1930-07-30 — Page 3

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HONG KONG DAILY PRESS. WEDNESDAY, JULY 30,

MOTOR NOTES

THAT CROSS-ROAD PROBLEM.

It is not easy to lay down the law about this particular point, because the discharge will depend very largely on the type af bulbs in the lamps, and their age. Take gas-filled head lamp bulbs, för in- stadce: These are sold in 18-, 24-, The

most road signs in proximity to LAMP AND BATTERY. and 30-candle-power sizes.

the

junction points warn only maiu-road uset, which gives a se condary-road, user the opportunity of declaring if an accident hap- MUTUAL RESPONSIBILITY, pens that he exercised every care, but was unaware of the danger which was about to confront him.

As aumerous cases bear witness, it is unwise to be dogmatie on the all-important subject of which driver should give way at a cross- ronds. After an accident has hap- pened, says The Light Car and Cyclecar, every circumstance at- tending it has to be taken into consideration, and clearly it is not unreasonable for both parties to be regarded as equally to blame un lose one or the other can be prov- ed to have been specially negligent, At present, in this connection,

The question of precedence, in terms of comnion sense, is one that

соп-

with

is easily answered. The need will always exist, however, for all of us when going about our business or pleasure on the roads to tern ourselves not so much our right and privileges as with our safety. It can never be any body's right to imperil others, even although they may ur behaving at the time in a manner contrary to the law; to custom or even to dis cretion.

49 m.p.h., plus!

RIDE the WATER

at Express Train Speed with a Seo-Horse, World's Champion Outboard Motor

TOR speed look to Johnson Sea-Horses. These out- board motors now hold more existing speed records than all other makes combined. A Sea-House "32" has skimmed across the water, at the amazing speed of 49.34 miles per hour! 2

The dependability of Sea-Horses is as well known as their speed, due to the roller bearings, case-hard- ened paris 2nd precision workmanship as exact as in fine motor car engines.

Great features like Full Pivor Steering, Release Charger for sure easy starting, Water-cooled Under water Exhaust, etc., which no other outboard motors enjoy, explain why the Sea-Horses outsell all other makes combined...

Call or write for color-illustrated catalog, show« ing Johnson's complete line of Boats and Motors, now offered with electric-starter plus auxiliary rope start er or with rope-starter only.

·

Four-Cylinder"

Sea-Horse "39," $395

Electric starring Optional $395 Monarch of all outboard mo- tars Holds the American record at 45.34 m. p. b. Seven, wher Sea-Horses. £125, MP, 1.4. b. factory. Parisal Payment WrInL

JOHNSON SEA-HORSES

ALEX. ROSS & COMPANY (CHINA), LTD.

HEAD OFFICE:

PRINCE'S BUILDING. HONG KONG

DEPOT : CHATER ROAD. Phone: 22487.

KOWLOON

GARAGE:

SALISBURY ROAD.

Phone:

56486.

MICHELIN

THE NON-SKIDDING TYRE.

Tel. 22221.

Distributore:

Tel. 22221.

A. GOEKE & Co..

Curin Building, 4th Floon

DEPOT FIAT GARAGE:

67, Des Voeux Hond Central. Tel. 24821.

We give free tyre service to Michelin 'owners

at our Depots.de fattipal

Tel. 24821.

SOME NOTES ON CARE.

DURING SUMMER.

On the whole, the electrical equipment on cars to-day is extra- ordinarily good and reliablé (saya a writer in the Autocar), but even j so it requires, and should be given, a certain amount of intelligent care. The man who uses his ear regu. larly throughout the year during what may be described as business hours knows that in the winter the electrical equipment needs certain treatment to keep it in the best order. The conditions, however, of summer and winter are not quite the same as regards the car's light. ing set.

||

30-candle-power size is obviously going to use nearly twice as much current as the S., Therefore, the higher the candle-power of the bulbs used in the lamps the greater will be the current consumption, and the higher should be the charg ing rate to cope with it.

On nearly all modern cars the "third brush" system of currett

regulation from the dyname is adopted, and the third brush is nearly always adjustable.. Rotated very slightly in one direction it will increase the charging rate; and in the opposite direction" it will re duce it. The adjustment, however, should be used with the utmost cis- an increase in cretion, because

on the average charging rate dynamio may also be accompanied Any remarks about lighting sets by a slight increase in the voltage. must stars at one component, be- This increase in "the voltage at once

much more brilliant i cause it is the most sensitive point produces a --aamely, the battery. People readlight, but it also is putting the Alaments in the lamps in danger of i in instruction books that, with being burnt out. regularity, they should take out the plugs in the tops of the battery cells, and look in to see that the liquid at least covers the tops of the plates inside; if it does not they must add distilled water until the requisite level is reached.

have their

"Topping Up."

On a car which shows a widely fluctuating light that is to say, the lights are dim and yellow, when

*the working on Battery with

charge" switch "off" and they are brilliant and white at once when charge" is switched on- there are two things to enquire into. The Arst is that the batteries

may be in a terribly bad condi- This is by no means at all a diftion, and hence the yellow light; ncult process, as most mouere cars the second is that the yellow light batteries placed in a may not be so bad, but looks yel- position where they are easy to get low in comparison with the inten a. Nevertheless, people continue sity of the white light, whilst the to neglect this little job, probably white light is a sign that the water does not dynamo output is considerably too Decause distilled sind a place on the sideboard of high, and that the lamps are in every house, and to get some neeas danger of burning out. ah excursion either to a chemist or to a garage.

Yet it is absolutely

beware!

the dyname to be burnt out or con- Furthermore, it is possible for siderably damaged if the output of current is raised beyond a certain

essential that this task be regularly accomplished. It is well to remem- be that on many modern cars the battery is divided into two parts, placed perhaps in cradles on oppoint. posite sides beneath the front seats, in which case it is of course essen- tial that both batteries should be

TH

1930,

DIFFICULT DECISIONS

By GLUYAS WILLIAMS

7-15

tuuxS; དྷར།

WHEN YOU'VE JUST · SPENT GOOD MONEY HAVING

THE "CAR WASHED AND POLISHED

(Copyright, 15:30, by The Bell Syndicate, Inc.)

does not have nearly so much work THE WOMEN FIRST,

accom-

to do, then the batteries are in danger of being overcharged, in the sense of being charged for too long. Overcharging is usually panied by a considerable wastage of liquid, which gases on to the top of the cells; this in itself is liable to cause the green corrosion to which reference has been made

MEN BEATEN IN MOTOR

RALLY.

Women. drivers have triumphed in the Motor Rally, which was the When a car is being used with regularity in the summer for short opening event of Brighton's Gala. journeys, one may leave the dynamo Week last month. on charge permanently; but if long They scored first prize in both runs have to be taken, amounting the long and the short distance to 100 or 150 miles or more, then

GLUYAS WILLIAMS

British Cars.

All the prize-winners in the long- distance rally from John o' Groat's drove British cars, and British. cars also did well in the short dis- tance rally from London."

Following are the results: Long-Distance Rally, Mrs. Gough, M.G. Sports (no marks lost; 9, Major Dudley Morris. Wolseley Hornet (3 marks lost): 3, J. Bainbridge, Roils-Royce (G marky lost): 4, D. G. Page. Morris Minor (10 mark, lost); 6, tie: D. Healey, Invicta, and Mrs. M. Vaughan, Wolseley Hornet (each

Special Ladies' Cup: Mrs. Gough.

it is a good plan to let the full rallies and, incidentally, provedlost 11 marks). charging go on for the first two that the "weaker sex" has stamina hours, and then to switch off, or equal to that of the men. to the half-charge position, for the remainder of the run. Here, again,

Mr. Gough, M.C Sports, was

Burning out filaments has been mentioned. Some of the old hands who read this will at once say, "Oh, yes, but the fuse will blow looked after.

This is not strictly true, it is hot easy to specify things very first in the Long Distance Rally Batteries not only cannot func first!"

definitely, but the owner of a car and Miss J. Weekes, Ford, first in tion to the best advantage if the inasmuch as the fuse will "go level of the liquid in them is allow with a heavy overload and, by who bears these points in roind will the Short Distance." ed to get too low, but, inevitably,blowing or melting, save the lamps, soon find out, by process of a litt.e whereas a mild overload can con trial and inspection, what is the they receive damage. When a car is in constant use the batteries tinue for some time, and is steadily best for his particular conditions should be inspected once a month. doing its work" of attrition on the and requirements. They should be filled up, the ter Alaments in the lamps to a point. One other point. Before going.on minals should be gone over, clean- at which they become friable and

inefficient. ed of any green sulphate deposit, and carefully grenzed.

As a general rule this green de posit on terminals is a warning sign of consistent overcharging. It is also a sign that the metal parts of the terminals and of the wires

The fuse, by the way, is the first thing that should be looked at if the lights on a car fail. It consists of a piece of fine lead wire, Exed between two contact points, and a plug Etting generally placed in into a recess in the instrument

The second car to arrive from John of Great's 761 miles from Brighton-was driven by Miss E A. Hume. She drove from her home in Edinburgh to John. Groats and then drove back to Brighton. During the journey she te nothing but fruit, and had only five hours sleep, but looked remarkably fresh when she finished.

Frock to Match Car. Miss Paddy Naismith, the film

may be eaten away underneath, hoard and "marked with the word places make a most surprising dif- actress, drove alone from, London

and corrosion of this sort has an unhappy knack of allowing a wire to break off short when the driver of the car happens to be miles away from anywhere on a particularly

wet night,

164

JI

any long trip it is very well worth while going round all the electrical connections, and making sure that they are properly tight. Also, it is a good plan to inspect all ex- posed flexes at the point where they are joining lamp connections and such fittings. Atew indifer- ent contacts or frayed wires in such "fuse," As a rule the plug car ference to the amount of light ries also a spare length of fuse obtainable. On a 12-volt set a drop wire; thus, when a fuse does blow, of 2 volts in electrical pressure all that is necessasy is to pull out brought about by the added resist- the old piece of wire and connect ance of a bad contact will make a The Deceptive Ammater,

up the two spring contacts again white light into a yellow one, and with a new piece cut off the apare où a six-volt set mutters are worse. On the instrument board of most coil. In the absence of proper fuse Always carry spare bulbs which fit head, side; and tail lamps. Re- cars there is 30 Ammeter, which wire any piece of metal, from a purports to tell it what rate the pin to a piece of fine copper or steel place bulbs in the security of your dycamo is charging the batteries. wire, will serve to carry one home.. own garage, if possible, because a Inese ammeters are seldom very It should, however, he emphasised new bulb nearly always necessitates accurate as regards Teading in am- that considerable risk attaches to making an adjustment to the head- peres, but, on the other hand, they the use of any but proper fuse wire. lamp focus, which sometimes means do serve the very useful. purpose

removing the reflector from the Easy Starting and the Battery.

lamp for the purpose. Don't touch of comparison. They, show at what speed on top gear the dynamo cont Another point to remember is the surface of a reflector if it can. be avoided; the superfine polish on mences to charge the battery. They that in summer, when oil is warm also show another important point, and thir and the air is dry, an some reflectors is easily damaged. With the head lamps, side lamps, engine will-start very much more Be very gentle with the little acrews lamp switched on--at a casily than in winter, and it fol- which hold the reflectors into lamp speed, any, of 30 mph the am- lows, that a battery in bad cozd bodies, the threads are fine and meter should show a definite rate tion will start an engine in warm easily stripped, and to damage of charge, and not one of discharge. weather which it would be unable them muy cause much "annoyance. If, in these circumstances, discharge to move in winter. Therefore, easy is showing it means that the starting of the engine in hot wea dydamo is not charging at a auf ther is not always an indication Aciently high rate to make good that the battery is in good order. the current which the lamps aṛr Once again it is desirable to inspect taking out. In theas conditions an the battery regularly, ammeter which is reasonably cor Apart from the charging rate rect should show about two amperes and the lower the charging rate the charge. When the car is running better for the battery, provided it along in the daylight the charging is not allowed to run down" to rate should be somewhere about 8-10 amperes at 30 m.p.h...and this rate should give, when the lampa are all on, about the two amperes surplus charge already mentioned,

SHELL

It important to ascertain, when purchasing spare bulbs, if the lighting system is wired on the single- or double-pole system. In the single-pole system the current is returned from the lamp to the batteries through the metal frame of the car, but in the double-pole is returned system the current through an insulated wire. A bulb the danger point one has in sum-which is adapted for une system mer to consider the length of time will be useless for the other, for when the battery is on charge. If the single-type has one central con- the lamps are not being used much tact, while the double-pole bulk has in summer, and the starter also two contacts.-

MOTOR OILS

drop tells,"

Every drop

to Brighton-by way of John' o' Groat's.

She wore a green frock to match her car.

Yours to command!

The

Short-Distance Rally: 1, Miss T. Weekes, Ford (lost 5 marks): 9, H. 3. D. Evans, Chrysler (0 marka Danaher, Triumph (6 marks lost); lost): 4, tie: A. J. Mollart, A.C., and W. Barton, Lea-Francis (each, lost 10 marks).".

Ladies Cup: Miss Weekes.

On no account heat a soldering iron in a smoky fire. To be success ful at soldering everything must be kept spotlessly clean. Should the iron become smoked, however, it should be made red-hot before it

is cleaned, and then it must be re-.- tinned. The parts to be soldered should always be cleaned with a fire, sand-paper or benzine, but not petrol, as very often this is too oily. be Never touch the parts to soldered, as the hands are always greasy.

portable!

ORIGINAL

RIGINAL ODHNER

"The machine to count on"

DODWELL

& CO., LTD.

Queen's Building