CYCLE AND MOTOR NOTES.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 57, 8 March 1913, Page 7

CYCLE AND MOTOR NOTES.

According to a cable message from London last week a remarkable speed performance lias been registered o'n llrooklands Track (Eng.), by Mr Percy Lambert, who has succeeded in gaining the long coveted honor of being the first motorist to cram a hundred miles into an hour. Lambert drove a 2d h.p. “Talbot” (bore 101.5, stroke, 110 m.m.), and averaging mile after mile in 34 seconds, he succeeded in covering 1031 miles in one hour. For many years past, efforts have been made by the drivers of the fastest and most powerful racing cars in the world to gain the “century” in 00 minutes, the nearest being V. Hem-, cry’s recently established record of 97 miles 1037 yards in a 00 h.p. car, and it is a feather in the cap of the Talbot people to succeed with a comparatively low-powered car, where others have failed with more than double the power. During Lambert’s wonderful drive he lowered the* 50 and 100 miles world’s records, the respective figures he beat being, 29min 18 4-dsec; Ihr Imin 27 3-5 sec. Further particulars of this marvellous feat will be awaited from England with interest. Despite the growth of the taxi-cab business in England, recent balancesheets go to prove that few of the large trading concerns are making money, in fact, several of the biggest Taxi Companies have had serious losses. It certainly looks as if the onlyremedy will be to increase the charges.

Many attempts have been made from time to time to make a satisfactory “gearless” oar. The gear box is the one part of the anatomy of a car that is most abused, and one that every motorist would like to see eliminated. The latest idea in this direction is the “Itala” variable stroke engine, which recently created considerable interest at the Paris Motor Show. By a comparatively simple mechanism, the stroke of the pistons can be lengthened, and the cylinder capacity thus greatly increased, the result being more power for the time being, such as when climbing hills or starting. On the level, when travelling slowly, the stroke is decreased. This arrangement, if it can be made to work satisfactorily, would naturally be a very convenient one. But these are drawbacks to be overcome. Suppose that by lengthening the stroke the capacity and therefore the power of the engine, can be doubled, or even trebled, it is obvious that if the normal power of the engine is 15 h.p., then, when the increase is made in the stroke, the power will he approximately CO h.p. or -15 h.p., depending upon whether the capacity is doubled or trebled. It is likely that in the case of the average car, the engine would need to be capable of developing at least three times the normal on certain occasions, so as to enable the vehicle to travel anywhere. This means that provision has to be made in the transmission and frame for the stresses set up by an engine capable of developing 15 h.p. Jt is obvious, therefore, that the ear cannot be light in weight, and the greatest advantage of the system is an increase in fuel economy, owing to the fact that virtually a smaller engine can be used when necessary. The road trials of the new typo of Itala engine will be awaited with interest, for whilst the principle is old, it will he now if it works successfully as applied to • the petrol engine.