HOME-MADE CAR

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 458, 16 June 1937, Page 2

HOME-MADE CAR

BROTHERS’ INGENUITY Novel Features Of Design Press Association —Copyright. j Auckland), June 15. • Ingenuity of design end workmanship of a high order have, been com- i bi nod’ by two young Auckland men in the construction of one of the most efficient home-made motor-cars seen on New Zealand roads. Th" joinit builders are Messrs A and E. > Everton, who were responsible for’ the construction of a number of aeroplanes some years ago. The i motor car, known as the Everson • Cherub, is their latest achievement. | and is 'the result of two years’ work and planning. Trim and workmanlike, the little ; car brittles with novel features. Externally, it is more or less conventional, although ''the streamlined body and sweeping mudguards, follow the current styles of England or America. The driver’s compartment of neat little coupe is also perfectly HLraightforwiard, with a big springspoked steering wheel and controls that fall readily 'to hand. Any resemblance to don|ventional design ends with the exterior of the car. Structurally, it is entirely novel, though tests over rough roads on Saturday were convincing proof of the sound rciasoning behind the design, and the in-built strength that has been achieved!. Aeroplane Methods Used. Aeroplane methods have been followed in the construction of the Cherub. There is no chassis, in the ordinary sense or the word, the stout steel tubes, welded at all joints, that form .'the body frame being used in a. most ingenious manner to carry the engine and transmission units and also the anchorages' of the in-

dependently-sprung wheels. Each of the four wheels is free to move independently of any of the others, a feature that makes for exceptional stability and smooth riding. Mounted at the back of -the frame, In a neat compartment that might reasonably be mistaken for a lug-gage-box, the motor is a single-cylin-der unit of 2| horse-power. It. is a two-sltroke unit from a noted British ] factory, driving the back wheels ! through a three-speed and reverse gearbox. Twin exhaust-pipes lead to two large chromium-plated fish-tails, one on el her side of the back. Welded steel tubes give great strength to the whole of the <far, I which is extremely low-set, the over- | all height being only an inch <*r so more than 4ft. Aluminium panels : have been used -for ihe whole of the bodiy except the coupe tup. v here ; fabric covers the frame. The v hole i machine, ready for tne road, weighs i only 7cw»t. Standard type wheels and tyres from a ' popular make of smtall car are used, these units, 'together with the engine /and gearbox, being the only parts not designed and made by the two brothers. Speed and Economy. Electric-Starters will be fitted to the succeeding models the Everson brothers plan to build. On the present car, however, it is also possible to star’t the motor from the driver’s j seat, thanks to an ingenious device I fitted by the builders'. Visibility I from behind the wheel is excellent, in all directions, and there is ample room for two big men in the car, in spite of its modest 'dimension \ Brief tests made on Saturday showed the little car capable of

about 50 miles an hour on a smooth road, a comfortable .cruising speed being 30-35 miles lan hour. Petrol consumption is said to be in the vicinity of 70 miles to the gallon, thanks to the small engine, which is, nevertheless, a wilLug unit capable of carrying car and passengers over any main or secondary highway likely to be encountered in New Zealand.