Page
WHAT ABOUT
THE CRAWLING
MOTORIST?
A BRICKBAT AND A BOUQUET.
COMMENTS BY A LONDON EXPERT.
HONG KONG DAILY PRESS TUESDAY, AUGUST 30, 1932.
SPARKS
FROM THE PLUGS
drivers have upset the trafle flow morcial transport throughout the by crawling along the road at ab-country have become the real surdly slow speed.
modern knights of the road in the matter of manners.
There is a stretch of this road which is blind for nearly nine miles, and it is impossible to pass another car without taking a risk.
The war between drivers of pri- vate cars and drivers of heavy vebi- |cles ceased, I imagine, when trans-. part Arms decided to equip their
MOTOR VEHICLES FOR OVERSEA.
EXHIBITION OF MODELS.
Last month the Associated Equip.
BRITAIN'S MOTOR ROADS. CARS IN USE IN ENGLAND.
YEARLY BILL OF £30
MILLIONS.
Until the cutting down of rend
RECENT REGISTRATION
FIGURES.
The thirtieth annual report of
of last autumn, Great Britain was ers and Traders, Ltd., just pub
Tam not for a mament suggesting i vehicles with proper ear type head-ment Company, held an exhibition building, in the economy campaign the Society of Motor Manufactur dash along the road just because heights. It is not so long ago that at their Southall, Middlesex, works erkling about" £80,0ÇÒ,000 a year | lished, reveals many interesting
that it is necessary for a driver to |
40
is at the head of a traffic queue. But I'd think that he shouki make it his duty to travel at a reason- Now that the holiday season basable enced for the henefit of those begun and roads are more congest-behind." ed, what are we going to do with
Actually the crawling driver is p
many heavy lorries were fitted with oil lamps.
There drivers were at a great dis. advantage compared, with drivers of the private cars. This led at night to the war of the lights.
Now in practically every parti
statistics.
The following show how the trade depression has affected the industry:
Registrations in United King. dom, year ending September each case.
IMPROVEMENTS IN CHEVROLET.
COMBINATION AIR CLEANER AIR SILENCER.
By actual count there are 11′′ improvements including new fea- tures on the 1832 Chevrolet. ... Of these the most important are an increase in horsepower from 50 to Go with unchanged engine dimen.. rious; a power plant mounted in
the crawling motorist asks Harold danger. Usually amempatient cular heavy cars are as well equin. carrying 3tan loads over rough direct payment made for the use Cars in use 1029, 900,857; 1920, rubber at six points; a newly de-
„Pemberton in the Sunday Dispatch. You know the type. He heads the queue on narrow roads whore it is dangerous for cars to pass each other, and amble along at an obstractive speed: Traffic piles up | behind him. All of the drivers in the queue may not be on pleasure bent. Among them there may be doctor in a hurry to attend a patient.
B
driver, following the tortoise at the bead of the procession decides to take the risk of passing, even if the road ahead is blind. And this is how the trouble begins.
Minimum Speed,
Personally, I do not see how the authorities can take action. In the United States and on some parts of the Continent there are minimum But you could not introduès a minimum speed limit on a winding road.
The crawling driver is a diffbutt speed limits. problem.
Within His Rights.
He is within his rights if he jog along at five miles an hour and holds up inites of traffic-It least, I imagine that it would be dificult to secure a prosecution for obstruc- tion,
This week on the beautiful road on the edge of Loch Lomond we have seen the obstructionist at his work Owing to the attempt on the world's water speed record traf. fic has been exceptionally heavy, Again and again selfish motor-car
will fue an "appeal to the good Perhaps the motoring associations
Anse of drivers and point out that it is solfish to throttle other traffic in this manner.
I think the time has come when we should present à bouquet to the drivers of the "heavier." There was a time when I'Had to write with some bitterness of the be- havicur of drivers of heavy vehi- eles, especially regarding night driving. But the situation has entirely changed. Drivers of com
THESE
ped as the best private car.
to
To
at
908,469;
1,103,715.
1031,
1930, 1,075,091
car registrations, 161,403; 1929, 160,355; 1930, 188,400;
Now
1928,
of the new Marshal 3-5 tonner, and.. other vehicles specially adapted on the roads, towards which the trade and now available for the overiga motor user contributed directly markets. The vehicles are forenly about £27,000,000 by means of licence duties. The motorist has, it passenger and goods conveyance is true, also contributed to the The Marshal is an 80 h.p. afk- Exchequer through the patrol tax, wheal goods chassis capable of but this can scarcely be regarded as
of ronds, seeing that it was intend country and tons over leveled primarily de a method of rais.
signed, stiffer frame to compensate roada, and it has been designed to ing revenue in order to meet a
for the reduced crass-member?" Oppreciate the courtesy of themebt the difficult conditions which deficit. Nevertheless, it may be
effect incident to these rubber modern transport drayer you want prevail in the Dominions and for it does in fact form a tax upon the argued with some justification that
1831, 144,212.
mountings; a highly ingenious me- driva late
night along the ign countries. Before its intro road haulex, seeing that there are
Hackney carriages in use, 1028,thod of mounting the lamps, feng- main London-Holyhead road. This duction, the model was subjected comparatively few mechanically 07,360 1929, 09,643; 1930, 102,70);
ors and radiator as one unit; semi- is the great goods road to the mid to bevere trials and submitted to by other kinds of fuel. Such is an!
propelled vehicles which are driven 1931, 80,162.
New hackney carriage registra independently of the body and thus lands.
Remarkable Sight.
from wabbling the Army authorities as a type extract from a series of articles on tions, 1929, 10,119; 1920, 10,698; are prevented eligible for the War Office subsidy, Times.
the railways published in The 1830, 9,848; 1931, 8,699.
crosswise, especially at high speed Imports. and it was subsequently offelally
on rough roads; an improved Complete car. Chassis. Total clutch; a Wynchro-mesh transmis deftified as suitable to receive the
17078 33,111 subsidy of £120, "i
10,104 21,500 sion with free wheel of the coll 2,815 0.781 spring type at the rear; pressure 853 2,118 lubrication to engine main beat. ings; a combination air silencer and air cleaner; down-draft
Body Lines,
Around midnight it presents remarkable spectacle. You will see columns of goods. vehicles with a astonishing variety of goods bound for an infinite number of destinn tions.
All-night roadside cafes are as busy as a city tea-shop in the after noon.
The drivers of these vehicles have developed a code of road mannera which, alas, is lacking among many private car owners.
road lately. I have never failed to I have driven a great deal au this
receive the pass mas" signal, and on every occasion that I have dip ped my lights I have received cor responding consideration from the
ï¤ontinued 'on ata):Coinmin
MORRIS-COWLEYS
are
two
out of five
attractive Models
to suit everyone's need.
Saloon with
Pytchley sliding head
DOD WELL & CO., LTD.
APB S
Ice House Street, Hong Kong
and at Canton.
An Engine unit implored out of all! recognition, giving comfortable top gear hill work. Lockheed brakes. Tools handy under bonnet Complete finger-tip controls on steering column.
O
onts Coupe,
constructional works, and 1931 nothing ca. The cupidity of poli ticians diverted it, and to-day the £32,000,000. With more thar "some 1929 petrol tax in, roughly worth 1925 justification it may be argued that the petrol tax forms a tax upon the 1931. road hauler.
1930
Actually, of course, capital ex- penditure on highways has been far: 1923 aboye normal during the last few 199 years, the road system having he 1830 The subsidy model is of the forcome rather obsolete during the 1931 ward drive pattern and the ordin was period, and it being desired to ary one has the driver behind the works. The petrol tax was, first
reduce unemployment by additional", engine. The engine is of the stan levied with the express promise 1928 dard A.E.C. 4-cylinder type with that the profits should be spont 1929 upon the improvement of the roads, | 1330 a governor. In addition to the new four-speed gear-box there is an sutiliary which allows the Marshal to take a full load over deep sand, mud and so forth, and to climb
foothrake operates on the front anxi exceptionally steep gradients. This
middle axles and with vacuum servo assistance, while the hand. brake operates on the wheels of the rearmost axle. Both types of chas sis can be fitted with a specially designed winch, and with low pres sure tires the tractive effort is given at 9,500lb." and with high
with his pressure, tires 8,90016.
There is also
a range of A.E.C Hardy models, all with front wheel drive, which comprises 4, 6, and 6-tonnors and rigid six-wheel trac tars. The A.E.C. 120 h.p. driyor. behind-the-ongine Ranger passenger chassis has already done well in Canada and South Africa, and, with the fluid flywheel transmis alon, five Ranger chassis are being fitted with bodies for service in! three of the most important cities in Canada. The heavy oil engine has not been forgotton, and the 130 h.p. A.E.C. high speed oil engine can be had in the Ranger Oversea chasia. There is also the Majestio 6-tonner, which can be used sucCERS. fully with a 4-5 ton trailer.
In view of the establishment of the Conference to consider the road
1927 and rail question, it is to be re- should be raised at such a juncture. 1931 gretted that
that any disputed points; 1920
drivers of the heavies,
The same with the high-speed motor-coaches on the Great North Road:
*
Here drivers appear to be con- stantly on the alert for private care roming up behind, and immediate ly pull in and give the pass
signal if the road ahead is clear."
There are, of course; some, black sheep among the "heavy" family.. But I think we have far more in our own community.
According to the latest official' figures, saloon cars represent 02 per cent, of the car population. The poor old open cur appears to be nearly dead. In fact, in some cases the open model is more expens sive to buy than the
Dep That Tanned Zook, ERU
It is not clear, however, if the figures include cars that can be used both sa open and closed vehi cles. My own car can be opened up completely within a minute, When closed it really is a closed car that is, it is one warn and weatherproof as the ordinary
Thave recently covered hundreds of miles with the car open, and it has been a healthy experienes
I know of nothing that will give you a week at the seaside sort of complexion so quickly as an open car. You can acquire the holiday complexion within an hour or ad.
Unfortunately the convertible type of bodyistent the moment. rather expensive. Perhaps at the coming motor show an enterprising manufacturer twill pat-on a model of this description at the same prica se his shangard kaldens T think it would have a wide appeal
14,135 11,418 6,936 1,935 Exporta.. Complete cats. Chassis. Total
18,192
7,959 26,160 0,901 33,709 buretor.
...,23,891
19,226
3,984 23,910. 1,888 18,902 !
17.204 Olympia Car Showa, Exhibitors.
531. 517 300 540.
Attendances
233,267
· 927,474 924,091 186,773 Olympia Transport Shows.
Exhibitors. Attendances
348 $1,854 64,80%
381. *433
68,023
lines bro distinctively The body
more attractive: The radiator cof. tour has been improved and equipped with a builtein vantical rrilla: lamp shapes are new; and the hood is now fitted with venti lating doors instead of louvres. The windshield pillars are slightly rounded at the top where they } blend with hender bar and roof.
rails.
Continger on Page 3)
TRUST A THOrnycroft WITH YOUR TRANSPORT
DEAL DIRECT
THORNYCROFT
SIX-CYLINDERED
COACHES & OMNIBUSES
MOTOR VEHICLES
Pioneer Manufacturers of Commercial Motor Vehicles
Full Range of Spares carried in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
4 or 6 Wheels
4 or 6 Cylinders
30 Cwt. to 10 Ton Loads
20 to 70 Passengers
JOHN I THORNYCROFT & CO., LIMITED,
Pioneer Building, Nathan Road, Kowloon
TEL 567522
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