THE LATEST GUY PASSENGER CHASSIS.
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Designed Primarily for 30-35-seater Coach Bodies, this Chassis is also Eminently Suitable for 3-ton Loads.
WE ALWAYS welcome opportunities for examining Guy productionsi they embody sound design and many practical features combined with an individuality which is not found in the average commercial chassis. It must, not be thought from this that Guy vehicles contain what are popularly termed "gadgets." -Oonsual as are many of the features, the obtained 'have. fully justified their adoption.
We were recently invited to inspect the latest production from the Wolverhampton works. This is a chassis designed for passenger work, principally in the Colonies and .other parts of the world, where its special features of large clearance, low loading line, dust and waterproof working parts and the tilted engine, which raises the magneto and carburetter 3 ft. 6 ins. from the ground level and thus enables the vehicle to pass through. . deep watersplashes anti fords without stopping, should render it most popular. The actual chassis which we saw was about to be despatched to Africa, -and calls for similar types have also been received from other parts of the world. Although designed as' a passenger model, the new chassis is also suitable for any load of three tons, and can be supplied in wheelbases of from 14 ft. 41 ins. to 16 ft. 6 ins, In the main, it follows the construction adopted in the other vehicles previously produced. One important alteration is the use el a robed channel frame inswept at the front and fitted with stout tubular crossmembers, whilst the main frame is crosstrussed at the centre by means of steel slats..
An additionalcross-member of the tubular type supports a bracket holding a self-aligning ball hearing, in which runs the two-piece propeller shaft. This is a point in design which has not previously been employed by the makers. It has the advantage of shortening the unsupported length of the propeller shaft, and thus reduces the possibility of any whip occurring.
The engine and gearbox are supported in a channel steel sub-frame flexibly supported at three points by three ball joints,, one at the front and two at the rear. This is a patented feature which has already been described in connection with other chassis of Guy manufacture. The sub-frame slopes down towards the rear at an angle of about 31 degrees, thus giving a straightthrough drive to the rear axle, with the additional advantage of raising the! en
gine, to which we have already alluded.
Thepower. unit is afour-cylinder metnobloc with detachable head. Thi$ is water-cooled. The rated horse-power is 25, the cylinders having a bore of 4 ins, and a stroke of .51 ins.
A pinion-typo pump in the sump forces oil through an efficient filter to the hollow crankshaft and other parts.
he isolator has detachable header and bottom tank and a vertical tube centre. It is carried on trunnions on the main frame, and is thus free from any danger of undue stressing through frame distortion. A centrifugal type of pump is utilised for circulating the water, and cooling is assisted by a fourbladed fan driven by a. Whittle belt.
Power is conveyed through a Ferodofaced cone clutch, provided with a cone clutch type of stop, to a compact gearbox of the single-casting type giving four speeds forward and a reverse. The shafts in this box are carried on ball hearings protected from the entry of grit, whilst all control is integral with the gearbox, and is thus unaffected by possible frame distortion. Between the clutch and the gearbox ie a Hardy disc fteiihle coupling.
Tim unNersal joint at the rear of the gearbox has its oil-tight casing attached direct to the box, from which it obtains its supply of lubricating oil. The middle cardan joint has a separate housing provided with its own oil filler, which also forms an oil level indicator. The rear joint of the propeller shaft is oi the sliding plunger type with renewable, hardened-steel faces and dies, whilst the other two joints of the shaft are of the
fork and pin type. Oil is prevented from leaking from the last-named joints by spiral grooves cut in the bushes and arranged so that the oil ie continually forced back into the casings, whilst for the rear joint there is a special spring ball and cup.
The rear axle follows normal Guy design, being of the bevel and spur double
reduction type. The gearing is arranged so that by withdrawing the axle shafts, which are attached to the hub caps, and disconnecting the rear universal joint, the whole of it ,ean be removed without jacking up the vehicle or taking off the road wheels.
The braking is certainly adequate. The unusually powerful foot brake acts on a drum attached to the bevel pinion shaftof the rear axle. Thus, the propeller shaft and its universal joints are freed from all braking strains. The operation of this brake is so arranged that the driver cannot put excessive pressure on the shoes, for if a certain pressure be exceeded the pull is taken on a compression spring.
The road wheels are of the cast-steel tubular-spoked type, and the hand brake operates on drums bolted to the rear wheelS, the shoes both of this brake and the foot brake being of the internal. expanding type, faced with Ferodo. The wheels all run on phosphor-bronze floating bushes, and the particular feature with these is that for each wheel the bushes are in pairs, so that one may be replaced without the other if tho wear is unequal, end play can be taken up by inserting washers between the bushes.
We will now deal in detail with the arrangements by which the chassis is lubricated ,throughout by oil, and in most cases automatically. We have already referred to the lubrication of the universal joints. Special provision is made for lubricating the rear springs, which, incidentally, are underslung, and also the rear wheel hushes. A space is permitted between the leaves of the rear springs to allow oil from the axle ease, which enters them through the centre of each spring bracket, to creep between the leaves. These leaves are, of course, in intimate contact at their outer edges, and thus the oil is prevented from escaping. No greaser is employed anywhere on the chaseis. Each shackle bolt is drilled through from the head almost to the tnreaued end, the head then being closed by means of a disc swaged into position. A connecting hole is drilled through each central hole to the exterior of the bolt, where it is covered by a spring clip.
Oil reservoirs are also provided for the swivel pins, whilse the ball joints on the steering, both tor the connecting and side steering rods, are also automatically lubricated from the hollow rods, which contain sufficient oil for 10,000 miles' running, the oil being inserted by the removal of small setscrews. The actual lubrication of the ball joints is by wicks.
Throughout the chassis the greatest care has been taken to.provide means for taking up wear. For instance, in the case of the worm-and-wheel steering gear a complete wheel is used, and. the steering arm spindle is ,cut with four keyways, into any one of which the key can be fitted, thus affording four distinct wearing faces. A feature in the 'back-axle construction is the latest type of spring bracket. These are now east solid and bolted right through to the bottom spring pad instead of being clipped to the axle sleeves, as was formerly the case. This construction is now embodied in all models. In order to comply with the new regulations, the petrol tank is situated at the rear of the frame, the petrol supply being by Autovac. In spite of the fact that the ground clearance is 10 ins., the top of the frame, when the vehicle is laden, is only 2 ft. 6 ins. from the ground; this is chiefly due to the provision of underslung springs. The price of the new Guy chassis is £745