overhauls may keep a good deal of trouble away, and while you are overhauling you are learning. All the technical reading about your car will not fit you for the job of owner-mechanic. The praetdcal e^peirience is the thing.