1934-03-13 — Page 2

Page

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT

THE ENGINE

Timing The Spark For Greatest Efficiency

By

Owner Driver "

The correct timing of the spark in the combustion chamber is of Importance. If it is late the en- gine will run sluggishly, if too early there will be knocking.

pronounced

Few owner-drivers realise the importance of correct ignition. timing. and fewer still understand how to set the controls so as to obtain the spark at the correct moment. Provided the job is done according to rule it is not difficult but If makeshift methods are adopted road performance will be poor.

Like carburetter. settings the correct timing is largely a matter of experiment, some engines will than others, and the owner who likes experimenting will obtain endless fun in playing with the levers.

"J"

Do Not Use a Piece of Wire

The happy-go-lucky method of turning the starting handle until the piston of No. I cylinder rea- ches top dead centre, and testing its arrival "there by inserting a piece of wire through the plug hole, is not the correct way of timing, although it is one of the commonest.

H

Just think this over. The piston, has to be brought to a standstill at the top and the very, bottom of every stroke.

Now, the piston crown be watched carefully when the cy- linder head is removed. it will be noticed that the starting han- die can be turned quite a num- ber of degrees without the pls- ton appearing to move either up- wards or downwards after it has reached top dead centre.

appreciable

Does that convey anything to you? It ought to direct your at- tention unmistakably to the fact that the piston remains at top dead centre for ar time, and that if the spark is set to occur when the piston first rea- ches that point-Instead of when the piston actually commences to travel downwards on the fring stroke the spark will be more effective, because the mixture will be burning all the time the pis- ton is at rest and the time the piston is at rest and the full po- wer developed on the piston just as it begins to go down.

And you cannot detect that ex- act point by using a piece of wire.

Always Time From The Flywheel

"The correct method of timing Is to use the markings on the fly-- wheel

Remove the inspection plate on. the clutch housing, and cause the starting handle to be turned un- 'til the mark 1/6 comes to the ex- act, top and opposite the line marked on the housing itself.

Now see that the control lever on the steering column is at rẹ- tard. Keeping the crankshaft in that position, turn the coil Igul- tion distributor until the contact points are just about to open, with the wiping arm in the dis- tributor head facing the contact leading to the sparking plugin No. 1 cylinder"

Tighten up the locking out and the correct timing will have been made.

But note that this timing is not necessarily the best one for your

particular engine. As I have said,. every engine likes its own best timing, and it may be that yours will take a greater degree of ad- vance.

You can find that out only by experimenting, but take care not to advance the spark too much, of trouble will develop in the bearings of the engine, unless you are an expert gear changer and

change down immediately there are signs of knocking..

Taken to Task

A reader takes me to task for omitting a number of details.in, the drawings flustrating this ser- les of articles. He points out that the mechanism inside the float chamber of the carburetter which operates the needle valve was left out, and that the slow running device was not shown on the car- buretter diagram.

I plead guilty, but offer a sound 'defence. If I included every de- tall in the drawings, and men- tioned every technical consider- ation in the article on any one. subject, I would have to ask the editor for a whole issue of." The Bulletin every Wednesday,

Let me make my point clearer. My reader, asking what an over- head camshaft is... and wheather it is better than a side valve job, asks too much" from a writer in a newspaper.

A properly designed engine, with a properly designed combus- tion chamber and a properly de- signed camshaft drive.. will be more efficient than a side-valve enginer for many reasons. But these reasons are "many and very technical..

For Instance

J

If I were to discuss just why an overhead camshaft should be

driven from a point near the fly- wheel instead of from the front end of the crankshaft, I should at once find myself in all kinds of difficulties.

HONG KONG DAILY

MOTORING HINTS

The Upkeep Of 1934 Innovations

Buyers of the 1934 models of the majority of British makes

PRESS, TUESDAY, MARCH 13, 1934.

MOTOR JOTTINGS

THE

MOTORING LAWS

making him rely upon legal speed limits for safety-a most dan gerous precept.

Order On these grounds, the strongly opposes a general speed limit, even if is tề higher than

In the setting of speed limits for special areas

are deemed necessary)

will and on their new cars several Reimposition of Speed connection with th

Limit A "Retrograde

Steps"

if such

it is contended that these limits should be uniform and not vary as the locality passes from the control of one council of autho- rity to another.

Heavier Penalties

Rover Twelve

The Rover Twelve salcón is well proportioned, fully equipped, and trim inside and out, and its per- formance generally is good and sale. It shows great advance on any carlier Rover car.

The four-door six-light body gives proper room for four per- sons, with space for a child also" on the back seat. There are three comfortable armrests, three use- ful concealed ashtrays, a fat floor .. except for the propeller shaft tunnel, and "a low floor level owing to the underslung frame, a root nét a reflecting mirror. which gives by an extension a safe view behind, a sliding roof, tandem electric wipers, concealed direction signallers with automa- tic return, two full-width bag pockets on the rear doors, and three useful cupboards in front. and at the rear a neat combined fear bumper and luggage grid with the spare large hub painted wire wheel in a metal cover, forward.

features of which many, not all of them, will have had no prévious experience, no matter how long they may have been motorists, and there are certain points concerned with the upkeep of some of these innovations. the upon which

owner-driver should have early information.

For example, a device for con- trolling the temperature of the engine cooling water-is fitted to several makes that have not been thus provided previously. It is a thermostatic valve that checks the circulation of the water when. the engine is cold, but permits the water to flow more freely. States that the Executive Com- be the subject of close research, The bumper by the radiator com

and in greater volume, as and when the engine warms up with running. The valve is located in the run of the water pipe leading from cylinder head to radiator. On one side of it is a .milled edge disc by means

which it can be adjusted.

of

"Adjustment, is desirable so that in cold or cool weather the valve can be set practically closed with the

engine cold; the retarded circulation of water through the cylinder jackets will then enable the cylinders to warm up quickly and reduce to the minimum the 11 effects e.g. ol impoverish- ment by unvaporised fuel par- ticles that arise from running an engine m' a cold state. It is quite safe at this time of year to set the valve closed when the

will engine is cold; it

open automatically as the water tem- perature rises. But when the warmer weather comes the valve · should be set open a few notches of the adjustment.

Mechanical Petrol Pump

Another new accessory to many motorists is the mechanical petrol pump. Ordinarily it re-

quires no attention, though the integral Alter needs occasional cleaning.

which implies taking

" off the glass bowl secured by a poke and a single screw. A cork washer occurs between bowl and filter gauze, and it is important that this should be flat on its seat to make an air-tight and petral-tight joint. A point that may be overlooked, is that a hand primer is provided. This is in- tended for use if the car had run to a standstill through lack of petrol. The carburetter should be primed by hand before an attempt to restart the engine is made when the tank has the

replenished.

How many ordinary owner- drivers know that 'all crankshafts twist under load? How many care? Obviously this twisting is

long greater on a

chankshaft

than a short one, and as twist occurs between the flywheel and the other end of the shaft the valve timing is bound to be affected by it when the camshaft drive is from the front.

But the effect is not of great.. importance in an ordinary en- ginc.

Again, therė is bound to be play between the teeth of any driving wheel and the chain running over It, and this fact leads to a dis- cussion on whether chain drive is better than a vertical shaft and gearing. But there is also play between gear teeth-and so on.

Probably the best method of driving an overhead camshaft is by a number of eccentrics--but that is another story.

All a Matter of Compromise

A well-known car designer to whom I had been grumbling about certain points of design in his car told me that everything on a car was a matter of com-

Не promise.

knew what the should do but other factors de- cided what was done.

been

A third innovation is atted to the majority of ignition distribu- tors having an automatic (cen- trifugal) control of the timing- the "advance and retard.” It is known as the micrometer adjust- ment, and is located alongside the base of the distributor. The primary purpose of this device ia to enable the automatic timing to be set according to a standard adopted by the car maker, and adjusted as required to that standard during the final road tests of the car. The aver- age owner-driver will have no need to use this adjustment so long as he uses a standard petrol.

secure

If, however, a benzole mixture or a "doped" petrol be regularly used there may be improvement in speed, and hill-climbing if the micrometer adjustment be varied to give more "advance," which implies screwing the adjusting nut as though to tighten it. But note should be taken of the original, setting on the adjacent scale, so that it can be restored if desired:

STEYR 18/45 h.p., SALOON 4/5 seater

Model 430–6 Cylinders-has a high power weight ratio, giving excellent acceleration and extraordinary fast hill climbing ability.

Springs: The rollable Steyr system of independently sprung rear wheels ensures continuous road tyre contact, practi-

cally eliminating rolling and skidding, with amazingly comfortable suspension.

Gearbox: Four speeds forward and reverse. Three spoeda milent and bynahro-mesh,

The third speed is acceleration gear. The fourth speed is maximum and economy gear.

Brakes: Fluid pressure, operated on 4 wheels, systém Lockheed-Atø, -

Lubrication: Fully centralized chassis Inbrication Prémure, lubrication by gear wheel pump, Electrical Installation: Siemens-Bosch,

Import Agente i

SANDER, WIELER & CO.,

5, Des Voeux Road..

Telephons 24411.

A stringent overhaul of the motoring law and the imposition of increasingly severe penalties are recommended' in' a memor- andum to the Minister of Tran- sport from the Executive Com- mittee of the Order of the Road. the safe-driving organisation.

The memorandum; which was issued by the Order last night,

mittee are of opinion that true road security can only be achiev- ed by the emphasis of personal un- responsibility rather than

thinking adherence to any set of suggestions. A "great stride for- ward would be made if every section of the road community. learned to appreciate the dif- ciltles which confronted each separate, unit of traffic.

Educating Road Users The committee

urges the Ministry of Transport not to frame any legislation which will further tend to isolate the mo- torist as a predominant factor in the current traffic problems, but rather to treat the whole ques- tion in the light of prevailing

conditionis.

"The problem of reducing road accidents," the memorandum

adds, "is perhaps not one that wil readily react to legislative measures, unless that legislation is backed by an intensive" pro- paganda with the sole object of educating road-users, to a correct perspective of their responsibil tles.

"Laws may prohibit, but they do not reform, and, while penalt servitude may act as a deterrent to the perverted mentality bent on a criminal errand," no one can maintain that offences against road laws or codes come under such heading: they are rather the result of errors of judgment, or, at the worst, of lamentable

or crass thoughtlessness,

stupt- dity."

Safe Conduct Maxims To this end it is urged that the authorities themselves supervise the distribution of those maximá of safe conduct which are already observed by many on the roads to-day. Such propaganda should be issued not in the form of a repetition of "do's" and "don'ts." which are irritating to the adult

rather mentality, but

23 an. appeal to the inherent regard for fair play and toleration which is present in the make-up of most British people.

All the resources of modern publicity should be enlisted "in this effort, particularly those of

The wireless..

flim. industry. postal, publicity, and the holding of a national safety week should form pant of the propaganda..

Road Surfaces

Emphasis is laid on the neces- sity for providing better road surfacing, particularly such AS will assist in diminution of skid- ding accidents. It is recom- mended that the Ministry of Transport should assume greater powers in the construction of the roads of the country and not leave it to the individual selec- tions of the various local surve-

yors.

on

The memorandum recommends that penalties should be increa- singly severe in those cases where dangerous or careless driving is proved beyond doubt, and especially so in proven instances of drunk-in-charge" offences.

Tests for drunkenness should

many of the current ones being ; 'quite inadequate and rarely pro---

ving drunkenness to such a de- gree as would prevent the proper control of a mechanically-pro- pelled vehicle.

Camber of highways, too. should receive greater attention, particularly

corners, and "banking" should be progressively adopted throughout the country,

The memorandum also recam- -mends better street lighting, the plicing of some dividing way in the centre of big arterial roads, making them one-way thorough, " fares, special arterial road, cros- sings for pedestrians, and special parking lanes on all main arterial roads,

Mobile police patrols, which had resulted in some improve- ment in driving, should be in- creased.

J

Speed A Modern Necessity With regard to the speed limit the Order deplores the current

tendency among road authorities A

to lay too much emphasis on the

speed of modern vehicles,

"Speed is a modern commer-

·›cial, nécessity, and is waly How- gerous when misused. Of itself

it is less productive of accidents than the failure to give correct gadgnals, to maintain, brakes ́ing

perfect efficiency, or to omit to rexercise, dua „ésre: under ‚'all

conditions.” 27

In the opinion of the com- mittee the reimposition of "any" "speed limit would retard. progress both in design and in human control, without in any way pro-... viding a panacea for the avol- dance of accidenta, which ; In: most cases are the result of a criminal disregard of.common sense. It would,” also tend to relieve the motorist of respon- sibility and care at all times,

Driving Tests

The committee does not feel that any convincing case has been made out for the compul- sory setting of driving" tests. The committee adds that there was a great need for the tightening- up of the regulations appertain- ing to the issue of driving licen- ces, particularly physical fitness by diseases of mental afflictions. There should

in relation to 88 represented the heart and

be a national research into the whole question of-dazzle from head-lights, with the ultimate aim of eliminating human control.

Parking should only be allowed on one side of the thoroughfane, and severe punishment should be' meted out-to a driver found а guilty of parking 'a car on cornen or bend, or in any position · where it can constitute a danger to other road users.

It is considered that the suspension of licences should be made a penalty in a great num- ber of recorded convictions," and that this penalty should be firmly administered without regard to outside circumstances or in- fluences. There are many people driving to-day, the committee adds, who, on their past records, should never be allowed to drive again. And some of these are notorious.

At

prises an harmonic stabilizer which minimizes movement the front of the frame at speed over rough surface.

The engine has overhead valves worked by pushrods. On the rear-side the wiring and spark- ing plugs are neatly covered, but can be got at by hand; all the wiring is armoured. The verti- cally driven make-and-break and distributor, the dynamo, which shares a belt drive with the fan and impeller and can be moved for belt adjustment, the oil Aller

with gauze and diprod, together with the starter, are all get-at- able; so are the coll,the startix. and the other electrical parts on the dash. The flywheel inspec- tion cover for timing is fully ex- posed under the bonnet and the back bf all the instruments on the dash can be got at by day or by night. In front of the radiator is a veed dummy shutter. On the off-side there are the down- draught carburettor with its sif cleaner and silencer, the petrol pump and unbreakable bowl filter, the cam steering box, the adjust- ment for the clutch - and brake pedals, and the clutch withdrawal control, which is done primarily by cable.

Four-cyclinder engine, single- plate dry clutch, and four-speed gearbox, which has remote con- trol and quiet-second as well as third and a free wheel at the back, form an assembly which is held by a horizontal U. bridge at two close points to the cross- member in front and 'by's cradle also with rubber--at the rear of the gearbox.

The frame is dropped and taken. under the back axie, as are also the half-eliptical springs. I liked the look and setting of the sus pension both at the back and st the front, the forward springs are splayed, and have slightly reverse camber; all four work with hydraulic shock absorbers. The Girling balanced brakes are applied on all four wheels by pedal or at the back. only by a convenient central pull- up griphandle lever. Each must be adjusted on the drums, which are ribbed for cooling.

INSURANCE PLUS

mechanical

PERSONAL ATTENTION

You buy Insurance for protection. In addition,

your policies entitle you to service.

Good service includes immediate attention to your need....an understanding of your problems.. prompt, fair and pleasant adjustment of claims.

We can offer you this type of service. And solicit an opportunity to serve you.

A.A.U.

AD

ASIA LIFE BLDG. 14, QUEEN'S RD. C.

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Pioneer Manufacturers of Commercial Motor Vehicles

Full Range of Spares carried in Hong Kong and Shanghat,

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4 or 6 Cylinders

80 Cwt to 10 Ton Loads

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JOHN L THORNYCROFT & CO., LIMITED,

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TEL. 5675%.

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