HIGH-ROAD AND.BY-ROAD

Waikato Times, Volume 125, Issue 20911, 16 September 1939, Page 24 (Supplement)

HIGH-ROAD AND.BY-ROAD

TRAVEL IN COMFORT One of the leading transport, companies in America recently placed in operation 25 new motor coaches, each of which cost about £SOOO. They run between Chicago and San Francisco, doing the 2200 miles in 50 hours, an average speed of nearly 50 miles an hour, including all stops. The vehicles are. designed to provide de luxe comfort for 28 passengers, who can stretch their legs without touching the s°at,s in front. There are seven rows ot , seats with four chairs to each row. No ; seals are situated over the real j wheels, this space being used as a baggage compartment. The chairs. ( cushioned with cellular rubber, are adjus table to five positions. There is , enough space for passengers if they i so desire to lower the chairs, so that . they can recline at about an angle or .so deg. without having their heads in their neighbour’s lap. RESTORING SAGGED SEATS On cars that have seen considerable service, front seats, particularlv those of the bucket type, sometimes sag. with a consequent, reduction in the field of vision from the -driver’s seat. Tliis can lie rectified by removing each pair of rollers from beneath the seats and attaching them to wedge-shaped pieces of wood which are in turn | screwed to the bottom of the seats. ( The angle of the wedge will have to ! be determined by the amount of cor- * portion required, and by this method ; the original seating position can be restored without impairing the efficiency of the. sliding mechanism. SILENT TYRES MAKERS SOLVE PROBLEM Striking improvement has been effected in the riding comfort of cars made in the past few years, owing to the springing systems having been radically altered and improved to this end. Another feature which adds to the pleasure of travelling in a modern car Is the elimination of the noises which, for many long years, appeared to be inherent in automobiles. Motor cars are. very quiet, in fact, so silently do they glide along that sounds which were not apparent in cars built a few years ago are now apt to so intrude that, they annoy a sensitive person when motoring. Automotive engineers have succeeded so well in eliminating unwanted noises, squeaks, etc., in cars that they passed on to motor tyre manufacturers a problem of designing a silent tyre—as silent as the car to which it was fitted. When cars were not so quiet, tyre squeaks and scrubbing noises, when cornering, etc., were drowned by mechanical and other noises, consequently they did not obtrude sufficiently to be objectionable. Nowadays, it is different, and tyre noises in a quiet car can rob motoring of miuch of its pleasure and become a nuisance. Naturally, the more refined and quieter running the car, the more noticeable is any tyre noise. The cause of this trouble is the pattern of tyre tread, and that has engaged tho attention of tyre manufacturers who have devised a tyre which !s free of annoying screeches when cornering or driving at a speed without sacrifice in dependability and mileage. WATER IN FUEL From time to time inventors have appeared with methods of turning water into motor fuel by various means. Tt will be remembered, some years ago, a Frenchman found a way to use sea-water in this manner, and a car was driven from Paris to Rouen on this fuel. Now comes news that a man In New York has taken evut a patent covering the addition of water to petrol in a special way to increase power. Apparently water is ad-ded in strengths from 10 to 50 per cent., and an ammonia soap emulsifier does the trick. The mixture of water, soap and petrol goes through a device which “grinds" the liquid so that the water globules are no bigger than from four to twelve-thousandths of an inch in size. A PROP FOR TIP-UP SEATS To facilitate entry to the rear seats of two-door cars having front seats that tip forward, a simple prop can be fitted that, will hold the seats in their tilted position. Tilt the seat forward to the full extent and measure the vertical height from the floor to a point about two inches from the back edge of the seat. Cut a piece of one-inch square hardwood to the length required and trim ) off the top end to the angle formed by the base of the seat and a perpendicular line to the floor. Attach the prop to the seat with a hinge so that when-the seat is lowered the prop folds forward underneath the seat. Immediately the seat is raised the prop will drop into position. SPEED RESTRICTIONS New cppr>d laws are in force in Maryland, IJ.S.A. On open highways fifty miles an hour is the maximum on ordinary roads and fifty-five miles on dual lane or divided highways. Vehicles with commercial bodies which weigh more lhan three tons loaded are limited to a maximum speed of forty miles an hour. Lower rates are prescribed in certain sections. Thus twenty-five miles on ordinary highways, thirty on dual lane roads are top speeds for thickly-settled areas, rising to thirty and thirty-five miles respectively in outlying parts of cities, towns and villages. For speeds in excess of seventy I miles an hour fines ranging from lfli] I dollars to 1000 dollars, or imprisonj ment from thirty days to a year, ot 1 both, are set for the first offence. For subsequent offences the punishment i? imprisonment for from sixty days tc two years.

A COLUMN FOR MOTORISTS

PETROL SUPPLIES AUSTRALIA'S CONSUMPTION \ The 3000 tons nf petrol which Ru- j mania lias been forwarding to Ger- i many daifv. under a trade treaty, and I which has now been held up in respect j in payments, no doubt appeared to j manv Australian motorists to be a sue- j prisincly large, volume of liquid fuel | 1. 0 be exported daily from a relatively j small country into Germany. Tliev however, will probably be | more surprised, says the Dunlop RulI le.tin. to learn that even a slightly I greater tonnage of petrol is required i daily tn kee-p the wheels of Australia's ! 907.000 automobiles turning and sup- | ply other n^cils. i Jt seems almost incredible that such a liugt- volume of petrol, averaging over 3000 tons a day, is being freighted to Australia. That such is file case is borne out by Commonwealth statistics which reveal that, during the 12 months ended June last, 330.932.879 gallons of petrol were imported into the Commonwealth, and a further 27,878.912 gallons of petrol wpvp i-o'ippf) jnrnPv i>r.. m ftvy grade oil. making in all 367,811,791 gallons. Taking the weight of petrol at 7.36 lb per gallons and 304.14 gallons to the ton. then Australia, during the last fiscal year, imported 1,209,345 tons or 3313 tons for every day in the year, including Sundays. These figures I serve, to convey what a large and im--1 portant part automotive transport plays 1 | in the life of the Australian people i and in the conduct of her industries. Petrol might well and truly be termed the “ Spirit of Progress.” HEADLIGHTS AMERICAN FEATURE According to reports from the United Stales of America, among the | new features of some of the 1940 I American cars will ho flic widespread use of a new lighting system involv--1 iug principally a new type headlight j bulb which includes the reflector I within the glass. Tt is stated that j many of the car manufacturers have i arranged for production licenses from , those who developed the new lights j and will continue, therefore, to get i their equipment from their own ! sources of supply. So far as is dls - j closed, the new globe eliminates hcadI light shells and costly polished re~ i Hectors. In some cases, it is said the new bulbs will also have the lenses integral, meaning that only the bulb will dp needed instead of most of the present equi-pment. The lighting characteristics of the new bulbs have not been disclosed. It is reported that the adoption of this new bulb will mean the elimination of headlight shells fro-m the exterior of the car. During the hearing of a motoring case the solicitor asked the defendant: | “How do you know you had right of way?” Defendant: “I had the biggest