1934-06-19 — Page 2

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AUTO CAR ROAD TESTS.

The Austin Twenty Landaulet

In face of the attention devot- ed to the many excellent small, Inexpensive cars of popular type. value for money among the lar ger vehicles is apt to receive less -notice than is merited by some.. of the cars in this class. especi- ally where the big chauffeur- driven vehicle is concerned; yet this is a style of car sold in con- siderable numbers and it RS much deserves attention in its way as any other type of car.

A very good example is the Austin Twenty Ranelagh, which, at £595 as either a dandaulet or a limousine. is really remarkably good value for this class of car, taking into consideration its capabilities on the road, its sea- ting capacity and its impressive appearance. In style and finish this oldestablished. Austin, model is thoroughly in keeping with the work for which is inter- ed.

easily

Modestly, the markers claim for It a performance of 6 to 60 miles an hour on top gear. Obviously the upper end of the perform- ance scale is of practically no Interest with a car of this dea- cription, but it is none the less a fact worth mentioning that the makers' claims are bettered, for this heavy stately "town carriage will exceed a mile a minute over a measured dis- tance; in fact, 62 m.p.h. or so. is within its abilities without as- sistance from gradient: a's to the important lower end of the speed range, a walking pace of 3 of 4 m.p.. is possible on top gear. without snatch the engine firing regularly.

Easy Running However, probably the chies perform-

of

point

the road ance is "". its "

easy running

at 40 to 50 m.p.h.. anywhere in which range of speed the car settles down very well indeed. travelling with most satisfactory ease, withou: the speed being at all apparent, wherein its com- paratively high top gear ratio is valuable, so

are.

which cannot easily be rushed in advance, and Brooklands Test Hill, with its average gradient of 1 in 5 and maximum of 1 in 4. was climbed on second gear

at 25 p.LL I when approached A most reassuringly certain “start was made from a standstill on the 1 in 4 section.

1

Spacions Comfort

In a car of this type the back compartment is, of course, all important, and the Austin Rana- lagh at once suggests spacious comfort, which in practice is found to be fully borne out. The car tested had Bedford cord sesta. upholstery for the rear The main seat is of ample width for three passengers, and there- Is a wide folding ceatre armrest, as well as softly upholstered

The at Barancsts

the sides. amount of leg room is thorough ly generous; and entirely fade- quate even when the two folding seats are in use, these normally folding back against the parti- tion. The glass window in the. bartition can be wound down so as to make the car suitable for owner driver "use.

None of the fittings approp riate to this style of car is lack- ing: for instance. there is a telephone for Communication

with the driver. "blinds are pro- windows of the side vided for the rear compartment as well as for the partition window, there are pockets for oddments, a com- eltber side. panion set at

a roof net. two roof lamps. which give a pleasing, subdued light, and a roof ventilator. One particularly noticeable feature of to the this car is that owing depth of the windows there is a very good sense of light and space inside; incidentally, the whole of the glass is Triplex.

Controls within Reach

As to the driver, he has the controls well within reach, the gear lever is long, and the win-

The..

dow in the off-side forward door has a quick-acting lever control which works very lightly. that a journey of considerable length is covered tirelessly. The car gets into a swing as it were, and climbs well without having to come off top gear. at all frequently. In town it is a quiet, flexible ve- hicle, and the steering "not too low geared, yet is not heavy.

The other

gear ratios fairly low, and on the level the car can started as a normal pro-" cedure on second. the changes up to third and.top being "very greatly facilitated by the syn- chromesh mechanism used on the 1934 model. This gives a particularly pleasing change be- tween top and third. both up and down, it belig possible to change with a single depression of the clutch, moving the lever straight through without hesita- tion.

Third is, notably quiet running, nor are the other gears at all conspicuous.

As to the more considerable type of hill, third gear suffices up a quite long gradient with a maximum of 1'in 83-a hill

adjustable glass wind-deflector panels at either side of the for- ward windows are valuable in that the side windows can be lowered, yet draught is not felt. With the partition window rais- ed, of course... the occupants of the back compartment can suit their own the venation. to tastes. Also, the rearward, sec- tion of the roof can be folded give a partially open down to effect.

The instruments are grouped of the driver, whilst in front on the left-hand side is a big cubby hole; the speedometer, it Ls interesting to note, proved 'slow throughout the range., A

Berkshire double-blade

screen wiper is used, there is a hinged tinted glass visor for protection against sun glare, and ventila-. tors

scuttle are fitted in the sides; these would be valuable in hot weather. The upholstery of the front seat is in leather and the position of this seat is fixed.

SACHS

Outboard

Motor.

The small Engine

of highest Power

Speed Simplicity

Reliability

Economy

For free demonstration apply

F. FELD & Co., Ltd.,

Pedder Building, HONG KONG

HONG KONG DAILY PRESS, TUESDAY, JUNE 19, 1934.

MOTOR JOTTINGS

RUNNING-IN THE NEW

When

an

CAR

engine is running heat is being generated by the burs ng of the gases and by the friction of the moving parts. Un- fortunately, this heating is not uniform throughout the structure. For instance, the cylinder block "is subjected to Interise heat in the region of the exhaust valve and a cooling blast through the near- by inlet valve. For this reason the engine's shape is constantly changing."

"

It is true that the changes are only order of a fraction of a thou- sandth part of an inch, but if. the engine is forced too early in Its life, while the material is still settling down, the rate of change may be so rapid as to cause local overheating and seizing of the bearing surfaces. Although these local blemishes may not be suff- ciently severe to warrant scrap- ping the parts, nevertheless mar of the unit. and the efficiency

cause later in Its He they will falling off in bower and excessive öll consumption.

Although modern grinding and lapping processes pu; a wonder- fa finish. on cylinder walls and bearings, these "surfaces are really

a

-

matter of "bills and valleys" · when viewed under a microscope. The object of running-in is, first, to allow the parts of the mechan. ism to settle down to their work gradually to avoid local seizing and distortion of the bearing sur- faces; secondly, to work the bear- ing under easy conditions until they have lapped themselves in and the "Hills and valleys" have been smoothed out. When the bearing surfaces are perfect, and " the metal has settled down, the, running-in process is complete.

This brief explanation has been given because, once the novice realises what is going on inside the engine, commonsense will guide him along the right path.

The First Journey'

When taking delivery of a new car make sure that the level of the oil in the engine comes at least up to the full mark on the dipstick. In the first instance ft is better to overfill by a quarter. of an inch than to underall by a similar amount. The first" tank- ful of petrol, at all events, should be a recognised No. 1 grade of spirit, to which has been added the recommended amount of up

cylinder per

lubricant. The brands of upper cylinder lubric- ant that are treated with colloid- al graphite are valuable.

While the engine is cold, test the stiffness of the bearings and pistons with the starting handle and learn to differentiate between the kick of the compression and the tightness of the bearings. The resistance of the compression has 2 spring feel and the pull of each individual cylinder can be distinguished. Bearing stress has a "dead". feel. Do not be frightened the bearings of your new quantity-produced ear! are so stiff that the engine can- not be turned over by the handle, but such a state of affairs should warn you to be extracautious.

Having completed your initial starting-handle test, make a mental note of the amount of effort to turn the handle, as, by comparison with subsequent tests conducted at 100 mile intervals, you will be able to gauge fairly Well how the running-in process is going along.

In starting the car avoid, dur- ing its first 1,000 miles, excessive. use of the strangler or slow-run- ning carburetter so as to prevent filling the cylinders with a wet mixture, that tends to wash the lubricating oil off the walls. As soon as the engine free and com- mences to run evenly, as it will within a few seconds, press the accelerator down until the speed of, the engine is equivalent to a pace that is rather faster than a brisk tick over and, at the same time, release the strangler" or mixture enriching control,

It is always desirable to avold a slow tick-over because, when the engine is turning fairly fast, it is throwing an adequate supply of lubricant over the cylinder walls, and, moreover, it is running at more nearly its normal tem- perature. The whole "secret of successful running-in is not to subject the parts to extremes in loads and temperature, and to guard against local seizing by an adequate flood of of

Depress Clutch Pedal When Start-

Do not lose sight of the fact that the gear box bearings and parts of a new car are also stiff, as is the synchromesh mechanism If the car is so fitted, or, indeed, any other type of gear box. You will, therefore, facilitate "engine starting if you press the clutch pedal right down while operating the starter.

On the road the feel of the car and note of the engine are better guides to the correct driving speed than the needle of the spee- dometer, 'Avold extremes. Try

to keep. This engine running at an even and rather sedate speed. This may be taken as being less than half the maximum that the car is capable of when it is fully run-in."

On slight down grades take your foot off the accelerator when the pace of the car becomes too high. The suction created in the bylinders by this action will draw the lubricating all up the walls. When ascending hills labouring must at all costs be avoided. Change down early and stay on ,the lower gear until the gradient eases of again; when on the lo- wer gears avöld racing the engine.

Listen to the engine's note, for that the best indication of its ... general well-being. The ear

'always a better guide to any mat- hing-tuning process than the eye. If you are delayed in a traffic block your foot on the accelerator so that the engine is held to a satisfactory speed and not allow. ed to tick over slowly.

At the end of about 200 miles you will notice that the engine is beginning to free quite nicely. Now comes the most important series of operations in the life of the car. Have the car thorough- by washed and run the engine un- til it is hot. Drain the bil qut of the bump and while the engine is still hot fighten down the cy- Hinder head nuts and the nuts holding the carburetter to the manifold, and the manifold 'to, the cylinder block.

Get under the car and tighten the screws or nuts holding the sump to the cylinder block, fox,” on most modern low-priced cars, the sump is a thin steel pressing, and there is a thick cork washer between it and the cylinder cast- ing. This washer settles down during the first 200 miles, and if the sump screws are not tighten- ed down smal oil leaks may de- velop at the joints.

Allow all the oil to drain out. and then replace the drain plug and half the engthe with Busting oil Run the engine for ten minutes at a brisk tick-over and then drain the flushing oil into clean cáns.“

"Poison" in the Lubricant During the process of manufac- rure a certam amount of dirt has got into the engine. To his are added th microscopic particles of cast iron, aluminium, steel, and white metal worn off during the running in process.

There are also probably some particles of Carborundum that have been used In the grinding operations during manufacture and have worked their way out of the bores of the metal. These substances are the poison in the system of the en- gine, and that is why the flushing operation is so important,

Onde the flushing of has been drained out of the engine the se- cond stage of the running-in pro- cess commences the burnishing of the working surfaces. Half fil the sump with ol and then tip- into it the correct proportion of graphited running-In compound. After that pour in the remainder of the oil

Lubricate the car thoroughly, and by that I do not mean just putting a grease-gun on the'nfp- ples. Fill the gun with a very fluid grease and pump a plenti- ful supply into each nipple. With cycle oil lubricate the door hinges, bonnet hinges, bonnet locks, and all moving parta unprovided with lubricatora. Go round all the engine controls with an oil-can.. Dut vaseline on the contact-brea ker cam, and on the battery con- nections Grease the ratchet pawi of the hand brake, and then oil every one of the many joints in the brake mechanism and turn the pin until it is free. It does. not matter how well your car's brakes are designed. If the joints in the machantam are not WORK-

ing freely the brakes will not act properly.

This work with the grenac-gun and oil-can is rather a tedious and dirty business, but it is per- haps the most important opera tion in the life of the car. Final- ly, I personally spray the flushing all over the whole of the under- side of the chassis where it lub- ricates anything that I may have "missed, protects the metal from rust, and creeps up into the joints of the floorboards, stopping squ- éaks. The road springs are given a particularly lavish coating of this thin oll

The second part of the run- ning-in process is very like the frst. The same care should be taken in starting, and it is still advisable to allow the engine -to tick over really slowly for more than a few seconds is also desirable to change down early, bút gradually, as the miles mount" up."the accelerator may be moved down further. The starting-han- die bearings. By the time 400 miles have passed no harm will usually result if the accelerator goes right down for a second or two "while passing traffic."..

When Is Car Run-in? In some quarters there la a be- lief that the running-in period ceases abruptly at 500 miles. Act- zally, the change from stif, new, jerking action to youthful perfec- tion in the car is as gradual as.. the change from babybood to borhood in a youngster. After once conduoting a series of ex- periments on Brooklands, extend- ing over 11,000 miles, and finding an improvement in each run I wonder when" a car really is complétely run-in.

By the time 600 or 700 miles have passed one can craise at a ›normal high speed. I have found it safe to keep the speedometer at 50 m.p.h. on a 9 hp. car, but It is not the speed you reach," but how you attain it, that really matters. You should still use the same care in starting, and, while you may safely indulge in an oc- (casional all-out burst. It is not

really wise to go along ten miles of the Great North Road with your accelerator pressed hard down on the floor-board.

MOTOR NOTES FROM GREAT BRITAIN

The concession made to Bri». tish motorists £m the recent Budget is likely to have far- "reaching effects. In the first place it will undoubtedly lead to more cars being kept in per vice throughout the year. In- stead, of a number being laid up during the winter months to save the tax. Further, it will encourage the demand for cars of higher power, so that before long the 20 h.p. class should come into its own again.

It was this point, of course, that the Chancellor of the Ex- chequer particularly had in mind when making the reduction m the horse-power. tax, for with this type of car selling in in- creased quantities at home. it will be possible to oner it at more competitive prices in Over- seas markets where there is always a big, demand. ✨

IN THE LUXURY CLASS Almost simultaneously with the tax reduction came' the an- Anoplacement of a new câr from

the pioneer factories. one of The 25 hp 8-cylinder Daimler is the only British "Straight- eight" in production to-day.

The en Ine of this new model has a capacity of 3.75 litres, and fuld-fywheel transmission is, of course, employed. For carbura-· tion purposes the engine is con- sidered as betrig composed of to 4-cylinder units; a double car- burettor is used, and each patr of four cylinders is supplied quite separately.

One of the first orders for the new car was placed by H.R.A. The Duke of Connaught, who is having an enclosed Himonedase

body built for it by Houpers."

A real solution to the problem of adapting the suspension to any road condition seems to be provided by the controllable semi-automatic damper "systain to the road springs now stan

dardised on the 40/50 hp. Rolls- Royce.

It comprises the usual" hydrau- lic shock absorbers, to which has been added a patented governor system that augments the loads on the damper as the speed of the car increases. In order to cater for varying ldads which

."

may be carried, a finger operated control on the top of the steering column is provided.... This .con- trol increases the rate of dam- ping throughout the complete automatic range in 10 different stages.

HELPING THE AIR PILOT. There was an excellent exam- ple of co-operation between road. and air interests recently at a very pleasant function held at the Standard Motor Co's works at Canley, near Coventry. The occasion was a luncheon held to Inaugurate the provision of die- ectional signs for aircraft pilots on the roofs of the company's factory. In brilliant white let- tering the signs read "London mile," 86 miles." "Coventry 1 "Birmingham 18 miles"""", "920 above sea level."

A large party of journalista. ave travelled front London in aeroplanes to inspect the signs, and they took the opportunity of congratulating Mr. R.W. Maudalay and Captain J.P. Black. of the Standard Co., on their Initiative in inaugurating this pioneer aerial signpost.

ECONOMIES ́IN TIME AND

MONEY

Among municipal services in which motor. transport has brought about revolutionary changes in recent years one of the most important is ambulance work. Last year, for instance. the London County Council's ambulances received 42. 384 calls and covered 190,065 miles. The average time taken to reach a case was 63 minutes, and the average time between the receipt of a call and the arrival at hos- pital was 14.4 minutes.

The L.C.C. entrusts by far the greater part of its ambulance work to a fleet of Talbot vehic- les, which have been constructed with a view to the special' re-" quirements involved.

In the important fald · of street cleansing motor vehicles. are doing invaluable work. Dur- ing 12 months recently a Dennis gully-emptier, owned by, Bury Corporation, for instance, car- ried out 40,091 emptyings in 2113 days, or about 180 a day, at a cost of 3.85 pence per gully.

TRUST A THORNYCROFT With Your TranSPORT

DEAL DIRECT

THORNYCROFT

SIX-CYLINDERED

COACHES & OMNIBUSES

@

MOTOR VEHICLES

DIESEL OR: PETROL

Pioneer Manufacturers of Comperelai

Full Range of Spares carried in Hong Kong and Shanghaf

4 or 6 Wheels

4 or 6 Cylinders

80 Cwt. to 10 Ton Loads

20 to 70 Passengers

JOHN L THORNYCROFT & CO., LIMITED,

Pioneer Building, Nathan Road Kowloon

TEL. 56759.

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