DEVELOPMENTS BORN
SPEEDWAY.
THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH. MOTORING SUPPLEMENT.
OF
THE
Perfection of Racing Cars and the Terrific Tests They Undergo Teach Many Lessons:
[By William F. Sturm.]
were not drafted by the speedway the rough brick course setting up omelals; they were written by men more vibration in 500 miles than an bera of the Contest Board of the ordinary road would in 5,000 miles? ¡A.A.A. and a group of other men
Steering knuckles, steering arms, selected from the automobile In- dustry-men who would look at and front axles are three vital
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY
PARKING PROBLEMS.
tre problem in the light of the parts of an automobile, for if they Shopkeepers · Protest. greatest good to the industry that, at fatigued" at the wrong spot. made the speedway possible.”
Time was when a man thought
well.
COURT AGAINST POLICE.
LOS ANGELES AIR PORT.
Sketch of the new United Airport at Burbank, Calif.
in the Journey the motorlat may wind up in the hospital, or the A Good Investment. Semetery. For years the Indian- apolis. track was strewn with the The Speedway Corporation has wreckage of cars whese steering always put up rich purses for the apparatus had failed. To-day it is So far protests against the rigid drivera, first place being worth in unusual for a wreck to be caused by enforcement of the parking regu- prize and accessory money, from such a fault. Why? Racing drivers lations in Sydney have come only 30,000 to 40,000 dollars. It has have to have fatigue-proof metal, from motorists In Chicago they always been a good investment for and what they have to have they have their parking problems too, When the Indianapolis Motor ment limit has been 91 cuble in the driver to spare no expense to eventually evolve or have evolved and regulations governing them Speedway Corporation put out its ches; any typo supercharger was design and construct his car sa for them. The lessons learned in have been questioned, not only by edict directly after the 1929 600- permissible; there was no mention that it would win the 100-mile race, racing are for any one who cares motorists, but business houses as
The motorist who switches on the to apply them. mile race, that the rules. for the us to the number of carburaters;
The no-parking law put into 1930 event would be changed there was no specification as to the radically, there arose a great deal width of bodies; and there was no ignition in his car at the curb, of discussion, pro and con. This specification that compelled the dri- never gives a thought to it. Yet he was "in clover if he got 3,000 effect in the loop district, discussion took place, not only ver to have other than a single-he wellnigh perfect ignition on the miles of wear from his tyres. Te Chicago's busiest shopping centre, but seater, car, which all the racing car of today is due in part to the day tyre factorics promise ten times two years ago, has caused a legal The demand of the racing driver that that distance and think little of it. duel between the traffic authorities among the racing drivers,
the au- pilots "have had for yearn."
fixed at a he have a type of ignition that The Indianapolis, motor speedway and a group of business men who among the personnel of tomobile factories and extended in weight limit was ever-widening circles into public minimum of 1460 pounds, although would stand up under the gruelling has been one of the best testing are shopkeepers. The cause, of the It is no grounds the factories have had. suit was that the ban on parking channels, for the Indianapolis race there were few cars that weighed eat of the 600-mile race. is one of the out-standing aporting that little, even without gasoline, secret at all that more than one Tyres that were developed for the crippled business in that quarter, oil, water, and the driver, as the ndianapolia race has been lost be 600-miles race have been of great and some housca estimate a falling
(ause of ignition trouble.." And it aid In making a tyre for commer-off in sales of 25 per cent. events of the world.
A recent ruling of the Illinois
Los Angeles.Evidence of the rating given by the U. S. Depart is no secret, either, that one of the cini use, that will withstand the The new rules are, briefly: That rules called for.. the piston displacement of the
The great question: "Why are most successful types of ignition high speed and the rough usage it Supreme Court held that it might rapid growth of aviation is the ment of Commerce.
a reasonable oxercise Loqually rapid growth and develop- It's a six-way field, has 300-foot engines for the 1980 race shall be
of power by the authorities to re-ment of airports. A few years macadamized runways, averaging limited to a maximum of 366 cubic all these changes necessary? was used in the automotive industry to receives at the hands of the driver have been
strict the right to stand in the ago an airport was any flat fleld, 4,000 feet in length. On the fold inches; that valves of the poppet hurled by the drivers into the day was freed of many of its of to-day's passenger car,
supercharged discussional" air that "bugs" through the extreme de
The difference between poor and streets for a short time or to pre-practically free, from stumps and space is provided for air trans- type shall be limited to two per surrounded the Indianapolis motor mands of racing.
good carburetion on the race course cylinder; that the centrifugal type speedway and the pilots. And in
two of which are already located; The average ear owner, feels is often the difference between vent it altogether at certain hours ditches, on which a plano could port lines, manufacturing plants, of supercharger which has been the answer to the question lies the
But with the progress of avia-and public and private hangers, not reasonable to prohibit the on the racing circuit for six years ran that has no bearing on the car out on the paved highway and an important function of the car standing of any vehicle in the tion into the field of passenger including one where Individuals used at Indianapolis and elsewhere primary reason for the change-a agurleved if he can not take his failure and success, Acceleration, and in certain places, but it was land with safety. since it was first introduced at kes and dislikes of the drivers, run it at high anecd for hours. And bureter, is highly important at In-streets for any purpose or for any carrying, mail transportation and put up their plane in separate brothers) shall be dispensed with or on the attitude which the race he can do it, because, much was dianapolis; with its four corners time so as to prohibit at any time express delivery, the modern air- stalls and walk away, taking a key Indianapolis by the Duesenberg
en the learned from speedway racing conwhere the speed falls off and where going public will take
the streets in a reasonable way," developments, of avintion and has room for, sales rooms, distributora altogether; that not more than two change, That these two sides of cerning lubrication. A great part it must be picked up again rapidly during business hours the use of port has made provisions for auch with them. In addition, there is The police admitted that the advanced far in the past few hangars, service companies, flying carbureters shall be used on the the question-which at first thought in the automobile engine of to-day once the corners are negotiated.
severe hin-year, The result of this airport schools and allied activities.. engine: that the bodies of the rac- would be considered paramount is played by proper lubrication.
that The airport is dustless; that. ing cars shall be not leas than 3 were not even considered by the The speedway races did much to For all the years there has been court's ruling was a
pressure-feed
olling an Indianapolis 500-mile, there drance to the proper handling of development is the reason inches in width at the cockpit and men who drafted the rules, gets develop the shall be two-senters; that the car right at the root of the matter, as systems that are found on the cars have been automoblie factory en-traffic, which at peak hours American cities this year are ex-part which is not macadamized is shall weigh not less than 1.750 the official of the Indianapolis of to-day that go blithely on gineers in attendance on ftcar threatened to become unmanage-pected to spend more than $200,- planted in grass, And as part of airports and improving existing is planning a 40-acre park. UN pounds, with a minimum weight Motor Speedway Corporation view their way, day in and day out, designers who come for a week beable, and declared that the court 000,000 in purchasing land for the airport development, the elty
The automobile industry profited fore and stay for a week after had made a grave mistake.
The architecture, blending with of 7% pounds for each cubic of racing.
through the racing driver's the race. These engineers do not But the police had to bow to ones.
An example of this activity is the rest of construction in south- piston displacement,
These new rules mean that the According to Edward V. Ricken- necessity, for the pilot had to have come out of mere idle curiosity; the decision, and a new ordinance
car will hacker, former speedway racing a system that would make lubrica they come because they realize that is being prepared to prohibit park shown in the United Airport just ern California, is of Spanish type. racing is, in truth, the crucible of ing in the Loop district in peak opened at Burbank, near here. Power lines are underground, and present type of racing
he automobile industry. have to be sent to the serap heap, driver, war-time ace, and how the lion positive.
traffic hours-Sydney Sun). ·
This field covers 240 acres and other obstacles on the outskirts In order to get the proper picture, president of the Speedway Corpora-
represents an initial cost of more and immediato vicinity of the air- it is necessary to compare the 1930 ion and an automobile and airplane
than $1,500,000. It is complete in port have been removed through eur specifications with those that executive; "the 500-mile race has Crystallization of metal used to
every detail. It is designed as a co-operation of surrounding land- have been in vogue at Indianapolis not been considered as a sporting play a certain amount of havoc
class A-1-A airport, the highest owners. and elsewhere in organized racing, event, per se, but as an effort on with the automobile driver on the which is controlled by the Contest the part of the Speedway Corpora road. But if the man on the road Board of the American Automobile tion to aid the automobile industry and his troubles, what about the to solve the problems that pregre river in the 500-mile race, hurtling Ansociation.
Bively confront it. It is for that long at 100 miles an hour over the 1930 .Comparisons. reason that we are making the rough two-and-a-half-mile course, Since and including the 1926 In-radical changes in the rules for the with four corners to be negotiated dianapolis race, the piston displace- zuming race. The rules, however, each lap of the track and with industry as a whole.
"'
A Strenuous Test.
The Indianapolis Motor Speed- way Corporation does not take all the credit for the development of SLUMP'S BURDEN. the modern automoblic. But in all the years that there has been an annual 600-mile race on the great brick course, the rules have pointed toward the one end the greatest: good to the development and ex- perimental work of the automotive
THORNYCROFT
RIGID
SIX-WHEELED
MOTOR VEHICLES
COMBINED EFFORTS
CASES
RELIABILITY OVERCOME
ALL DIFFICULTIES.
127731
U.S. Dealers Hit.
CAR-MAKERS ESCAPE. It is certain that the recent col
lapse of the stock market in America will have some effect on the motor industry in that coun- try.
With a few possible exceptions the manufacturers themselves are not likely to suffer severely in the immediate future, due principally to the time of the year in which the slump occurred. · At
VINDICATED.
OPEN FOR SALES.
Truck Drivers Safer. More than 65,800 potential sales
for new
cars wore made in Tests made by the Massachu-Fennsylvania this year when notts motor vehicle departament owners in that slåte scrapped show that truck drivers are much many old cars. less irresponsible than drivers of passenger cars.
The tests proyed that truck while their trucks cover more this drivers act twice as fast in emer-mileage in congested areas where period they allow production to gencies than the average car pilot, the risk of accident is much more fall off so that arrangements can and have a better safety record, imminent.
be made to produce new models
and stocks and inventories to be taken.
Most of their stocks of new cars are by then disposed of to their dealers. The activities of most factories were reduced to a mini-. mum when the slump occurred.and some plants had reduced their labour forces.
Before the collapse, most manu- facturers were in a sound position financially and nearly all concerns reported satisfactory earnings, so that the industry was in this respect, at least, able to withstand the shock. Had the disaster oc- curred earlier in the year it would have caught the factories when production was on the increase to an unprecedented level and would probably have had the effect of making production for the rest of the year fall off seriously.
·Carried Large Stocks. Of all classes. In the industry the dealers will suffer the most. As the result of the record produc tion they have had a hard year
THE
AMERICANISED AUSTIN.
□
The English Austin / , not like the American product in looks.
and prior to the stock market col- lapse most of them carried large
New York, Jan. 6th-Duplicat- sion of standard shift. A single stocks of new cars. Under normaling its English mate only in plate clutch is used conditions it is doubtful if the mechanical features, but Introduc Semi-elliptic springs in front profits of any of them would have ed as purely an American au and cantilever springs, in rear are equalled those of 1928,
tomobile in boty design and manu- aided by shock absorbers all. The purchasing power of poten- facture, the Austin, automobile around. Four wheel internal er tial buyers of new cars has been makes its first private appearance panding brakes are used, with emergency brake also operating on reduced by the general slump here to-day.
| particularly in the case of buyers
Next March or April American all four wheela. Tyres are balloon of medium-priced cars. Few of motorists will have an rtunity corda. the prospective buyers of high to try it out on the road, say price cara 'will Be effected serious- manufacturers.
The whole car will weigh only 1000 pounds, and will be bullt on ly enough to prohibit their pur Although three-fourths ng large wheelbase of 75 inches and tread
of 40 inches. chasing the car of their choice, as the smallest existing American These are almost exactly the But the middle classes, who usually small car, the Austin Js not one of are the buyers of medium-priced, those $250 mali order automobiles spocifications of the English cars are now unable to afford a about which so much has been Austin, but the big difference is in the body. The American cir takes car at all, or also will purchase a written, the manufacturers hasten car in the low-price range.
explain. will of American lines Manufacturers of the medium- trouglasted it will cost could not be recognitout and brother of the English car. Yet it price. Class include some of the motorist will obtain a sturdily has the power and economic
features of the English Austin... financially weaker concerns in the built product.
The builders point to some of Its builders say the American. industry, and those which would therefore be hit harder by the the car's specifications to prove Austin will go between 40 and 50 slump. In times of stress the this contention. For instance, the miles on a gallon of fuel, and 1500 farger companies usually command four cylinder engine will be water miles on a quart of oil. Its operat more confidence and attention of cooled with detachable head, 2.2 ing cost is said to be about one buyers to be inch bore and 3-inch stroke. The cent a milo, as compared with The dealers who held only small car will attain a speed of 55 miles about six cents for the present stocks are also obviously affected an hour at a motor speed of 3800 small American carr
revolutions 4 minuto. With One of the advantages claimed owing to the elimination of many supercharger and high lift cam for the Austin), Is Its tractability potential buyers by market losses. The general reduction of shaft, It will go 30 miles an hour, due to its lightness and narrow
Motor is lubricated by partial tread. It is said this is why Ca purchasing power is hard to arrive at but it will be of great concern pressure all puma, and has a tain Wilkins and Commander Byrd feature is the roller bearing crank of their equipment in the An ultimately to the manufacturer. THE ASIATIO PETROLEUM 06., (8,0.) LIG. ABIATIO BLDG., Hr to the dealer in new cars, and thermo-syphon cooling system. A have been using these care se part
shaft and ball-bearing transmis tarctic.
THIS FICTURE IL USTRATES TAE, MEÁNING
DOUBLE ASSURANCE"
SECURED BY USING
THORNYCROFT
JOHN I. THORNYCROFT & də, L‡d, UNION BLDG., H.E.
FAMOUS MOTOR. VEHICLES
SHELL
MOLOR SPIRIT. LUBRICATING OILS
AND EASES.;