HERE AND THERE

Shannon News, 12 March 1929, Page 4

HERE AND THERE

In Germany there are no fewer, than 40,000 unguarded level railway crossWorld production of motor cars during 1928, totalled 4,840,000. ' A small American manufacturer of automotive equipment recently spent £3,500 in denying a rumour that his business had been purchased by a rival. It sometimes occurrs that the insulation of the high tension cables loading' to the sparking plugs, deteriorates to such an extenV that" a ! marked improvement in engine operation is effected by replacing ith<£ caWijs' ivith'new ones. Tyres wear out raster the higher the temperature under which they are operated, In hot wointhcr it sary to run the tyres at a lower inflation pressure than in winter.

A hand brake which is loose on its rochet tends, to work itself on whep .the car is traversing rough roads. In all motoring troubles, prevention is better than cure. For instance, occassional checking up of the electric light conditions may prevent the annoyance of the lights failing after, a theatre or dinner party, when one Is not dressed for motor trouble findings It has been said that most of. the people who drive (50 miles an hour to get to some place do not seem to have anything important to do after they get there.

The beefing of the cooling fan should receive .regular lubrication attention. 1 It is the fastest ievolving bearing on the car, and this is a productive source of noise if neglected of oil. Harold Smith, the brilliant. West Australian cyclist, who gained fastest time in the world famed Dunlop road race—-Warrnambool to Melbourne—hi 1925, has been riding very well in’ Sydney lately on the new board track. He recently won the three-quarter mile National Championship and also carried off first honours from scratch in the two-mile handicap, which lie won in 3 min 54sees., thus breaking the previous Australian record (3min. 59 4-5 secs.) made on tile Melbourne Exhibition track by the late Floyd MacFarlane (U.S.A.) away back in 1906/ In view of the varied opinion held, by Australian traffic experts on the subject of ‘off side” road preference, ir is interesting tp note that recently the Ministry of -Transport, England, had this matter under discussion, and the question as to whether traffic com: ing from the right should be given the right-of-way at cross roads, was decided in the negative; in other words it was not approved, and it was recommended that the existing rule that main-road traffic has preference, shall stand. It was proposed that a sign b? erected at points where two, importtan t roads cross each other and that it shall bear the word “Halt” to warn the driver qn the secondary road; also that a white line be drawn across the by-road. It is essential in the interests of all, road users that motorists should realise that it is absolutely necessary for safe driving,, for the peVsori at the wheel to look both to the' right and to the left, before crossing a main road or any other road, irrespective of regulations. While there are not many automobiles in Japan, the tyre business there is growing; rapidly in supplying pneumatic tyres for the native rickshaws.

This fact was stated by Sir George Beharrel, managing director of the Dunlop Rubber Company, Ltd., England, while stopping a.t Seattle, U. S. A.* on his American touri ' The Japanese would not part with their rickshaws,” he said, “so we put pneumatic tyres ,on them. The streets in many? cities are too narrow for motor traffic,' but the recent earthquake remedied that to a great extent. Yokohama is' now rising as a model metropolis with broad avenues and amazing business activity".” .