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Show EVERY DRIVER SHOULD LEARN MOTOR ART OF TAKING HILLS SMOOTHLY AND WITHOUT STRAIN I The most valuab'e information that could be placed In the hands of thOM unused to driving, and which. Indet fl ts not even common amonir experienced exper-ienced motorists. Is that which cocrs the art of hlll-cllmhing It Is an art. one that takes a little mastering, and I . I commands both technical knowledge j and skill. In the first place. It should be remembered re-membered that every engine has a rerfaln speed at which It develops a maximum of horsepower. If th'- engine en-gine has been tested on the bench .'.nd its "curve" plotted out. th? information infor-mation may bo knowr. Th" knowledge. knowl-edge. howoer, i not essential In hill climbing, but It Is certainly helpful on occasions. In climbing a rill, t.nere are two thln,7S to bear In mind; first, chang; i down early and quickly, letting tho clutch In smartly; second, retard th spark without waitin; for the engine ' to knock. It a common falling with i many driver- to hang on to Ihur top I gear until the engine knocks alarmingly, alarm-ingly, but if hill Is fncountered which, In the opinion of the driver. I runnot be surmounted on it certain larvae the lower ntr should lie en ' gnged some time before .t li actually needed. This maxim or "change down early" Is particularly rppllcaby? lo machines l with three or more speed? The Idea. I i3 to let ihe engine "rev" 10 that a greater hor-jepower mty De available. If the hl:h j..ar is left in too ling, the engine may be unable to p'ck up properly when the Iow.t cnr Is engaged, en-gaged, as the speed of the machine will have Slowed down excessively. It is often advirable, especul'y if the car haa more than twa speeds. to change lown before the hill Is reached at all Anoth it advantage in an early change down Is that th-1 motorttt "till will have an opportunity of making a successful climb should he miss his gears. In most ca3-s, changing gears up from first to second, or from second to third, in.olves no llfilcuKy at all. Tne car should be go,nj well on uuu gear before the change up is attempted, attempt-ed, the secret of success being In not making the change too early When a change from first is necessary, tho clutch should be Creed and the g?ar level moved smartly to tho next position posi-tion (the eocond gear, the clutch being be-ing re-engaged very gently. From second to third involves a repetition Of this procedure Changing down, however! may present pre-sent some difficulty, but once tho knack Is mastered, any difficulty there may have been vanquished forever. In a few cases It la sufficient to disengage dis-engage the clutch and move the irear lever smartly back, but In the majority major-ity of cases double clutching 's an a1-vantage. a1-vantage. This operuMon easily mastered mas-tered If It is not attempted too quickly quick-ly at first. The clutch Is freed and the gear-i leer pulled smartly through the remaining re-maining distance end the clutch re-e re-e no-need. In nraetlee this Is done quickly and presents little difficulty. It Is Sometimes argued that changing chang-ing down may be done by not dlnoo- j gaging the clutch at all. but this la a bad practice, as. just as the gear wheels are coming out of mean all the power they are transferring ts concentrated con-centrated on their edges only. Instead of on the whole teeth, ;ind the corner.' of the teeth are likely to suffer considerable con-siderable damage. Many motorists leave much to be desired in their munip'j'ntlon of the clutch, the engine Is often raced and the clutch then let in with a bang This puts a great strain en the transmission sstera. as a fly-wheel rotating at high speed pOSM SSI 1 momentum, and something must give way sooner or later In fact. .' rol I manufacturers. who fit heayy fly wheels, have experienced considerable trouble In this respect, and hae been forced to make their transmission PJTS-1 tm much stronger, sud therefore heavier, simply to make it fool-proof, j and not because the transmm-lon , showed ony signs ol weakness when treated In the correct and legitimate way. Another trap for the unwary Is the, temptation to avoid it ear chang -1 and hang on to a high g-ar up hill or through traffic. This Is bad for the engine, the transmission and the tires Qesr changing Is easy If care Is lak- j en when learning, and practice will j male- one so proficient that only by j the note of the exhaust can onlookers tell that a chance of ears has been made. Where a magneto ts fitted with an advanr. and retard lever then- Is a dis'in.t advantage If it is manipulated manipulat-ed correctly. When the rnglne begins to knock on the low gear retard the ipark slightly, and If It starts knock-, lng again move the lever hack mor repeating tho process until the limit Is reached. If an extra, air lever Is provided the lever should be put In the "dosed" position when the ensnne labors ana "spark knocks." but this shoulfl tx? done gradually, and .av aim rv avoid knocking of the engine by an-1 tlcipatlng It as far as possible. What might have been a successful success-ful climb is often spoiled by a clumsy change of gears. EJvery second Is Important If the speed of the machine is dropping very quickly during tho Interval between the engagement of the two gears. There are other small points to he observed If the machine lias almost come to a standstill near the top It may be coaxed up by slipping the clutch slightly This practice, however, how-ever, which should not be resorted to Unless It Is absolutely necessary. If the motorist wishes to be an adept In hlll-cUmblns;, he mu prac-l tlce. It Is not a rare sight to seo a driver fall at the first attempt on B hill, while at his second crfort the gradient Is easily scaled Not only Is there a lot In knowing one's machine, but the driver has a much better chance of climbing the acclivity successfully suc-cessfully If he is familiar with it in the first instance. If the float chamber Is behind the Jot. the latter will be starved when the machine Is on a steep incline, ana In such circumstances ,i successful climb Is distinctly remote. On many carburetors the float chamber can be placed In practically any position as regards the jet. therefore, an adjustment adjust-ment so that the carburetor is set across the frame with the centers of the float chamber and Jet In line can be made. A large Jet may be Inserted Insert-ed with advantage, while if benzole Is used the float should be weighted until un-til the level In the jet is the same as with gasoline. Automobile Digest. oo Always buy a storage battery from a well known manufacturer, who oe-lleves oe-lleves strongly enough in his product to return all costs if the battery falls down In service. |