IT'S A LONG WAY OFF

NZ Truth, Issue 1216, 21 March 1929, Page 19

IT'S A LONG WAY OFF

Diesel Suitable For Motor-car Not Yet InS ight . V The moment any new development m the internal combustion engine is announced, the "scare article.wr iters reel off columns of highly imaginative stuff about revolutionary changes and what not. (

THEY did this when the Diesel engino was first built on a practical . scale; » and they have been doing it ever since, at convenient intervals. There was a fervid outbreak a few • months ago when the Mercedes-Benz : Semi-Diesel truck was placed on the market. \y\ ■-■..- :y,i-:. But, m spite of all the brain- . storms, the fact remains that the small Diesel engine suitable v for the ordinary car Is still a long way i off.'--" V:- --! 'It is hardly too much to say'Hhat it is not yet even m sight..- Weight is a very impoitant factor iri a car engine, and the Diesel engine is a ponderous . affair m pounds per horsepower. With van engine of big stroke and bore, the Diesel unit functions excellently, eliminating all ignition sysTIKIIIItI rilllll I Itll 111 1 1 111 1 1 1 till II 111111 l■ I 111 111 Ilfll 1 1 1 111 l 11 1 lit! 1 11 ltlll 1 1 tltl i 11111 1 1 1 1 Ilti

terns and carburettors! When the size and' weight are cut down to dimensions suitable for a car, troubles arise. One of the most serious, and one which has so far defied all attempts to overcome it, is that of lack of flexibility. A small. Diesel engine will not idle, nor willt.it produce much power unless running at- a- fair speed. Hence the piesent-day type of gearbox would be quite unsuitable m a Diesel-engined car. A new form of gear, giving practically an infinite number of ratios, would .be necessary. A. lot more water will flow under Victoria, Bridge before a Diesel-en-gined car runs on it, despite- the sen-sation-mongers. One. only, hopes that success will shortly be attained, but flights of fancy will do more harm than anything else. i iiiii ii miii iiiiiiiiitiiiit iiii tjiiiiittiiiiiiiiiirtttiiitiiiiMiJiritiiii tin ii urn ii itnt ii j tiiuitiiiii