"TUNING" THE CAR

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 302, 16 August 1932, Page 2

"TUNING" THE CAR

PROPER CARE OF ENGINE WELL REPAYS TROUBLE. There is much difference between a car which has some obvious defect such as a "miss" and one that is, mechanically speaking, in an indifferent state of health, but unfortunately a good many owners are content to let their cars lose tone and sweetness of runing until a point is reached wh'ere some overhaul or adjustment becomes imperative. Anyone who motors for pleasure should have realised the added enjoyment which comes from driving a car which purrs along conteqtedly, free from foreign noises or any faltering 01* sluggishness. It responds smoothly and quickly to each movement of the accelerator pedal, and the i miles fly by without any jarring ini terruption from the back seat passen- | gers, such' as: "What malces her do j that?" When bodies groan ,;and ; brakes squeak, unpleasant tasks afe ' in store, for sooner or later either the ' garage-man or the owner must underJ take the far from pleasant task of j adjusting brakes and tightening up j the bodywork. But provided the . enj gine is clean and has good compression, the duty of lceeping it in tune j is a simple task which should prove almost a recreation to the enthusiast. His principal concern will he to see that the ignition, tappet clearances, and carburetter are all kept in firstclass order, and he is well advised to carry out a general inspection of those parts at regular intervals. Bad Ignition. A poor ignition spark can affeet ignition running adversely, the points of weakness being as a rule the con-tact-breaker, the spark plugs, and the insulated gears. Half-an-hour should suffice to check thefee and to correct any faults. See that the cores of the plugs are not so carbonised that' there may be a leakage across them, and that the faces of the contact-breaker points are clean and not badly pittod. Then examine each lead and renew any which look perished or cracked. The instruction hook of the car will state what gaps there should be at the brealcer points and the spark plug electrodes, and both these should he set carefully with the help of a fesler gauge of the right thickness and not by guesswork or the use of some makeshift gauge such as a visiting card or safety razor blade. Similarly, accuracy of tappet setting is essential. The tappets should be checked when the engine is hot, unless the instruction hook specifically states the contrary, and at all times the clearance advised hy the manufacturers should be adhered to. With valves aud ignition in good condition it needs only -efficient carburettion to ensure good j'erformance, As a majority of carburetter s now have fixed jets, there is not so much temptation for the owner-driver to meddle with their mechanism, but even the setting of the slow running adjustment is best left to a service station unless the motorist really understands the working of the carburetter. He can, to great advantage, clean out all petrol filters and from time to time drain out and flush the vacuum tank and float chambsr with petrol, and also remove the jets and blow through them so as to dislodge any small particles of dirt or globules of water which may have hecome trapped there. Never use wire or any metal object to clean out the jets, and when wiping them before replacing he careful not to employ a fluffy rag.