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ASPECTS OF THE BERLIN SHOW.

A Comprehensive Survey of the Many Remarkable Passenger and Goods Vehicles and Chassis and Municipal Appliances.

A l'TER a critical survey of . the exhibits in the com

mercial vehicle sectien of the German Motor Show, which .closed its doors last Sunday, we came to the conclusion that, despite the fat that the Show was cons.iderably smaller (both as regards', the number of makers exhibiting and the types on view) than the exhibition of last December, the chassis and vehicles showed an all-round improvement anda general tendesicy to the elimination of features which might, e.eom our point . of view, be called abnormal. .This, as a matter of fact, is the same tendeney. that has been observed. in the case of the private car. Germany. is setting. her house in order' for an important position in the , markets, of the world, and we have little doubt that she will soon_ become a formidable Competitor.

The prices of both chassis and bodies are steadily dropping. Naturally, the very small home market which exists at present prevents production on a large scale, and it is only by a large output that prices can be lowered sufficiently_ to permit real competition. The effects of a return to normal currency after a period of excessive inflation have reduced the money-spending powers both 'of companies and individuals to an almost paralyzing extent, hut there are signs of 'recovery, not the, least cause for this being our own coal dispute, which has thrown many millions into Germany's coffers. No one who has studied the 'conditions of life in Germany can but be impreseed by the dogged manner in which the formidable task before her is being tackled. Every worker, whether of high or low degree, is 'cheerfully working long hours at comparatively 1 o w wages, and the articles produced reflect this perseverance and the will to win recognition by quality and not cheapness alone.

Only a few months ago we should net have believed that the improvements . in design now shown could have been embodied in such a short period. If is obvious from the official figures that there has been a drastic paring in the motor trade. Eccentricity has evidently been looked upon with no approving eye. It is being realized that the unusual may be interesting but is not always a commercial success. The actual figures for the 1026 Show were 20 firms exhibiting GT types, whereas in 1925 there were 33 firms showing 00 types.

This year there are 24 new vehicles, of which eight were provided -with six-cylindered engines, this tYpe of engine being chiefly employed on buses intended for high-speed work, although some wagons for load-carrying were also so equipped.

Amongst the new products, other than complete vehicles, was an exceedingly well-constructed six-cylindered Diesel engine originating, from the Daimler,Benz works. The Benz-Diesel engine was also employed on a tractor, but this was a four-cylinde.red Model of quite a different type. Full particulars of the new engine are not yet available for the moment we will merely say. that it is of clean design and is, for 'its power, compact. It has overhead valves operated by tappets and rockers, and the water pump, oil pump and dynamo are driven in line. Whilst on the subject of .Diesel engines we would point out that the M.A.N. unit is apparently making great strides and was shown in a chassis, but we will refer to this in detail later.

Six-wheeled vehicles have both gained and lost, for whilst Krupps staged a new 2-tonner of practicable design, the Mannesmann-Mules; was not present and we learnt that production has been Stopped. We are, however, not surprised at this, .because the design, whilst being novel, did Mit appear quite practicable. Another six-wheeler absentee of an unusual type was the Vomag.

The majority of the new chassis is cf the low load-line type, some with a straight frame back to the arches over the rear wheels, and others with A dropped frame in the neighbourhood of the driver's seat. It is obvious, i one or two instances, that the designers, whilst Conforming in a certain degree to the wishes of buyers, do not intend to go to extremes in this question of reducing frame height.

Almost all the largest of the new chassis .are equipped

with servo brakes.

T Ii e mechanical

servo is, haweVer, not favoured,' the favourite pattern being the Knorr. which is a pneumatic type making use of a . canpressor. . of large size supplying cootainers from which air is conducted to the brake cylinders. In the case of the rear wheels these. cylinders are usually attached direct to the axle, either at the front or back of the casing, and to the stub axles in the ease of, front-wheel br ake s. Incidentally, the lastnamed form of brake is now employed on almost every machine. In at least two models, including the. Bussing, sixwheeler and the M.A.N. Diese l

engitsed chassis, use is made of the engine brake by sliding the camshaft in the manner adapted On the Saurar.

One 'particularly unusual brake was of the electric -or solenoid type', the energy for this being obtained from a dynamo driven from the petrol engine. Of course, it would not have been worth while doing this for the brake alone, and, as 'a matter of fact, the dynamo was employed in connection with the tipping gear on a lorry and on a trailer, the trailer also being equipped with an electric brake.

It is fairly obvious, from information gathered at the Show and elsewhere Cud from a study of theexhibits, that, so soon as financial resources permit, Germany, like England, Will experience a huge development of its bus services, not only within the cities, but as a means for opening up better communication between the rural areas and the thickly populated centres. This is a matter of just as much importance to Germanyas it is to us, for, at present, transport, even by train, is not only expensive but difficult.

In this connection the saloon bus has made tremendous progress, whilst the open coach was represented by only one or two examples—possibly because weather conditions • in a large part of Germany are, as a rule, more severe than we experience. .

Only one doable-decker—a Daimler-Benz—was shown, but for long-distance touring work the Germans have developed a particularly interesting type of body which would appear to possess great potentialities for this class of work. It is a saloon coach, the front half of which is of ordinary pattern, whilst the rear portion is raised to a considerable extent. The roof is stepped apcordingly, and the occupants of the rear seats are afforded an excellent view of the • „surrounding country through the windows around the high portion and bridging the two sections of the roof. Advantage is taken of the large space beneath the raised seats to aecom

modate passengers' luggage, of which an ample supply can be carried for a long tour. Some of these vehicles have been ordered for tours embracing Germany, Prance, Switzerland and Austria, and we believe that they, would prove popular in our owncountry, for although built high at the rear they do not appear to he top-heavy, and o-ne we saw running to and fro between the offices of the makers and the exhibition was not only popular but ran most smoothly.

Municipal vehicles were not in great evidence, although those exhibited were not without interest. For instance, the German conception of a water-tank wagon is a huge affair with hn independent seat at the front in which sits a second man who operates the various levers controlling the water supply. One refuse-collecting wagon of Innsehel mate has a cylindrical body which could be either rolled off or tipped for unloading. There was a few ambulances, and these were generally much the same as thctse in use in this country.

D16 As was noticed in the case of the Paris Show, dualpurpose vehicles, appear to be becoming popular in Germany. One, in particular, the Elite, which afforded a large well space at the back for carrying loads (and which, incidentally, had two storeys), could be changed into an almost luxurious limousine by the removal of the aluminium panels with which it wad lined and the fitting of the upper half of the body. , • ..

In its fire equipment Germany has presented a novelty which, if constructed by" our makers, might well .meet the needs of the smaller municipalities. The idea has been to design an equipment which will provide a seating and hosecarrying capacity of the standard type of engine whilst affording the mauceuvrability and the capability of traversing rough. country which can only be attained by the employment of the trailer fire-pump. Consequently, the two have been combined and a .trailer fire-pump with a powerful engine is carried bodily on what may be termed the mother machine. The arrangement may. be compared 'with that of a sea plane .carrier. One of these machines' was shown by Magirus and another by

the huge Daimler-Benz organiation. Tipping gears are mostly of the hydraulic-rani type, but very little like those employed here. One of the most popular, the /reifies, aotually has four rams telescoping into each other. Incidentally, the cylinder which contains the whole of 'these ends in a ball to which eil is conveyed by a double-jointed tube. The oil pump is driven from a shaft above the gearbox, and a novel feature is that driven by a chain from this shaft is a dynamo which supplies current to an electric motor operating the pump on the trailer. We were somewhat surprised to find only one electric vehicle and this in the form of a Hansa-Lloyd bus, but we found a petrol-electric chassis of somewhat unusual type, about which we will give more details in our general description of the most interesting exhibits.

The pareelcars were mainly of the sidecar or tricycle type, and these were staged in the private-car section. They are being dealt with in a separate article. There were, however, several light-van models, amongst them being an interesting development of the Hanomag and a curious machine known as the Leila, one model of which has a single-cylindered engine in the usual position, whilst the other and larger has an horizontal twin engine mounted in the centre of what is, in England, the off side. The other

only real entrant in this class was the lighter type Opel.

Considerable attention has certainly been given to the matter of more adequate lubrication. Several of the vehicles were, we noted, equipped with a Bowden centralized device by which pressure on a pedal sends oil to all parts of the chassis, In others, only those points difficult of access had their lubricant conveyed from some central point. One or two machines had oil-well lubricators for the spring shackles, torque-tube ball, etc.

Coachwork showed an all-round improvement. Many of the vehicles were exceedingly well designed and finished, some being lined with polished. wood showing the natural grain. Amongst the most luxurious was a sleeping coach by Rembrandt Karosseriewerke.

Apart from the Diesel-engined tractor to which we have already referred there were several new ones of Ranornag make, one of these somewhat resembling the Pordson, but having a large spring drawbar mounted on a V-bracket of channel steel. One model had coil springs, whilst the -other, a more recent type, was equipped with inverted semi-elliptic crosssprings, one at the front of the axle and one behind it, these springs being centrally pivoted. This later model also had large sandbins mounted over the .rear wheels. This tractor is priced at 4,800 marks (about £240) for the agricultural model and 7,000 marks (£350) equipped with rubber-tyred wheels for road use.

Two creeper-track tractors, one of 50 b.h.p. and the other of •28 b.h.p., made by Kanomag, were also on view. Both had four-cylindered engines with the cylinders cast in pairs, a separate clutch for each track and volute-spring drawbars. The larger model wills priced at £000 and the other at £525.

Passenger Vehicle Exhibits. ONE of the most striking of the passenger vehicles was

the six-wheeled Bussing bus completely panelled in steel. This is a 28-seater with the driver's cabin Contained within the body and having a separate do r. Lockers for tickets, etc., are provided alongside the cabin. The seats are of the armchair type arranged singly and in; pairs at the side of a gangway.

The Brennabor 15-seater hotel bus, priced at £410, has a door at the centre of one side, the nests arranged along the sides and a tip-up seat in the vicinity of the door. Of the two V.O.M.A.G. buses, a particularly interesting one was the 27-seater fast-speed model. This has a sixcylindered motor and S.W.W. steel coachwork. It is priced at £705 complete, and it. is claimed for this vehicle that it is 40 per cent. cheaper than an equivalent American model, even excluding the tax and carriage. The engine has the timing at the back, from which the pump, dynamo and coil unit are driven in line, but the fan is mechanically driven from the front end. It is a Maybach model. There are two doors at the near side.

The other V.O.M.A.G. bus has a 65 b.h.p.

motor, line drive to pump and dynamo, with the magneto mounted above them. A feature of this vehicle was an air funnel situated behind the radiator which conveys a current of fresh air through.tubing to the interior of the body.

The Maybach motor appears to be a very popular model, as it is employed on several of the larger buses and coaches, including the Magirus. This bus, although of large size, is designed for one-man control. It has a separate compartment for the driver, but a sliding door to the passengers' part. At the right is a large loeke.: for tools, etc. Knorr pneumatic brakes are fitted.

A really excellent example ef coachwork was shown by Pe& Gaubschat on a 45 b.h.p. Protos chassis. It was a ten-seater hotel bus with one seat tilting up to facilitate entrance. Pneumatic cushions were used and the seats were arranged around the vehicle, being cut away at the corners to give knee room. The price of the complete vehicle was £637.

The same builder showed a 33-seater bus finished in inlaid polished wood and equipped with semi-armchair seats D17 in pairs, with comfortable back springs. The conch was of the all-weather type, with celluloid side curtains repineable by glass windows for winter work, robber packing being employed, in the latter case. A coaehwork feature of this vehicle was the two concealed seats in the driver's partition.

The third exhibit of the same make -was a 33-seater omnibus with the seats in pairs, the interior finished with polished wood panels. The equipment included drop windows (which could also be totally removed if required), a sliding door to the back of the driver's cabin and a large slididg window at the drivers right. (It must, of course, be remembered, in following our descriptions of these bodies, that the rule of the road in Germany is "keep to the right."

In the Hansa-Lloyd electric bus the accumulators are contained under the bonnet. One motor, provided with an air-cooling fan, drives forW-ard to a differential countershaft, from which chains drive back to the front wheels. The whole driving mechanism is mounted on a turntable by which the steering is effected. It is claimed that this vehicle will run between 12-15 m.p.h., and will accomplish44 miles per charge. A point in this vehicle was two low steps leading from inside the body up to the driver's seat, thus giving him an excellent view of the road. In the driver's cabin there was an extra folding seat, whilst the controls, which are of the tramway type, are at his left. Double small doors outside the body give complete access to the controller brushes. There are three brakes, two controlled by hand and foot respectively, and the other by electric power, and, as the drive is on the front wheels, all four wheels can be braked together. This vehicle will carry 19 seated passengers and four standing. It is priced at 1950, and is intended for use in small localities for convection to railway stations, etc.

We have alreadyreferred to a coach with a raised rear portion. Another of these vehicles, which, has been built for the Reichspost Service, is also of Hansa-Lloyd make. It has four steps leading up to the high-level portion, where accommodation is provided for eight persons. in this case parcels are carried in the large container underneath the seats, access to this being obtained from the rear.

An example of the super-luxurious vehicle was. staged by the Rembrandt Karosseriewerke. In this there are three comfortable and well-upholstered chairs arranged at each side of a forward portion. The backs of these chairs can he wound down by a handle, and together they form comfortable beds. What appears to be a handsome oval panel in the driver's partition reveals itself, by releasing catches, to be a polished table which stands on four legs in. the .central aisle. Above the right-hand short front window in the partition is a British-built wireless receiver, and there are seven roof lights. Swing doors are provided between the front and rear compartments. At the rear is it lounge seat for four, which is quickly convertible into a two-tiered bunk. At the left is a polished cabinet the full height of the vehicle, containing nine drawers replete with plates, cutlery, tea and dinner services, etc. At the right a similar cabinet contains a washing basin with a tap leading from a water tank, whilst a metal flap can be dropped over this to carry the Primus cooking stove. Two shelves hold kettles, frying pans, saucepans, etc., and underneath is a D18 wine bin for nine bottles. At the rear of the vehicle is a cabin trunk of huge capacity, 0 ft. wide. A second passenger vehicle had a back platform and folding doors at each side.

The Magdeburger bus shown is -a remarkably handsome vehicle with a sloping windscreen, green-glass sun vizor and interior finished in polished wood. There is a very' wide door at the front and a narrow one at the same side towards the rear.

Another firm Magdeburger vehicle is equipped with armchair seats slightly staggered to avoid the arm of one person knocking against that of another. This is a small point which might well receive more attention from our builders, as it adds greatly to comfort when travelling, particularly over long distances. The staggering need only be a few inches.

In the M.A.N. 22-seater boil there is a 15-in, step to the rear platform, which has one door and a further 8-in, step to the body. The side seats, for five persons each,' hide the wheel arches. The interior finish is in polished wood panels, and the equipment includes drop windows and sliding windows at the front. The maximum speed is 25 m.p.h.

The only double-deck covered-top bus in the Show was the Daimler-Benz. It is of typical German design in that the roof is dropped at the left (viewed from the rear entraace), so forming the deep gangway for the upper deck. A little care would have to be exercised to prevent head knocks when rising. The windows are fixed, but large drop ventilators are mounted above them, and there are sliding curtains all round. In our opinion the head-room at the top is insufficient, particularly for the front row of seats, which are raised above the general level and give a headroom of only 4 ft. 9 ins.; in other respects the vehicle is excellently designed and finished.

The Komnick bus is particularly noticeable for its low,' front overhang, and it has a peculiar arrangement of the driver's seat. This is arranged in the front right-hand corner of the vehicle with a door inside the body. The partition in this particular model was extended sideways, leaving just sufficient room at the other side for access to a single -seat in another compartment separate from the driver—probably intended for, the conductor.

Municipal Vehicles and Appliances.

wE have already referred to the Henschel roll-over and tippino.' dust wagon. This machine accommodates 5-ton loads and has a capacity of 9 en. metres. It is excellent from the sanitary point of view, being well enclosed, mid die system of operation appears to be quite practicable. The tipping is

effected by a vertical screw at the front. .

The Daimler-Benz fire-engine has a 55 b.h.p. engine, a

radiator built up in six sections and front-wheel brakes operated by camshafts passing through the front axle. There are seats each side of the centre box, and the trailer pump, which is carried on board, is secured in position by raising the folding portion of the ramps to a steep angle so that they press the trailer wheels against the front portions of the , ramps, which are curved to suit. When up, ahinged lever swings across each wheel and secures the ramp. The pump on the trailer is a large capacity one of the centrifugal type.

The arrangement for holding the trailer on the Magirus outfit is rather different, as, in this case, the ramp ends fold down. inwards against the wheel hubs, holding them against curved plates. This outfit carries eight men and 1,000 metres of hose.. The pump delivers 800-1,000 litres per min, at a pressure of eight atmospheres. The Magirus turntable fireescape is well known in this country. That exhibited had been sold to .Panama. Amongst several ambulances, one of the most interesting was the Faun, in which the partition between the driver and interior is carried forward for 8 ins beside the driver 'to give • extra roam for the two s'tre'tchers without increasing the overall length.

Another ambulance was .shown on an Opel chassis. This bad two stretchers and to folding seats.

Trailers, Tractor-trailers and Tipping Mechanism.

ON a trailer shown by Bergmann and Westphal there was an Unusual type of tipping gear consisting of a handoperated cross-shaft with a bevel reduction gear and horizontal screw, on which runs a nut drawing a chain attached to the end of a curved link pivoted to the body. This .link runs over a roller which forces the body to rise. The centre portion of the gear is mounted in a rocking frame, thus permitting sideway tipping. Gebruder Anderson had an improved edition Of their Arato tracking trailer, also a fine trailer coach with centre doors at each side and back-to-back seats for 32 people. In another passenger trailer there were longitudinal seats and a central side door, this model seating 20 people.

H. Fuchs showed-a tractor and two trailers, one of which was the washing and watering wagon to which we have already referred. Incidentally, this forms an emergency fireengine, and is equipped with a centrifugal suction and -compression pump. It is intended that the pump should be driven from the towing vehicle through a flexible connection.

The arrangement of these • semi-trailers is somewhat unuauaL In each case the front turntable has a cross-beam which fits into a wide socket on the tractor, where it is looked by two bolts ; long rods stretching from this turntable steer a second turntable on the rear wheels.

In the Tenser tipper, use is made of a single-cylinder with three rams telescoping. It is a three-way type with an oil pump, and .the controls of the tipping is effected by two handles which operate the four locks. The cylinder is arranged on gimbals. A two-wheeled trailer with canvas cover was shown behind a Drennabor vehicle. • One of the new models is the Oekonom tractor trailer. One of this make was shown last December, but was a larger model. The rieviTtype carries 3 tons and is equipped with a Protos engine of 45 bhp. The whole design has been modified with a view to further simplicity, and the supporting wheels, for when the trailer is uncoupled, are mounted on "over-the-centre " brackets. The arrangement is such that when the tractor is backed on to the trailer the auxiliary wheels of the latter are pushed back and upwards by the tractor axle, whilst for uncoupling they are automatically brought forward to the supporting position. The semitrailer itself has .a frame of light girder construction. It is nearly 20 ft. long and 6 ft. wide. Four-wheel brakes are used on the tractor and there are brakes on the trailer roar wheels.

Rigid-frame Six-wheelers.

AN INTERESTING new model six-wheeled chassis for

2-ton loads was exhibited for the first time by the famous firm of Krupp. This machine has a four-cylindered engine of 50 b.h.p. and monobloc construction, a fan impeller and timing gear at the rear. The drive is taken through all internal cone clutch to a separate gearbox affording three speeds, but, in addition to this there is an auxiliary gearbox mounted on a member joining the two. axles of the bogie.

The drive to this gearbox is taken through the upper part of the forward axle, and from the auxiliary gearbox it is distributed forward to the front axle of the bogie and backward to the other. The gearbox actually forms a unit with the forward axle, and there is a sliding joint, which also allows for rocking, between this portion of the bogie and the rearmost axle. Single inverted semielliptic springs, fillclamed at their ends and approximately in line with the axle centres, are employed for the suspension, and the spring ends are bolted to split bearings mounted on the axle ends, so that the drive is taken through the springs. Difficulty is sometimes experienced in arranging the brake gear so that.braking is constant: at any axle position. . In the Krupp machine cables are einPlnyed,. and :these are centralized around three pulleys -Mounted on an inward extension of each spring fulcrum. The lowest speed with the auxiliary box in action iS app.roximately 2 -thus.,

giving a powerful torque. '

The only other six-wheeler in the Show was the Bussing. This has a six-eylindered engine forming a unit with the gearbox and distributing gear for the two propeller shafts. The engine can. be used as a powerful brake by shifting the camshaft. There is no need for us to go into details of the general construction, as these are well known to our

D20

readers. Just to remind them, we may mention that the differential casings of the two axles of the bogie are staggered. A torque tube ending in a torque ball pi-ejects from each and is anchored to a separate cross-mefeber. The rear springs, which are inverted semi-elliptics, are 4i ins. wide.

Goods Vehicles and Chassis.

So far as -we could ascertain, the only chain-driven petrol vehicle of large size was the Goosens. The engine of this has an overhead camshaft driven from timing gear at the rear, and the cylinders are in pairs. The clutch is a multiple disc and the gearbox a Soden, the gears for which are operated from a small lever above the steering wheel. This

type of gear was fully explained in our report of the Berlin Show of 1925. It is so arranged that the A lever on the steering wheel can be moved to any desired gear position, but the gear is not -actually changed, until the clutch pedal is depressed. The drive from this is taken to a differential croSs-shaft and thence by open chains to the roar wheels.

For tinning purposes the petrol engine drives a dynamo and from this the current is taken to a motor on a cross-tipping frame and through worm gear to a differential screw. Leads can be taken off to operate a similar farm of tipping gear on the trailer. This is the vehicle upon which the solenoid electric brakes are employed. The pedal of this brake is so arranged that when first pressed down it applies the electric brakes, whilst, on further depression, a mechanical brake is imposed on the transmission.

' In the Opel 30-ewt. chassis overhead worm drive is employed, and, curiously enough, the rear suspension emplo-ys quarter-elliptic cross-springs of the exact type just brought out on the new Renault chassis. The long torque tube is in two pieces, bolted together; the four-wheel brakes are operated by cable.

The body on one Opel was built with vertical boards screwed and polished, the interior also being lined with wood. To add to the appearance of the vehicle the bonnet was painted to resemble wood.

A small four-cylindered engine with fixed head and pump circulation is employed on the 1-ton Elite, which has separate gearbox and a transmission drum with the shoes mounted in an extension of the gearbox and drawn together by rotating a rod with two oppositely threaded portions. A torque tube with triangulated tie-rods leads to a vertically split axle casing with bolted-on trumpet tubes.

One of the Magirus vehicles 'was shown as a fine 3-ton.

van, the exterior being panelled with vertical boards and the interior lined. At each side, at the back of the driver, are two large lockers with double doors each having five drawers for tools, etc.. Beneath these lockers, and reached by the side door, is a space for spare tyres.

The same maker showed a low load-line bus chassis with Deraybach motor. A feature of the engine is the large air filter mounted on the engine tilde of the dash, through isxhich air passes to the cylinder block, where it is warmed before entering the carburetter. The carburetter is a May.

bach speciality with no float chamber. The three-speed gearbox, although not a Soden, is made by the same makers. On the forward portion of the propeller shaft there is the largest joint of the fabric which we can remember having seen, its thickness being 3iins.

The engine is set slightly out of line and the first portion of the propeller shaft leads to a reduction and offsetting gear, from which the drive is taken to the rear portion of the propeller shaft, which is carried in a tube to the neat back axle, the centre of which is offset to the extent of 15 ins. Spur gears are used in the offset drive and spiralbevel gears in the axle. The drive and torque are taken through springs, and the Knorr air-brake-operating mechanism is used. The rear springs are 6 ft. long and have auxiliary inverted laminated springs underneath them. The design is reminiscent of the original large Karrier, iii which the offset . arrangeinent has now been abandoned.

A Alaybach motor of TO built as a unit with , the fourspeed gearbox and single-plate clutch, is employed on the Ansbath chassis, which has laminated-steel universal joints and the propeller tube leading through a spherically ended torque • tube, which is mounted on the rear end of a huge N-type frame member, the legs of which are 8 ft. apart. A hand brake operates on the rear wheels and Knorr brakes are also employed. The axle has a double-reduction gear and is of the built-up type.

One feature of particular interest is the glycerine shock absorbers, with their levers connected by stout fabric brackets on the lower spring plates. The low-level bus chassis built by N.A.G. for 30-40-seater bodies has an arched frame and an engine with overhead valves. The brakes are of the Knorr type, and the Hardy joints of the propeller shaft are strengthened by partial sectors of steel. The driver is accommodated beside the engine, and the final drive is by a double-reduction axle. Five supplementary leaves are fitted under each rear spring.