Letters from Readers, December 1953
M.G.s – A COMPARISON
Sir,
All of us can imagine a child’s feelings on the Eve of Christmas. There are lots of guesses. What kind of Christmas presents will there be ?
Then suppose that this child does not have any presents or that instead of presents it gets a thorough hiding.
This comparison is quite suitable when describing the cold douche which every believing M.G. enthusiast must have got when reading about those vehicles which the British Motor Corporation have the cheek to present on the just opened Motor Show in London.
I think that all M.G. enthusiasts had guessed that something new was to come and certainly most of us had hoped that the world famous M.G. works would take up their production of true sports cars again.
A new Midget is presented. Is it really possible to call a car with a 1 1/4-litre engine and a weight of 17 1/4 cwt. a Midget ? Yes, if the maker does not know what is really a sports car. Or is it today possible to call a car with 57 b.h.p. and a weight of 17 1/4 cwt. a sports car ? Is it allowed to build a sports car with an instrument board like the new TF and still call it M.G. ? Yes, B.M.C. can do it.
I read somewhere in a TD booklet ” . . . the world acclaims the TD as the best ever M.G.” The new TF has arrived and, of course, the world will have to acclaim this as still better. Only B.M.C. believes in this.
And then we come to the scandal ! There is a new Magnette announced.
This is an indignity to all Magnette owners and to all who know what a Magnette is. And it is to insult the memory of the late Cecil Kimber to call this announced vehicle a Magnette.
I am the proud owner of a PB Midget, the last real M.G. It is out of date and of course a little antiquated. But it is a true sports car in every aspect and it will belong to me as long as I live because I want to have an M.G. sports car and there are still no new to buy.
I have many M.G. friends here in Sweden. We have all been looking forward to this exhibition, but now all of us know that we can only look back. We will have to take good care of our Midgets and Magnettes, and keep them going so that here in Stokholm some M.G.s always will be found. From the M.G. works is no help to be expected as in the old days ?
Maybe we will need new car’s when we get old. Perhaps we can buy M.G. cars then. It is not impossible that the British Motor Corporation by then has ” maintained the breed.”
Maybe we will want to have a car with an easily maintained side-valve engine, gear-change lever on the steering column, or why not fluid drive ? It would, no doubt, be a good thing to use 12-in. wheels and please, dear M.G. constructors, let us have dual bumpers front and rear and really big over-riders. We will want a plastic instrument board with just one instrument – as that will probably be about all we can read. Of course, you can let us have lots of chromium-plated borders, and I think you may increase the engine swept volume a good deal and still call the product a Midget.
I am, Yours, etc.,
Gustaf I., A. Giers.
Stockholm.
THE 2 c.v. CITROEN
Sir,
Having recently levelled some criticism at the Citroën Light Fifteen, I feel that I must say how impressed I am with the 2 c.v., now available in this country. From a specification table of 1954 cars it can he seen that it has more luggage room than 21 other cars, including the entire ranges of Morris and Austin, except the A135, the Mercedes 300, Sunbeam-Talbot 90, and 3-litre Alvis. It has a wider rear seat than 12 cars, including the Daimler Conquest, a wider track than 18 others and a longer wheelbase than 18 others. Its ground clearance is greater than 105, including 16 American cars. Surely these facts are most remarkable, especially those concerning luggage room and rear-seat width.
The only real disadvantage of this wonderful little car is its high initial cost. This is mainly due to import duties, and if this car is ever manufactured in England its price should Ike reduced considerably. Even so its cost is partly offset, by its 60-m.p.g petrol consumption and the availability of cheap spares. The only other criticism is concerning its performance, but being an economy car it isn’t intended to be terrific and one obviously can’t expect much better on 60 m.p.g.
I am, Yours, etc.,
P. R. STOKER.
Ruislip.
(We believe that French enthusiasts have already “looked-to” the performance of this excellent little car ! – Ed.)
THAT FOUR-WHEEL DRIFT
Sir,
I note Mr. Moffatt’s queries in regard to cornering in our novelette “Grand Prix.”
It is exceedingly difficult to describe any set method of starting a drift, as the technique inevitably varies from car to car and corner to corner. A sound basic principle would be “Too much tiller at the front, followed by too much steam at the back.” Mr. Moffatt would have been fairer had he quoted us at greater length. A larger extract would have made the directional combination of hands and throttle foot apparent.
We have discussed the story with some of the more eminent drivers of today and have received several well-considered criticisms; but not one has been levelled at this particular passage. The object, which I hope we achieved, was to bring the appeal of motor-racing; its adherents and its background, to a wider public, I can assure Mr. Moffatt that a manual of instruction was never intended.
I am, Yours, etc.,
JAMES BOOTHBY
London, S.W.7.
VOLKSWAGEN v. MORRIS MINOR
Sir,
With reference to your road test of the Volkswagen reported in the October issue, you appear to have missed finding the reason for the car’s very easy “manner of going” in top gear at 60 m.p.h.
Top gear is in fact 3.54 to one and not 4.43 to 1 as you state. The final-drive ratio is 4.43 to 1, but top in the gearbox is 0.8 to 1. First gear is 3.6 to 1 in the box and not 36 to 1 as stated.
In top gear the car does over 20 m.p.h. – per – 1,000 r.p.m. and this is why it “gallops along so easily.” Apart from top gear the other ratios are very well chosen which, assisted no doubt by an engine giving good torque low down, never leaves one “without a gear” on a hill or when accelerating.
I had a Morris Minor before I got the Volkswagen and there is just no comparison, although both are supposed to develop the same b.b.p. I tried one of the new O.H.V. Minors recently; it was pitiful after the Volkswagen, just tearing its little heart out and getting nowhere. As for engine life, assuming both are run in top gear and taking round figures, in 70,000 miles the Volkswagen engine has done 200,000,000 revs., but after the same number of revs, the Morris Minor has done only 43,000 miles. Both may be expected to need their first re-bores at approximately these mileages: interesting?
I am, Yours, etc.,
A. G. RYAN.
Thurles.
(We regret the errors which crept into our test report in respect of the Volkswagen’s gear-ratios, but at the time the V.W. Publicity Consultants could not quote us a sensible figure, confusing, it seemed, bottom with top and box ratios with overall ratios. Consequently, desperate to go to Press we quoted from an early specification. But in practice there was no doubting the excellently chosen ratios and the effortless seven-league boots of the V.W. – Ed.)
USED CAR PITFALLS
Sir,
In support of your article “On Buying a Used Car.” I would like to relate some of the trials and tribulations we have experienced after buying a 1938 Wolseley 14/56 rather hastily in 1950. The car was soon discovered to have a thump in the engine which had not been apparent when we bought it; this, of course, turned out to be main bearings, which had been filed to keep them quiet until the car was sold. The sump was discovered to contain a black gluey solution which had deceived us into believing the cylinder bores were all right; they were not, indeed so bad were they, in fact, that the block had to be resleeved, the clutch was also adjusted beyond the end of its adjustment by means of fitting …a pile of washers behind the adjusting nut. The clutch plate was also replaced, after a few more week’s during which time queer noises occasionally emitted from the gearbox, eventually the cogs seemed to seize-up into one mass, for neither the gear lever nor the car could be moved, and we had to be towed home with the clutch held out all the way; after removal of the gearbox the trouble was found to be that the mainshaft had snapped off inside the end clutch shaft after the seizure of some very homemade looking needle-bearings; this little lot proved to be almost as expensive as the engine repairs. Sundry other things happened during the next few months, such us a strapped up, broken rear spring, brake linings down to the rivets, etc., etc., I am now a motor mechanic, and I should like to pass on a few tips. Always look at the oil on the dipstick, if it is very thick as on the Wolseley beware worn bearings and cylinder bores; if the gear change is sluggish it would be as well to check the thickness of the oil in the gearbox, and do try to get a look at the clutch adjustment – some of those old gearboxes need a 10-ton crane to get them out. Finally, after the rockets that were pointed the way of MOTOR SPORT in last month’s correspondence columns, I feel I must leap to the side of your very fine monthly, and wait for the day when it will be a weekly, so that we may enjoy even more of those interesting and enlightening articles and extensive covering of all motoring events.
I am, Yours, etc.,
BARRY C. HODGETT
Beeston.
HARD WORKING LADIES
Sir,
Regarding your Club News paragraph “Nina versus Nagle” – now add “versus Neill.”
Miss Christina Neill has been Secretary of the Lanarkshire M.C. & C.C. which has had a membership of approximately 200 for the past year and without her very able assistance and organising abilities, I doubt if the Club events would have proved so successful. Miss Neill is Sister to the well-known rally driver Miss Andy Neill (Morgan), for whom she navigates on all occasions.
I am, Yours, etc.,
JAMES L. MURRAY
Glasgow.
ADVICE WANTED
Sir,
I wonder if I might trespass on your columns to inquire if any of your readers has undertaken the fitting of Austin or other gears to that grand old car – the 16-h.p. 1935 Triumph Gloria.
If so, I should much appreciate information as to the success, cost and work involved.
I am, Yours, etc.,
F. W. HORSNELL
Chelmsford.
Sir,
I am anxious to make the following modifications to my Alvis Firebird sports tourer:
(a) Fitting of trafficators by means of the narrow oblong-box type to fit on top of the back number plate and, if poissible, incorporating the stop and tail lamp. I think this type of trafficator was originally fitted to some models of the Talbot.
(b) Fitting of wind shields to the ends of the windscreen by means of special hinges attached to the windscreen uprights, the angle adjustment being by means of thumbscrews.
Perhaps some reader of your valuable paper could kindly inform me from whom the type of trafficator detailed and hinges for wind shields can be purchased.
I am, Yours, etc.,
J.C.H. TODD
Manchester.
Sir,
I would be most grateful if you would allow me to use the columns of your journal in an endeavour to rectify some mechanical trouble I am having.
The fault lies in the Cotal gearbox fitted to my 1938 D6.70 Delage. When cold, the gearbox performs quite well: when hot, that is after a few minutes running, two faults develop. It becomes impossible to engage first or second gear from neutral without snatch, which becomes very great after a long run, and no matter how carefully the clutch is engaged after selecting the gear. Third gear always takes oup well, but is too high to pull away from a standstill. Further, when changing down from third to either second or first, there is a delay of as much as 7 or 8 seconds before the gearbox takes up the drive, although the ammeter shows that the correct current is flowing through the windings. I have tried without success to find the reason for these faults, and as the dismantling of the box is apt to be expensive, I am reluctant to entrust the work to anybody who does not know precisely what to look for. Perhaps some of your readers may have had a similar experience; if it is possible for you to get me any information, I would indeed be much obliged to you.
I am, Yours, etc.,
R. SHERMAN.
London, E.11.
RE-ENGINED LLOYDS
Sir,
I note with interest letter from V. A. Plumley, printed on page 612 of the November issue of your journal – particularly the last paragraph, as I have a Lloyd 650 Roadster.
I shall also be glad to learn if any reader has fitted a Ford Ten unit or other unit to a Lloyd. I have been informed that it is possible to fit a DKW unit to a Lloyd, and that these units can be purchased somewhere in the North London area. If any readers should be able to help in connection with a Lloyd conversion, perhaps they will advise me.
I am, Yours, etc.,
F. W. C. PARKER.
Weston-super-Mare.
MOTOR OIL
Sir,
I fully agree with the opinion of your correspondent Mr. J. E. Hands (Coventry) which he expresses in his letter under the above heading.
As an engineer with thirty-nine years’ experience of motoring, which includes racing, trials and competitions. I have found that with the introduction of detergents (the Oil Companies will not like this) the rate of cylinder-bore and piston-ring wear has increased, this of course resulting in more oil consumption and again more work for the repairers.
Anyway, in answer to your correspondent’s query, I think that of the recognised brands on the market he will find that of Price’s to be the least-treated and Duckham’s to be the next best; on the other hand, if he is not prejudiced against non-branded products I can recommend him to the London Oil Refining Co., Ltd.
I am, Yours, etc.,
A. J. FIRTH
London, N.W.4.
SPORTS-CAR RACING
Sir,
Mr. Lord is not the only one who has been confused as to what constitutes a “production sports car” (see your article on the recent Austin-Healey claims). His error highlights the disturbing development of so-called “production sports-car” racing in the last few years. When these races were introduced at important meetings some years ago, they were designed, I believe, to demonstrate to the public the relative capacities of the sports cars he might (if he had the money) buy and use as his everyday means of transport. As such these events held enormous interest, for not a few of the spectators felt that by ownership (either present, past or hoped-for-in-the-future) they had acquired a keen personal interest in one of the contestants. I remember at the first Daily Express Silverstone exciting battles fought out between M.G.s. Allards and Healeys. Gradually these genuine sports cars have disappeared and been replaced by works “hot-rods,” until this year, among a bevy of XK120Cs, DB3s, experimental Allards, Kiefts and Coopers there was hardly a single car that one might ever expect to see on the open road, much less buy and use as a normal means of-transport. The definition of “production sports car” has been extended to absurdity. The qualification for the class this year was, I believe. “a minimum of ten cars built or intended to be built” – which would make most Grand Prix racing cars “production.”
Now, of course, these expensive freaks are allowed at Le Mans – and are capable of very high speeds. But surely (apart from the fact that the cars are deliberately not called “production”) Le Mans is something very special. And when has speed alone made an exciting race ? Who cannot remember some depressingly dull Grand Prix processions ? No, let us cease the hypocrisy of calling racing cars with wings and headlights Sports cars at all and call them honest racing cars, “specials,” “hot-rods.” or what you will. The sports-car class should be just what it says – and there are now plenty of the genuine articles around to give the variety that makes for interesting racing.
One further point. If manufacturers are really interested in improving the cars available to the public (and not just in publicity). I suggest that the races be run also under a handicap formula with points awarded for comfort, baggage space, equipment, fuel economy and – above-all – cheapness. We might then evolve the sort of sports car that private owners really want – and can afford.
I am, Yours, etc.,
W. S. RUSSELL.
Moseley.
END OF A BEGINNING ?
Sir,
As you probably know, the B.R.M. Mobile Workshop has been sold to Mr. A. G. B. Owen for £2,000 and many of your readers will be interested in this matter of how we disposed of the fund. The replies received to our letter of April 21st (a copy of which I enclose for your reference) by the stipulated date July 1st, were only 40 per cent, of the subscribers, the rest did not reply at all. The Committee, therefore, distributed the monies concerned in the same percentages as those requested in the replies we did receive, resulting in the following figures :-
Amount received from sale of workshop – £2,000
Scheme I. Donations refunded in full on instructIons of donors (clubs, members, equipment) £896 – 0 – 2
Scheme 2. Donations to British Motor Racing Relief Fund £857 – 2 – 1
Scheme 3. Donations to (Owen Racing Organisation £245 – 17 – 3
Cheque Book and Bank Charges £1 – 0 – 6
Cheques have been sent to all concerned and the fund is now closed.
I trust you will be able to find space in one of the next issues of MOTOR SPORT for this information.
I am, Yours, etc.,
LESLIE WILSON, Hon. Secretary to Fund.
H. F. ADAMS, Hon. Treasurer to Fund.
Birmingham.
CORRECTION
Sir,
Your October issue report of the Brighton Speed Trials incorrectly quotes the third fastest motor-cyclist, Peter Ferbrache as riding a 499-c.c. Norton.
His mount, in point of fact, was a 499-c.c. Hartley Ariel, one of two machines of this type (the other having a 249-c.c. engine), with which Peter has obtained many awards during the 1953 season.
I wonder if you would be kind enough to publish this correction ?
I am, Yours, etc.,
L. W. E. HARTLEY.
HOW IS IT DONE?
Sir,
As the managing director of a small specialist engineering firm I should be very grateful if Mr. V. A. Plumley, writing on page 612 of the current issue of MOTOR SPORT, would set forth a detailed analysis of material and labour whereby a “knock-on” hub cap can be easily produced for 7s. 6d. When one takes into account the cost of pattern making, the steel casting and the special fixtures for machining the component, together with fettling and chromium plating, etc., it would be most interesting to know why your correspondent is not producing these in large numbers at this price,
I am, Yours, etc.,
J.K. EDWARDS
Willesden.
B.M.W. SPARES
In your article “On Buying a Used Car” in October’s MOTOR SPORT, you refer to the difficulty of obtaining transmission parts for certain B.M.W. models, whereas “with flourishing registers and one-make clubs, owners of Alvis, . . . Lancia, and similar makes should have a happier time.” The inference to be drawn is apparently that the B.M.W. Car Club is not “flourishing.”
I must correct this impression, for although the club was only formed on November 7th last year we already have a membership of 127 – with a number of overseas members; the “Register” has traced over 200 owners.
Whilst it is true to say that “new” transmission spares are difficult for certain models, this is equally true surely for the other makes you mention as having “flourishing” clubs. The important point is that the B.M.W. Car Club maintains a spares register, through which a large number of owners have been able to obtain what they require. Steps are in hand to extend this feature of the club’s activities.
Whilst writing, I should like to express the club’s thanks to your journal (of which I have been a reader since 1929) for publishing my original letter in 1952 which resulted in the formation of the Register. Since then, we have kept you fully informed of our progress and activities by a regular copy of the bi-monthly Bulletin, but we regret that references to the club in MOTOR SPORT are very infrequent. We should appreciate all the space you can give us, for by this means our membership grows apace as has been well proved in the past.
I am, Yours. etc.,
R. J. HEWITT, Hon. Sec. B.M.W. Car Club.
London, S.W.14.
LAYSTALL CRANKS
Sir,
We should like to add our congratulations to Mr. Peter Gammon for his fine performances this year in winning not only a great number of sports-car races, but also the MOTOR SPORT Silverstone Challenge Trophy.
We should, however, like to point out that the cylinder head which Mr. Gammon has recently been using is not experimental, as suggested in your report of the final Club Silverstone Meeting (North Staffs Motor Club), in your November issue. The cylinder head in question is one of our standard production Laystall-Lucas alloy heads, which are available from stock for the popular XPAG M.G. engine.
Mr. Gammon has assured us that he is extremely pleased with the Laystall-Lucas head fitted to his engine, and that his lap-time at Silverstone has improved by over 2 sec. as a result.
We are, Yours, etc.,
BASIL DE MATTOS, Sales Manager, Laystall Engineering Co., Ltd.
(We are very glad to publish this letter from the Laystall Eng. Co., Ltd.; the Laystall head used by Mr. Gammon at the N. Staffs M.C. Silverstone Meeting was experimental only in a personal sense. – Ed.)