HERE and THERE, November 1930

IH IE IR E. arid IF ERE m s haft”

Bentleys and World Markets.

THE efforts of the British motor industry to develop their export markets both in the Colonies and elsewhere will receive a fillip by the latest move of Bentley Motors, preliminary details of which, I heard of some little time ago.

The success of this car in International road races has earned for it a world-wide reputation and with the introduction of the new 8-litre Bentley, this firm now intends to make a bold bid for the world market and it will thus consolidate the prestige that Britain has always enjoyed as the producers of the world’s finest motor cars.

A new Company—the Societe Europeenne Bentley Automobiles S.A. is being formed with large capital resources, and the first step of this new organisation will be to open, in a few weeks time, a depot in Paris. The new depots will carry a full stock of essential spare parts and will be staffed by mechanics trained in the London works. Incidentally, this provision will prove a boon to the many British owners of Bentley cars who use their cars on the Continent.

. Similar service organisations are to be established in other parts of the world, and arrangements for New Zealand were concluded some weeks ago.

Captain Woolf Barnato, who will be Chairman of the new Company, is now in America to arrange for the establishment of sales and service depots in the United States and Canada.

Barred from Paris Show.

The ” responsibility ” of the private motorist to the manufacturer of his car was demonstrated in a somewhat curious way just before the Paris Motor Show.

Earlier this year it may be remembered, it became popular for British motorists to “Beat the Blue Train” from the Riviera to Calais. The second aspirant for this honour was the owner of an Alvis, who made the attempt most successfully without the support—or even knowledge—of the manufacturers of the car.

Certain French motorists resented these British speed efforts intensely, and the result was that the Alvis Company, amongst others, was ” barred ” from exhibiting at the Paris Show unless they paid the authorities a cash fine. They were given no chance of defending themselves or explaining that the attempt was made without their knowledge or consent. This queer conception of justice is perhaps a Continental privilege.

A curious feature of the case is that ” records” from town to town or coast to coast are almost everyday occurences in France, where—apparently provided that they are made by Frenchmen in French cars—they are made much of in the press and claimed as magnificent achievements !—well, well.

New London Showrooms.

What are probably the largest show-rooms in central London for the sale of one make of car have just been opened by the distributors of the Rover Company at 205, Great Portland Street, where there is space for no fewer than seventy cars to be shown without overcrowding.

This new departure, Which is an interesting index to the growing demand for Rover cars, follows the amalgamation of Auto-Distributors, Ltd., of Baker Street, and Coppen Allan, of Great Portland Street, who, under the name of Coppen Allan Auto-Distributors Ltd., have been appointed sole wholesale distributors of Rover cars throughout London, Middlesex, Hertfordshire, and a large part of Surrey, Essex and northern Kent.

At the opening some little time ago a full range of 1931 Rover models was on view for the first time in London. These, of course, comprise the improved 10/25 h.p. model, selling at the low price of £189, the TwoLitre at £298, the Light Twenty—an entirely new model, —at £398, and the well-known Meteor, which is listed at £358. The last three models are Sixes, a feature of their lay-out being a four-speed gear-box with “Silent Third” ratio.

Winter and Windscreens.

With the steady rise in popularity of the enclosed body—and the Show gave some indication of how great it is—the matter of good visibility for the driver becomes increasingly important. The numerous types of windscreen wipers now on the market do much to diminish the inconvenience and danger of driving in wet weather, when the screen becomes blurred, of course, but very often their action is not enough ; at least, this is the opinion of many motorists. And to these, a preparation for dressing the screen and windows both inside (where it prevents condensation) and the exterior, should be of interest.

Known as ” Clarocit ” this substance is of a vegetable compound, and its action in keeping the glass clear remains effective for several hours. ” Clarocit ” has been on the market for some years now, and I understand that it is being utilised in many directions—for shop windows, cinemas, and dental work, to mention but a few ; several provincial councils and companies are also using it on their trams and ‘buses. A member of the staff of MuroR SPORT has recently carried out a test of this preparation and found it entirely satisfactory. The manufacturers address is :— Clarocit Co., Ltd., 110, Great Portland Street, London, W.1., from whom it may be obtained in tablet form in a convenient holder at 2s. 6d. Its application is simple ; the surface of the glass is damped, rubbed lightly with the preparation, and finally polished with a dry cloth.