Spare the Starter

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 426, 7 August 1928, Page 6

Spare the Starter

Ways Around Cold-Weather Troubles

SUGGESTING that the information would be useful to many motorists, several correspondents have asked that some explanation be given of the reason a car is harder to start in winter, and intimated that hints which might obviate some of their starting troubles would be seasonable.

There are four primary reasons why a motor frequently has to be coaxed in cold weather —and a host of subsidiary possibilities. In order of importance come: The cold induction pipe, to which petrol clings in liquid globules, instead of vaporising and forming an easy burning mixture; thick oil, which is sluggish, and does not commence its task of lubrication as soon as it should, making bearings stiffer, and failing to seal compression; a more-abused, and consequently weaker, battery, drained of a great deal of its power by greater use of lights and harder tasks by the self-starter; and a general atmosphere of dampness about the ignition set, which may partly short-circuit the spark on its way to the plugs. Ignition and carburetion are, of course, the two primary factors in any motor; but it is impossible to generalise more than sketchily on car-start-ing troubles, because, not only each make of car, but each car of each make, has its own habits, likes, and dislikes. Possibly the driver discovers, quite early in the car’s life, just the right combination of adjustments that will make the motor start easily. If he does, he should remember them steadfastly. If he doesn’t, he should endeavour to discover them, by remembering what he has done on. the particular morning the engine has started unprotestingly, and contrast that with his actions on the day he threatened desperately to use a sledge-hammer on the lifeless motor.

very slightly, keep the clutch still depressed, switch on the ignition and press the starter again. When the engine fires, it may be necessary to choke the carburettor a little more; but this should be done for a few seconds only. MAY BE TOO RICH If the engine does not fire easily, repeat the performance, and if it gives a convulsive kick and then dies again, close the choke button entirely and open the throttle more, as there is too much unvaporised petrol in the cylinders, and it needs more air to make a firing mixture. There is a reason for each of these apparently involved, but really simple, actions. The radiator should be muffled to keep cold air from the engine; the throttle closed to throw the whole induction pull on to the idling jet; the carburettor choked to enrich the mixture; the ignition left off to prime the cylinders. Then, having achieved the preliminaries. there is something of a reversal. The choke button is pushed in to allow air to enter, the throttle is opened to allow a greater volume of air than petrol to enter, because the petrol which primed the cylinders will not burn till mixed with air. And the depression of the clutch is important, as it saves the starter the additional task of turning over the transmission gears, which, standing in thick cold oil, are not easily moved. To appreciate just how much effort is needed to set these gears spinning on i a cold morning, notice the way in

Here, then, are the generalities which should be adapted by each driver to his own car, and not accepted implicitly as panaceas for all troubles, because they are observations gathered from consistent driving of only a few of the many cars on the market. First, cleanliness. Make sure the spark-plugs are free of carbon and soot, and that the points are set at the correct gap. If they are too close together the car will idle more easily, but miss at high speeds; if they are too far apart the car may definitely refuse to start. Discover the correct setting for the plugs you favour, and check it occasionally. If the plugs have been in use for more than 10,000 miles, throw them away, and buy a new set. It’s much more economical. Correct setting of the make and break points of the magnet and distributor should also be checked. Cleanliness helps here. too. If there is a ring of carbon joining up the brass segments of the distributor, or if the brass itself is black, get a soft cloth moistened with petrol, and clean the distributor thoroughly. Make sure, too, that the carbon brush is making proper contact, and, in magnetos, that the collector ring is clean. FAULTY INSULATION Rubber insulation of the high tension leads from distributor to plugs may have perished from old age, though it still appears sound. When this happens, dampness permeates the leads, and causes a myriad small shortcircuits in the wire. if the leads are at all doubti'ui, renew them. Check the valve tappets next, for your motor should have every chance to get its fuel at the right moment, ana hold its compression before explosion. If there are any audible clicks from the tappet chamber, have the taijpets adjusted. Back to cleanliness. The carburettor this time, f ree the filter of the rust and fluff it has gathered in a summer’s running. Empty the float chamber of the microscopical dust which collects at its bottom, and give the 1 jets an airing, as there may be some liquid mud in the jet covers. See that wear has not developed air leaks in the connection to the induction pipe, and that the junction of induction, manifold, and cylinder block is also airtight. Use lighter oil in your crankcase, unless the cylinders are very much worn, and drain that oil more frequently, because it is more greatly diluted by unburnt petrol in the winter. Have your battery tested often, and be careful that it gets sufficient water At the first suggestion that it is running flat, have it recharged, and save the possibility of being towed home some cold and rainy night. Keep a fatherly eye on the antics of the ammeter, and if the charging rate seems insufficient, clean the commutator of the generator, and ensure that the brushes do not need renewing. If you do most of those things you will give your motor evsry chance. But do them now if you suspect it is necessary. Don’t wait until you meet the temper-wrecking trouble, which lack of attention will bring. HEAT IS ESSENTIAL As to the actual devices to be employed in coaxing a motor into an easy start —ponder on these. Remember that the efficient and economical operating temperature of an engine is around 108 degrees Fahrenheit, and the temperature of your engine when you confidently step on the starter in the morning is probably less than 50 degrees. Therefore, help the engine in every way to get warm quickly. It may be useful, if you make only short trips, to loosen or disconnect the fan belt, assuming that this can be done without deranging the drive of any other accessories. Cars fitted with thermostats or radi-

ator shutters largely solve the problem of quick warming, but there are substitutes. A piece of canvas can be hung over the front of the radiator to prevent the fan throwing a spray of cold air on to the engine. Or a large piece of newspaper hung from the radiator cap will act just as efficiently. When light cars are supplied with starting handles, those handles can advantageously be used to swing the engine over three or four times, with the carburettor fully choked, and the ignition switched off. This is, in effect, priming the cylinders; but it should be done sparingly, or it may defeat its own ends. Assuming there is no handle, the following procedure should be found effective. Muffle the front of the radiator, close the throttle, choke the carburettor, depress the clutch, leave the ignition switched off, press the starter, and turn the engine over half a dozen times. Then push the choke button in till it is almost closed, open the throttle

which the engine slows down as soon as the clutch pedal is released, and the gears are driven by the motor. WARM IT UP FIRST Allow the engine to run for a few minutes before you commence to drive the car, and do not rev. it up to more than 1,000 revolutions a minute. This permits the oil to take up its task, and raises the temperature of the motor to a point when the petrol is vaporising more successfully, though a long way from perfectly. Possibly the engine will give a few heavy, racing “misses” as soon as it warms. This is caused by the petrol which has clung to the well of the induction pipe being vaporised by the growling warmth and induced into the engine, creating a temporarily too-ricli mixture. Open and close the throttle quickly a few times to counteract this symptom, which is something to be avoided, as the unburnt petrol may leak down into the crankcase and dilute the oil. Probably the easiest starter of all on a cold day is the “municipal selfstarter”—any street which climbs a hill. If you live on a slope, and can get your car on to a reasonable grade of that slope without too much effort, do so. Also, if you halt on a hill in cold weather, point the car’s nose downhill before you stop the engine. That simplifies starting, for you need merely pull the gear lever into top, depress the clutch, switch on the ignition, take off the brake, and let the machine run. When it has gathered a little momentum, let the clutch in very, very gently, and when you come to the foot of the hill open the throttle.

Apparently motors fire at once when started in this manner, though they stubbornly refuse to answer the appeal of the self-starter. Actually, they do not, for if you depress the clutch again before travelling far down the slope the engine will immediately die. But engines do start more easily, because they are under power as soon as the clutch is engaged, and the weight of a car pushing an engine over is greater and more consistent than the impetus given by a self-starter. And a continuous gentle push on the engine down a reasonable slor*o gradually overcomes all the friction and inertia which the drive of a starter motor has to attack and defeat in one quick movement.