1935-08-06 — Page 2

Page

ON THE ROAD

The Humber Twelve

Engine-Four cylinders, side- valves, three-bearing crankshaft, "cyclonic" Induction system down draught carburettor, mechanical *fuel feed 10-gallon petrol tank, coil ignition with centrifugal and vacuum control, pump and fan cooling with thermostat-controll- ed by-pass, Startix starter con- trol, power unit rubber mounted, R.A.C. rating. 11.98 h.p.; tax, £9; bore, 69.5mm.: stroke, 110mm.; capacity, 160 c.c.

Transmission-Borg and Beck single dryplate clutch, four-speed gear-box, all-synchronmesh gears, ratios 5.33, 8:0. 13.5. and 19.2. to 1. open propelior shaft, Hardy- Spicer universals, Anal drive by 'spiral bevel,

ཏཾ

Brakes Self-energising Bendix duo-servo brakes in 10in, drums, operation by pedal and right- band lever mounted on dash.

General-Marles-Weller cam and " lever steering. frame Iriswept forward and up. swept at rear, cruciform bracing semi-elliptic "multi-rate" springs, underslung at rear, hydraulic sheck-absorbers. automatic dyname output control, twin screenwipers with silent con- cealed motor wrle wheels with Dunlop 5.50 by 171 tyres,

Dimensions-Wheelbase 8tt. 27

in., track 4ft. 3in., overall length 15ft 3in.. width 51. Sin, height 5ft 7in.. ground clearance 7in, turning circle 38ft.

Models

and Prices Saloon, £285; foursome drop-head coupe, £325; Vogue saloon, £335,

Makers Humber, Ltd.. Coven- try.

SPECIAL FEATURES This already successful Humber model has been further improved I a bumper of respects for the current season. Always a lively car with an efficient engine, still more power has been obtained without making the performance mugh. To achieve this the cam- shaft has been modified, and at the same time the sump bas been increased in capacity.

Instead of thermostat shutter control a by-pass circuit is now used, ensuring the quickest pos- sible warming up. The cross- braced frame provides a better foundation for the coachwork, while the shifting forward of the power unit gives a better weight distribution and allows better body secoinmodation without un- sightly overhang.

an

The "multi-zate" springing em- bodies

which extra' leaf. comes into action with full load. and which also stiffens the su- spension on bad surfaces.

Not the least notable improve- ment is the use of an all-synch- romesh gear-box, with which the free-wheel is no longer fitted. being regarded as unnecessary.

Then the front compartment is relieved of the hand brake by mounting this beneath the dash on the right. The result is that the driver may enter from either side. Body dimensions have been increased, an effective ventilation of bodies evolved all of which are notable for their pleasing lines."

ALL-ROUND MERIT The model tested was the standard saloon, which provides ample accommodation for four, and with the centre arm folded back the rear seat will accommo- date five.

The floor is low, and although there are footrests at the rear they are shallow `and offer a sloping 100trest to the rear passengers. Head room has not been sacri- ficed for a low roof line, yet the lines are modern and smart with- out being extreme.

Humber engines are made to, close limits, and hence are not at their best. for a considerable mileage, but even a car barely run-in gives an immediate im- pression of power and life.

In traffic the car is handy by reason of Its moderate dimen- sions, and also because it gets inta its stride so promptly. Then the gears all being of the con- stant-mesh type. are quiet, and all having synchromesh engage- ment they are very pleasant to hundle. The change is also a reasonably quick one.

There is little in the running of the engine to remind the driver that It is a four and, not a six. It does not get away quite so smoothly from a low speed on top gear, but as the speed t- creases the smoother the engine becomes and at ordinary cruising speed it is hardly to be distin- guished from a six.

The car runs very sweetly at 50 m.ph. or so. and holds this speed without dimenity in a gire-and-

take road. Higher speeds are reached Without difficulty, and the car is definitely fast for a twelve, 75 m.ph, being possible, makers modestly although the claim 70 mp.h.

The speedonieter we found. ex- ceptionally accurate, being the first tested for a long time which actually read a trifle low.

From a standing start 20 m.ph. was reached in 8,1sec 30 m.ph. in 11.3sec., 40 m.ph. in 15.1sec.. and 50 m.p.h. in 25.2sec.

ACCELERATION

Acceleration from 10 m.ph. on the various gears was as fol- lows:-- Speed.

M.P.H.

14

10-20...

Gears Third.

Top.

Second. 6.7sec.... 4.6sec....3-1sec

9.8sec....

10-30... 13.6sec.... 1040.

18.9sec.... 14.1sec....

10-50... 29.8sec....

On the second gear" about 23 mp.h. is the limit and on third about 40 m.p.h.

Steering is very light. but free. from wander. while the brakes hand-brake excellent. The are position is very convenient and as I operates all four sets of "shoes It is a really useful brake, and not for parking only. The driv Ing position is comfortable, vision is good all control come nicely to hand. and altogether this is a car easy to handle yet pleasant to drive, and most satisfactory from the passengers point of view.

THE CAR

Is More Than A Vehicle

Whether or no the heavy taxa2 tion on cars and their use has any influence on the matter, the fact remains that in this country we have always regarded cars as much more than a mere means of getting from place to place, writes a correspondent in the "Daily Telegraph." As a sport and pas-

me, motoring has a following which is growing at an even faster rate than the number of car- owners.

And there are so many sides, to the sport. There is not merely the growing interest in motor rac- ing. That humbler competitive side in which quite normal peo- ple can enter is spreading like wildfire more rallies, trials, hill climbs, reliability runs every year. There are more clubs; the total at the moment. of motor clubs large enough to claim affilation to the R.A.C. is 55.

NEW CONCOURS RULES Another popular form of com- petition Is the Concours d'Ele- gance, or, more properly, the These coachwork competition. when first imported from across. the Channel were purely beauty shows, in which nothing but out- ward appearance counted, and the prizes automatically went either to the costliest or the mast extravagantly shaped or coloured car. The Society of Motor Manu- facturers took matters in hand, and regulations were evolved which have turned these Concours into more interesting and more useful affairs, which are having considerable influence on car de- sign,

coi- Appearance-design and our-counts now for no more than

30 marks in 100. Comfort, of both driver and passengers, counts for 20, condition inside and out for 10, and general arrangnement which includes good conditions for driver's vision, interior con- venience, ease of ingress and egress, luggage-carrying and tool accommodation-for 35, while five marks are allotted at the discre- on of the judges for special. "gadgets."

This has put an end to prize winning by freaks and has given the ordinary private owner a chance. Indeed, It is quite ugual nowadays for prises to be won by standard cars with standard bodywork. Specimens of the new small Morris cars, for instance, won prizes at Bexhill and in the Scottish Rally, and standard Ro- ver and, other cars won in the R.A.C. Eastbourne Rally.

SILVER JUBILEE GALA This month there is a spate or Concours de Elegance. Of spécial Interest to London is one being organised by the Women's Auto- mobile and Sports Association in ald of King George's Jubilee Trust

;

HỐNG

KONG DAILY PRESS, TUESDAY, AUGUST 6, 1935.

MOTOR JOTTINGS

MOTORING IS SAFER

Fewer Accidents

All the talk we have been hear- ing lately about traffic accidents is enough to make the average motorist afraid to take his car on to the road, and to stop pro- spective first-time buyers of cars from going near a motor agent's premises, writes" a correspondent. One would imagine that motoring has become an increasingly haz- ardous method of travel of late years, whereas actually lu has be coine and is still becoming safer ard sater. 5.

Safety in motoring cannot be judged by the number of people killed and injured on the roads from week to week, or from year to rear, unless account is taken also of the number of cars in

use.

"

Unfortunately there are no sta- tistics showing the aggregate

mileage

all of

the annual

licensed

in use, and cars But it must be immense. ly greater than It was twa

or three or more years ago. and the increase must be far greater in proportion to the increased number of road accidents.

The R.A.C. records of accidents. reported by members under the Club's "Get You Home" scheme have shown for years past-with the exception of one year a pro- gressive decrease in the percent- age of accidents relative to mem- bership; and there is no reason for assuming that members of the R.AC. are more immune from .ccident than non-members. "Moreover, comparison of official statistics of road accidents and cars licensed shows that the per- centage of accidents has decreas- ed. To the individual car owner motoring is safer, much safer." than it ever has been,

TESTS FOR MECHANICS Some while back 1 referred here to the arrangements made by the Institution of Automobile En- gineers to enable qualified entire- ly in the hands of semi-skilled mechanics whose knowledge is superficial.".

LORD NUFFIELD'S NEW POLICY

Lord Numeld recently issued a slatement giving further explana- tions of the new arrangement, which comes into operation,, on Monday. The new arrangement.. he says, will be a definite streng- thening against foreign competi- tion and will have a beneficial Influence traders handling

either separately or acllectively Morris. Wolseley, and M.G. cars.

As has already been announced. Wolseley Motors (1927), Ltd., and the M.G. Car Company, Lid, have been acquired by Morris Motors. Ltd. Lord Nuffield says:

The Wolseley car and M. G. car will definitely retain their individ ualties. Each factory," while be- nefiting from the results of cen- tralised research development and control, will continue to be a se- parate unit with its own sales. service, advertising, welfare, and other complementary depart- ments.

Mr. L. P. Lord, managing dire ector of Morris Motors, Limited, becomes the managing director of the whole group. The at Birming- Wolseley factory ham will have as director and general manager Mr. W. M. W. Thomas, and the M. G. 'Car Company Ltd., will continue with Mr. C. Kimber as director and general manager. The present models that are made by the Wol- seley Company-the Wasp and the Hornet are being continued, and there will shortly be introduced a new 14-hp. car, a development of the present type. All these mo- dels will remain in production without break and will be the

in deep at the bottom of his engine's crankcase when it was B few hours' dismantled after

run!

fox

accounted Abrasion, too. stripped gears in tear axles and gear-boxes that were not literally dust-tight. Brake linings cut away from their shoes and brake drums

were

Special cars are seldom built for racing purposes in this coun- try, and when they have been the result has not always been" successful The British policy is sane inasmuch as more or less standard types of sports cars are used, but not many years ago степ this was not considered necessary, and abstention from all forms of competition was con- sidered the sane course by the majority of British makers.

Оде

to hesitates, therefore, describe abatention from racing of the Grand Prix type as essen-. tially wise. Conditions have

There can be little doubt, the letter states in a subsequent para- graph, that in a Iew years' time all enterprising motor traders will hes'tate to engage mechanics who are not properly qualified, and, indeed, with a view to engendering public confidence will cite the .number of LAE certi- feated mechanics employed as a measure of the proficiency of their repair and service organisation.cbviously changed in this respect.

Morris distributors with whom the matter has already been dis- cussed have expressed their will- Ingness to pay the est and ex- amination fees--approximately 25s in the case of eligible applicants From their works-and all other Morris distributors are urged to appreciate the useful purpose to. be served and to offer similar encouragment to their technical stats.

HAVOC FROM DUSTSTORMS In a recent issue of an Ameri- can journal published in the interests of industrial motor owners are described the amaz- ing effects upon motor vehicles of duststorms that swept over the Middle West of America, ab area representing thousands of square" miles,

Engines were worn out," it is stated, after a few miles running. owing to the abrasive effect of the sand-like dust that entered the crank chambers through the breather pipes and through the carburetor air intake when and where air cleaners were not fitted. Onę truck owner reported that be found a layer of sand over

It's called the Silver Jubilee Gall, and is, to be held at Hurlingham on Sunday, July 14. It is confined to. private owners; there are 26 classes, and the entry fees, which range from 158 30 to £2 28 in- clude admission, inch and tea for the entrant. Entries are open until Saturday next

The same week-end Ramsgate is holding its fifth annual Con- cours, together with a rally of the Veteran Car Club, while the most successful of all these annual competitions, the Eastbourne Con cours, now in its sixth year, will be held on July 24. "A feature of the latter is special classes for drophead coupes and for cars owned and driven by women.

and if foreign and much less prosperous industries deem it wise to build Grand Prix cars there seems a good case why we should do.the same.

.

The expense of this form of racing is admitted, but there is no doubt of the prestige it confers, nor of the incentive to progress it provides. For that reason it would not seem unreasonable if participation in Grand Prix was on a national basis. That is, the Industry as a whole would asso- ciate itself with an effort to pro- duce a Grand Prix type to repre sent Britain.

CAMSHAFT DRIVES Chain drives for camshaft and dynamo are very widely employ- / ed, although, gear drives are favoured by many makers of .cars

the more expensive types. The latter may seem more me- chanically, correct, but on the other hand the modern chain drive is extremely reliable..

Stretch is negligible, and auto- matic tensioning devices have. proved satisfactory, while it is very simple to mount the dynamo se that it may be,, swung about one of its flange bolts to vary the chain tension.

It Was A Swindle

In a Christmas rafie a Ecotaman took a sixpenny ticket for a pony and trap, which he was lucky enough to win.

All his friends thought he would be overloyed at this good fortuna, but when the pony and trap were taken to him, all he did was to walk round surveying them with a gloomy face. At last he turned to one of his friends and said. “I told ye the whole thing was a swindle!"

"Why, what's the matter? asked the other, for

Well," deminded the Scotsman, where's the whin

actual Olympia show models. Fur- ther work is being done in con- nection with the production of higher horse-powered types of Wolseleys, and it is anticipated. that these will be made public when the present series is com- pleted.

Lord Nuffield adds that he is forming. as from Monday a new company, Wolseley Aero Engines, Limited, under the managing dir- ectorship of Mr. W. Cannell, which will look after his aviation inter- ests.

RACING CARS

On the question of racing cars. Lord Numeld says:

I feel that particular interest attaches to the racing activities of M. G. Cars. 'It should be fully realised that the M. G. Car Com- pany, Ltd., as a car company has never actually supported a racing programme or a factory team. The successes that have been achieved by M. G. racing cars in their particular classes have been outstanding, and now that virt- ually every award and record of importance that can be won has been obtained, and in view of the fact that the racing car of to-day- is fast becoming such a specialised product in design and manufac- ture, very far removed from any- thing that can be styled a to- ing model, 1 feel that the time is ripe to cease from the building of the accumulated experience that has been obtained in their production to the building of the normal sports type MG models that are sold to the public, The MG design and experimental staff are being retained, and the result of their experience will be incorporated in the new series of models.

The whole" group of companie will, instead of issuing yearly pro- grammes, introduce series of cars. and it is hoped that this import- ant change of" policy will effect a definite levelling out of the un- fortunate seasonal programmes to which the British motor industry has been subject

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