HIGHER TAXES

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1048, 12 August 1930, Page 6

HIGHER TAXES

WAYS TO ECONOMISE

Since the burden of taxation borne by New Zealand motorists has been still further increased by an additional 2d a gallon on the price of petrol, it is up to motorists, themselves, to economise. Unquestionably motorists, by exercising a certain amount of restraint in speed driving, and paying more attention to the proper adjustment and functioning of their cars, can more than offset the extra cost of petrol by obtaining more miles per gallon than has in the past been obtained.

It is probably safe to say that the great majority of cars in use are wasting petrol and that motorists have not given serious thought in the past to the most economical way of driving their cars. One of the first things that a car owner should clearly understand is that maintaining high speeds is one of the surest ways of reducing petrol mileage. Fuel consumption increases with speed' at a surprising rate, and the life of tyres is shortened considerably. Few motorists nowadays ■ have sufficient patience to limit their speed of travel to 25 m.p.h. out on the open road, yet if the experiment were tried for a month, the difference in running costs between driving under those conditions and, say, at 35 or 40 m.p.h. whenever the opportunity presented itself, would be appreciable. It is said that an increase of 10 miles an hour in speed doubles the rate of tyre wear between 30 and 50 m.p.h. Other important factors that have a considerable bearing on fuel consumption are correctly inflated tyres, for if tyres are insufficiently inflated it j takes more power to propel -the car. consequently more petrol is used. Again binding brakes consume power, while a poorly tuned engine cannot work at maximum efficiency if tappets, valves, springs, etc., are not functioning at their best. Many motorists today are no-t. obtaining the maximum miles a gallon that their cars are capable of for the reason that the carburetter is not adjusted for economical running. Slight alterations in choke, jets, etc., can effect surprising reductions in petrol consumption, without any sacrificing of engine efficiency. Wheel alignment is one of the most expensive defects that motor-cars are heir to, and if tyre wear is irreguVr or unduly pronounced, steps should be taken at once to see if the trouble is not attributable to this cause. There are many minor factors that affect power output, but sufficient have been, cited to bring under -the notice of motorists certain methods of increasing the mileage a gallon and thus avoiding the extra cost of petrol by increasing the efficiency of their cars.