Page:Motoring Magazine and Motor Life January 1915.djvu/25

1915. Use for Tire Valve Cap.

By using an ordinary tire valve cap attached to a string one can obtain enough gasoline from the tank for priming purposes. Quite often there is no drain cock on the gasoline pipe line for this purpose.

Occasionally when an engine gives symptoms of coming to a halt because of shortage of fuel, it can be induced to fire long enough to reach a supply station by violently jouncing the car on its springs — the theory being that a small quantity of fuel may remain in one part of the tank lower than the outlet to the carburetor. This is particularly true of force feed systems where the outlet projects for some little distance up from the bottom of the tank.

Life of a Car.

The life of a car is entirely in the hands of its driver. To prolong the life of the car is or should be the object of every driver, and to do this few things are so important as the proper manipulation of the clutch. A clutch should engage gradually; that is, it should not take up with a jerk; but should impart the motion of the motor to the car gradually, so that there are no undue strains upon the driving mechanism.

Care of Tires in Rain.

When driving in the rain particular care should be exercised to avoid scoring the tires. In dry weather the rubber of the tire treads is able to resist cutting, even when rolling over very sharp edges of stone, but when wet it yields far more quickly, exactly as it does to a knife blade that has been moistened. For this reason it is well to form the habit of coasting over gravel patches whenever possible, but particularly during wet weather.

Safe Fastener for Chains.

A rather long hook on the inside chain, and a small but good padlock on the outside chain, will fasten an anti-skid chain on the wheel, so that there is no danger of its coming off in use and either winding around the brake drum or being lost on the road. Releasing the padlock will allow enough slack of the inside chain so that the long hook may be unfastened.