Are Modern Passenger Vehicles Too Noisy?
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BEFORE the recent war designers had succeeded in providing a high degree of passenger comfort in coaches and buses. Especial attention was always given to machines intended for longdistance runs. It was necessary not only to carry passengers cheaply but also as comfortably as possible.
In war production, on the other hand, power and endurance had to be the watchwords—the travelling public, not the war services, could be let down without any serious risk.
Several makers of post-war vehicles, however, appear to have sacrificed some quietness of running in the interest of mechanical efficiency Engine noise is quite serious in some of these vehicles and complaints by drivers and by the public are often heard. To be told that the engine is a fine job or that it is fight on fuel does not impress a passenger on a long-distance coach or the tired worker on a bus.
When an engine sounds as if the fuel pump timing is several degrees too far advanced and Diesel knock very apparent, and the passenger tells you that the pre-war buses were reasonably quiet and worked well, it is time to take the matter seriously. Indeed the time is again here when it is necessary to study public needs and demands with regard to vehicle comfort and genera! smoothness of running.