Vehicles in the Trials.
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The Wolseley =Siddeley 30-cwt. and 3-ton Vans, and the B.T.H. Petrol-Electric Lor.
The four Woiseley-Siddeley vehicles which are competing in the great tour are making very good running. They have created a favourable impression amongst the business men along that part of the route completed up to Saturday last, when the vehicles arrived at Gloucester. During last Friday's halt, at Bristol, where all the vehicles were exhibited in the very roomy cattle market, the company's representatives had, in consequence of the good running of the vehicles and their neat appearance, several enquiries from likely purchasers.
The 3o-cwt. model which is turned out by this company has met with a good reception at the hands of business men and large corporations. Recent orders received by the company for this type of chassis include the following which are worthy of special mention : three chassis fitted with van-type ambulance-bodies, for the British War Office authorities ; two wagonettes or brakes, for the India Office; one chassis for the Crown Agents for the Colonies; and one van for a large firm in Barcelona. An important mail service will shortly be inaugurated by this well-known Birmingham company, and one of its 18h.p., 3o-cwt. vans, similar to Cis, one of the competing vehicles, will be used at the outset.
The chassis is of the type first shown by this maker at the splendid exhibition of commercial motors that was held at Olympia in March last, but constant attention to small details has considerably increased the confidence which the company had in it at the date of its introduction to the public. It is particularly suitable for vans, private or station omnibuses, or any other purpose where the total useful load does not exceed 30 cwt. The engine is a four-cylinder vertical one, and gives 18h.p. at 1,000r.p.m. Its cylinders are
4 inches in diameter and are cast in pairs, as may be seen from our sectional illustration on this page. Examination of this drawing will show many points which indicate careful and compact design : the large waterjacket covers may be numbered among these. Proper support of the waterjacket core, by means of large coreprints, is one of the necessities for obtaining sound and reliable cylinder castings. All the valves are inter changeable, and are placed at one side of the cylinders ; they are operated by a single camshaft, on which the cams are turned solid with the shaft. It will be noticed, also, that the starting-gear and the cooling-fan both form an integral part of the engine, and are not attached in a makeshift way, or as if they were the result of an afterthought. Efficient water-cooling is maintained by a centrifugal pump, and this has a most direct delivery to the jackets.
The centre of the large, fan flyw: forms the male portion of a meta. metal clutch, and the male membe the clutch is mounted on an exten: of the crankshaft. The engine clutch thus form a complete unit, wl is placed partly under a bonnet, partly under the foot-board, in Iron the driver's seat. These boards an arranged as to be easily removed order that the engine can be comple exposed for examination. This position of the prime mover has the vantage of giving the greatest form length, with but a oomparati short overall-length. There are in who object to such an arrangement the score of inaccessibility, but proper attention has been given to tails, such objection has not held 2 in practice.
The appearance of this model forms with the other models mad( this company, and the front view the Wolseley-Siddeky vehicles is n distinctive. We illustrate such a s of the 18h.p. van on this page.
The transmission from the elute] the gear-box is through a short cart shaft. The gear-box provides for tl forward speeds—of 4, 9, and 17 IT an hour respectively, and a rev. speed of 4 miles an hour. The sh in this gear-box are quite short stiff, and are mounted on ball-beat-is All the changes of gear are operates a single lever, without any change. From the gear-box to live-axle the power is transmi through another cardan-shaft.
The live-axle is of unusual const lion, inasmuch as it contains a dou reduction gear. The cardan-shaft mediateiy drives a bevel pinion, wl pinion meshes with a bevel ring, latter being mounted upon a sl cross-shaft, on which a pinion has
elical teeth is cut out of the solid. his helical pinion meshes with a elical gear-ring which surrounds, and ; bolted to, the differential-gear cage. 11 the transmission shafts are mounted n ball-bearing journals, with ballrust bearings to take any lateral load. The double-reducing gear, which is nclosed by the central axle-casing, cerlinty places more weight beloW the orings, and it is subjected to all 3ad shocks that are not absorbed by he springs, but, at the same time, it ermits much smaller and lighter ear-wheels to be employed. It is, 'nerefore, all the more easy to change ear, on account of the lower too:11Jeeds. The general disposition of the Rrious parts of the chassis will be early seen in our illustration which lows the mechanism in plan.
There are two, independent, brake ,,stems fitted, one of which is operated y the right-hand pedal : this acts upon drum which is fitted on the after-end f the main-shaft of the gear-box. The ther system is actuated by -a side :ver : it causes the friction bands to ose upon drums which are fixed to the 3ar road-wheels.
This chassis is well sprung over the axles, and is mounted on artillery-type wheels, the diameter of the leaders being 30 inches, and that of the drivers 34 inches. Its wheel-base of 9 feet 9 inches allows of easy handling in traffic, or at sharp corners. Vehicles No. C14 and C15 in the trials are both mounted on chassis of the model which we have described, and vehicle No. E32 is a 3-ton tilt
wagon which is mounted on one of
the company's larger chassis. This heavier chassis is of similar build to those which are in daily public-passen ger service, in London and elsewhere, with double-deck bodies for 32 or more persons. The details of the larger
chassis were dealt with pretty-fully by —19 Mr. Worby Beaumont, in his paper
on " Petrol Motorbuses " read before
the Institution of Mechanical Engineers during its last session. It has a four-cylinder, vertical engine, with cylinders of 41 inches in diameter and with a piston-stroke of 5 inches: The cylinders are cast separately, and, at ,toor.p.m., the engine is capable of developing about 35h.p. Its normal speed is, however, goor.p.m., and it is, therefore, rated as being capable of giving 3ob.h.p, at that speed. As in the 1811.p. model, this engine and the clutch are entirely self-contained, but the 3oh.p. type differs in one important detail. A square-section, helical spring operates the cone-clutch on the
18h.p. vehicles, but, in the larger ones, this has been superseded by two, powerful, laminated plate springs, which give easy and elastic motion, and a large range of adjustment. The larger clutch is faced with leather, which constitutes another point of difference from the smaller model.
The change-speed gear-box provides for speeds of 31, 5, 8, and 12 miles an hour in a forward direction, and one reverse speed of 31 miles an hour. From the gear-box, the drive is transmitted through a cardan-shaft to a bevel-driven countershaft, the centre portion of which we illustrate on page 33. It will be noted that the inner ends of the differential-shaft have a socket and spigot, which arrangement ensures that they are always concentric with each other. On the outer ends of the differential-shaft, chain sprockets are mounted, and from them the rear road-wheels are driven through roller chains, The standard chassis are fitted with sprockets each having 17 teeth, but, where any departure from the standard range of speeds is desired, smaller or larger sprockets may be fitted.
The present trials are affording an excellent opportunity to compare the running of motor vehicles employing no less than three distinct systems of power transmission, viz. : steam ; internal-combustion engine with gear or chain drive; and the internal-combustion engine with electric transmission. It is, however, to be regretted that only one example of the third class is to be found amongst the vehicles which still remain on the official list of competitors. The imposition of a speed-limit is certainly not productive of the best results from this, and other vehicles, and the fuel consumption will, perhaps, work out much higher than the average user would experience.
E35 is the official number of the 4oh.p. Wolseley-Siddeley, ThomsonHouston vehicle, which is the sole representative of the petrol-electric system to be found in the trials. It has been subjected to considerable and important structural change since the construction of the highly-successful vehicle which made the several long-distance runs that have been recorded in this journal, and which vehicle is now doing daily omnibus service in London. The armature of the generator no longer forms the flywheel for the engine. Although it still assists in that capacity, there is a separate flywheel, and the power of the 4oh.p. engine is transmitted to the armature through a flexible claw-coupling, between the adjacent jaws of which compression springs are introduced. The advantage of this arrangement is, that the engine and the generator may be treated as separate units, and each may be taken down without disturbance of the other.
The control gear for the engine, or the excitation of the shunt-winding, remains as on the earlier model. The electrical part of the system also remains unaltered, and it is only in connection with the mechanical portion of the transmission system that important changes have been effected. The most important of these changes is the means of transmitting motion from the two motors to the rear, roadwheels. This was originally effected through a spur reducing-gear, with a side-chain final drive. The latest model has, however, a worm reducing-gear for the first reduction, and the final drive is still by means of side chains. A reference to our plan and elevation views (the latter will be found on page 3 t) of the complete chassis will show that the motors are now fixed rigidly to the longitudinal members of the main-frame, and that the armatures are connected, through Oldham coup
lings, to the two worm-shafts. Ea of these worm-shafts drives a she countershaft, also secured to a long tudinal member of the main-fram The outer ends of these short oountE shafts are provided with cha sprockets, with teeth cut to ta! Hans Rcnold, centre-guided, silo chains, and on the inner ends a keyed substantial brake-drums, whi. have large, frictional surfaces. Ba bearings are fitted for both won shafts and countershafts, and t whole is enclosed in oil-retaining al dust-proof casings.
There has been much favourat comment upon the smooth running this vehicle, and, although its spe up very steep hills is, perhaps, not high as some of the petrol vehicl which employ mechanical means changing the gear ratio, it is doubtf whether this is a real disadvantag Hills with a gradient of I in 8 a rarely encountered in everyday wor and, so long as the vehicle can mou the hill without unduly punishing t engine, or gearing, or without revel ing, we maintain that it is doing essential duty. The saving in the we and tear on engine, gearing, and tirE must, of necessity, be considerab: with such a beautifully elastic a: flexible method of power transmissic which is superior, in these respect to even the best of the mechanic drives. At the close of the trials, will be extremely interesting to CO1 pare the final results of 1:35 with thc of other vehicles in its class. Its spe on the level is remarkable, the elect, transmission being arranged to ge up, as well as down.
All our illustrations in this artit show only chassis, or parts of chass Photographic reproductions of t various Wolseley-Siddeley competh vehicles will be found in our curre and future reports of the trials.