Turbine or Not Turbine?
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RUDOLF UHLLNHAUT, Daimler-Benz's car-design wizard. was asked in London the other day what future, he saw for the automotive gas turbine. His reply was interesting: he stressed that Daimler-Benz had not been doing much development work in this field and that, in any case, whilst the use of this form of power was a possibility in heavy commercial i,ehicles, he couldn't see much future for it in private cars.
This confirms opinions held by The Commercial Motor for some time now, but it's nice to be backed up by such an authority—who has rarely been proved wrong in the long run.
Valid Question
" y CAN understand people wanting more money. but in these Idays of our desperate necessity for exports, I wonder where we are going? How anybody can think that extra money for fewer hours and less skill may mean £20 a week beats me."—Mr. G. E. Liardet, chairman of Simms Motor and Electronic Corporation, at the Group's annual dinner, in London last week.
No Future
THERE seems to be no future in lorry-driving. A speech I made by no less a person than United States Secretary of Commerce, Luther Hodges. to no less an audience than the World Conference of Transport Engineers gives rise to this bizarre statement. The U.S. Government, says Mr. Hodges- A28 who should know—is at present studying plans for a motorway which would drive the vehicles itself while the driver, or what we used to call the driver. could "sleep or look at the passing scenery."
The electronically fitted road could steer and drive vehicles at up to 100 m.p.h. And these plans do not belong to the science-fiction future, according to the speaker. It' they seemed usable and not over-expensive the first one would be built in the "foreseeable future," he said.
Whether an ancillary robot will work out hours and records for the sleeping drivers' log books is not yet known.
Semi-clots
DOyou find that, usually, the biggest mistakes you make are so glaringly obvious that you hang your head in shame and wonder how on earth you perpetrated them. We managed one like that in last week's issue. Referring to two load-transfer devices front York Trailer and Primrose, we wrote—quite accurately—that they were for third-axle conversions. But the heading to the story stated they were for semi-trailers. Our humble apologies!,
Inadvisable Loads
OTWA people suffer front this danger trouble, too. I see a directory refers to a well-known heavy haulier as offering facilities for "abnormal and inadvisable loads."