THE MOTOR AND CYCLE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 282, 7 May 1915, Page 7

THE MOTOR AND CYCLE.

NJAVS A-V1) XOTE.-i. The armored motor ear is playing a big-jcr part in the war than most people mollis part 1 of the world.are aware, and even Liussia is largely using speciallybuilt armored cars, had as the roads arc in Poland and lOast Prussia. .Most of these vehicles have been made in I'.ng land. Hue order of forty-eight armored Austins has already been delivered, and thev have rendered great service 111 tile tiring line.

Throttle driving is an art which i:> not KUliicielltl.V practised. The average motorist does jar more of his pulling i"p for corners and obstrnetions by means of the brake pedal rather than the acee I, crater pedal. In some cars the throttle has a better retarding ell'e.'t than in others, and the light car in particu'ar lends itself to this type of speed control. 11l fact, it is possible, as we have proved, to cover an entire journov .without once depressing the brake pedal, and ail expert driver, whose handling of a. car is a. joy to see, told us not long ago that his use- oi brakes is very slight; he reserves them altogether for emergencies. r l his. ol courke, is carrying tin; method a, trille too far for the ordinary man. At' the same time, if motorists realised the great saving which can la; accomplished in tyres by' driving as much as possible oil the throttle, and resisting the impulse to press the brake pedal on all occasions when a slow-up is desired, they would pay more attention to the subject.

The discomfort of driving in a motor with the legs in a. cramped position is very trying, and, practically speaking, no attempt has been made to deal with it up to the present. It is absolutely

absurd to expect the same seating position to suit men with long legs and men with short. Not only does it result in discomfort, but the driver has not nearly as good control as if the seat were situated to suit the length of his legs. Rutins reason we think that the driver's seat should be adjustable, to some extent, lore and aft. No doubt eventually this arrangement will become standard, but at present there is very little indication of the manufacturers turning their attention to it, and yet it is a point of great importance. In the ease of a. very tall mail, 't|uite a number of the cars on the market are practically impossible, and the choice in such cases is given to those ears which have a reasonable distance between the front seat , and the operating pedals, and even at the best the duivor is most uncomfortable; in fact, in some cases it necessitates a special body being fitted, entailing increased expense oil the part of the purchaser.

It must be apparent to everyone, says the Cur (England) that further large supplies of motor vehicles are needed f'or tlie work that lies before tlie Allied armies in France this spring, and the inevitable wastage of war requires to be made good in ears, lorries and drivers. The manufacturers are making every ell'ort to meet the demands of the ftovernment orders for cars in regard to the first-named two; but there is also urgent need for a large number of capable and skilled mechanic-drivers. The War (lllice authorities are now asking for the service of men with military experience; such men, as we have already seen many times, are worth their weight in gold in cases of emergency. Apart from the drivers of public motor conveyances, of taxi-cabs and of commercial lorries, there must have been in existence, at the outbreak of war, some 150,000 drivers. Many of these men have offered their services, but there arc! many tlionsa?uls who a,re still employed in private service. A certain amount.of selfsacrifice may he entailed in parting -with a trusty and valued driver, but it is time when such personal considerations must be put aside. There will be 110 necessity for eurtailing the use of a private ear, for tlie Royal Automobile Club has undertaken not only to superintend the arrangements connected with the enlistment of a motorist's present driver, but also to replace him by a qualified substitute. The patriotic action on the. part of the club ollieials mitigates tlie inconvenience caused by losing thfi driver, and every owner should realise his duty and .persuade his driver to respond to the "War Olliee's urgent appeal.

There are certain motorists who rather run amuk on the petrol economy question and literally sacrifice.-their 'pleasure in their keenness to pet an extra few miles to tlie gallon. It is one thing to have a carburetter so set that the petrol consumption is reasonably adapted to tlie conditions under which the emis run and. another to literally starve one's engine for the sake of economy. . A starved engine, after all, is not a pleasant thing to control. Kase of starting must be abandoned; smooth, sweet running at low speeds must be given up, and, ill fact, one, has instead ail engine "nervy" and erratic as ail ovcr-traineil horse. There is reason in all things; let the adjustment be such that the engine is pleasurable to run. lAfter all, that is the. main object for which one motors, but according to tlie views of some of these faddists, it would appear that ;i. lnufpeu'.iy or two saved in a run is worth, ail tile pleasure in the world. I The boast that a car is doing so many miles to the gallon, heard on the lips of so many owner-drivers, is a vain and unconvincing thing. .So long as consumption is normal—such, for example, as the makers will suggest, or even a tviile. under'.that a figure—a man may lie satisfied that lie is getting good results, and, if he is wise, leaves tlie fetish of achieving remarkable results to the ultra-faddists. On the other hand, one hears complaints of abnormally big consumption, and here the owner is well advised to pay spivial attention to the matter, for it is not only a question of tlie expense of additional petrol, but it points to something radically wrong. The engine should be overhauled, valves , ground in. tappets adjusted, etc.. and the carburetter, if need be, sent back to the. makers for adjustment, although in ■ ihe-e days of clever mechanics this rarely becomes necessary, us ill most towns there is at least one garage which spe- .j cialises in carburetter adjustment. An 1 owner should, never rest content if bis j petrol I'ousumptiou exceeds a reasonable t ligu.'v. On the other hand, if a reason- I a'elr figure is achieved, let well alone and | re-:, easy. The economy maniacs have I I little to gain and a great ileal in use.

■ Tie (Milling: 'power of some of the buj motor eyries marketed is well nij.'h h-eivdibV. in Ameriea recently two i ill ni'dor eyries wel'e couplrd si*U» bv •••:•:t• oy j'o.'U and then !iif rlied lo an <,r dijUVV \;l 31 V, illi.O \V ll \* 11 crowded shi v-lwo people. Tile niot;i;- >'Vi'lc milled j ];e load of nearly iiw i : a dHaiv:' o!" iv.'cl!! y-e!idil mil-M a l -. fll • I-; r'.mnivy reads. | j " H'irr wit'; I wa ; emp!a\si>in!* {iu; ; : :i• r : --:rrt lamp i':'i'iris i:i eon- ■ ' l l l ' : W : i : t dl.-flvrd ucci. ','liMle (i-'IIV.-; ; 'a<; ;c writcfi. ::nd !in- vexi day I m<d I Mil i;i::t-!i 1 ho i-n;;i;nTd Vv it h a, 'loinr-

made device two yours old, though the owner used it to li;»ht tin; gas obtained from an ordinary <!rij> generator. On tin! front down tube of the machine was mounted an i mirii'ons switcliblccl;, to which the cable from 0110 of flic magneto high-tension terminals was Icnl. 1!oi:ihI the ]:',niji burner was lixed a large vulcanite insulator, fitted with two bare wires, the tips of which just failed to 'touch above the acetylene burner. When tin; switch button was depressed in riding, the ignition current was diverted from the usual short wire to the s>ps! rising l>'>ig, and was despatched along t!:e lengthier cable, which incorporates 1 lie jump spark gap at the Inirnor, Tho owner reports that the device never fails to light his lamp within a few ttftnmh of turning on the generator drip, and that he has encountered no trouble during two and a-half years. Acce.-sory dealers will doubtless' experience a brisk demand for such igniter sets quite irrespective of dissolved acetylene. It is further possible that the temporary use «f the spark Rap circuit might cleanse a, sooted plug without the need of a stoppage.