RACING COSTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 23, 19 April 1927, Page 11

RACING COSTS

PETROL AT 15/- A GALLON Racing has during the last few years steadily become more expensive. By this it is not meant that the cost of participating in speed events has appreciably increased, but rather that the actual running costs of racing cars have increased out of all proportion to touring cars of the same engine size. For example. round about 30 m.p.g. is the average consumption obtained, even when averaging high speeds on a normal 1,500 c.c. car using pure petrol as fuel. In the big international Grand Prix races that have been run during the last year the fuel consumption of racers has seldom been better than about 8 m.p.g. In addition, freak fuels have been utilised containing a large proportion of alcohol and other ingredients, which bring the cost of the fuel to something like 15s a gallon, if not considerably more If a road race is run over a distance of 300 miles, and the cars engaged are only averaging 8 m.p.g., on special fuel at 15s a gallon, the amount spent on fuel alone on each car that completes the race works out at £2B 2s. Comparing this with the cost of running a touring car over the same circuit at an average speed that would be possible on ordonary public roads, we find that 10 gallons of ordonary petrol would be used. It will thus be seen th :t as races have been run in the last few years the motor industry has not benefited one whit in the direction of ascertaining anything which may lean towards the attaining of a good performance, together with a low fuel consumption. The oil consumption also has been unlimited, but it may be taken as being anything from 10 to 20 times as great as that of an ordinary touring ear having the same sized engine.