?THERE is a danger .1 about silent lower gears which
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is little realized, but was mentioned to us the other day by Sir Herbert Austin, K.B.E. Many engines run with but little noise up to very high speeds, but, formerly, when on a lower gear, the increasing whine of the pinions as the vehicle gained speed was a good indication that the engine was working nearly all out. Now, with silent gears, it is possible to thrash the engine without realizing that this is being done.
NUMBERS of business concerns now find that it
pays to make use of a bus service to fetch people from the local station. When at the Morris works at Cowley not long ago we noticed that agents' representatives, arriving to collect vans and cars, reached the despatch department by bus, and were able to have their papers cleared in a few moments, because their arrival was expected. If drivers had to find their way to the works as best they might there would be a very long day's work in the despatch section getting away the vehicles.
TRAVEL by taxicab in Northern Africa appears sometimes to present an element of risk, as, recently, one such vehicle was caught in a stonethrowing battle between monkeys, an unfortunate passenger being killed.
BIS
WE daresay a good many of our readers will be surprised to learn that the more widespread u se of pneumatic tyres instead of solids will involve a considerable increase In the consumption of rubber. The majority, we should imagine, would have thought the reverse would be the case. Actually, we believe, the figures for the weight of rubber used are 10 lb. for the solid against 30 lb. for the usual giant pneumatic.
THRUM is a point about the recent reduction in the price of petrol which may not have occurred to our readers. When, about IS months ago, the price per gallon was increased by 2d., an additional farthing was imposed, ostensibly on account of difficulties involved in taxation, distribution, etc. Now there is a reduction of 2d., but it has not occurred to those responsible to take away the farthing as well.
COMMENTING the other day to a postal official
on the frequency with which we have to pay' excess postage on lette7, we were rather surprised to see him smile, almost chuckle. On inquiring the reason for what certainly seemed to us to be untimely levity, he informed us that in our particular district the revenue from that source alone was sufficient to pay the wages of I,400 people. THE facetious remark has been made to us that now is the time to post, without risk, parcels containing fragile articles, as all packages are being handled most tenderly by the post office sorters, just in case!
THE American city of Detroit is widening its main roads to 220 ft. There have been objections in some quarters to extending the width to more than 100 ft., it having been suggested that pedestrians will find it difficult to cross the wider roads. In practice it has been proved that the-wider the road the safer it is to cross. At Ferndale, Michigan, the highway is 204 ft. wide, and no difficulty is experienced in this respect, although the traffic moves at an average speed of 35 m.p.h. " THE pre-selective gearbox probably has a great future on the commercial side of the motor industry, and is, perhaps, of greater value to the commercial-vehicle operator than to the privatecar owner. A recent trip on a Daimler bus equipped with an epicydic gearbox demonstrated to us, in a striking manner, the merits of the device. It enables extremely rapid acceleration to be effected, the speedometer needle rising, so far as the eye can see, uninterruptedly from zero to a high speed, there being no perceptible pause while a higher gear is being engaged. This feature makes the pre-selective gearbox specially suitable for incorporation in the design of buses intended for service in heavily trafficked areas, although, of course, it is also valuable for the long-distance coach,