HERE and THERE By "eamcasshaft", October 1930
1H IE IR LE clad IF II-1 IE IR IE By c2trisliaft”
The Swedish T.T.
HITHERTO the Swedish Grand Prix motorcycle race has been held over a comparatively short but very rough course and has been more akin to our Scott Trial than to a speed event proper. This year, however, a new course was chosen near Malmoe in the South of Sweden. The event took on an entirely different complexion, as is shown by the fact that the winner, J. H. Simpson on a Norton, averaged no less than. 75.8 m.p.h. and set up a lap record of 77.5 m.p.h.
Roughly triangular, the course measures slightly more than nine miles to the lap and had to be covered twenty-eight times. One of the straight sides about two and a half miles long is tarred but the rest of the course is made of stone set in sand. Improbable as it seems, this gives quite a good riding surface, but is liable to become loose under the stress of a long race, so that an ability to broadside is a distinct advantage ! It is hoped to have the entire circuit tarred in time for the 1931 race and in that case the Swedish Grand Prix will probably be the fastest important road race in Europe.
An interesting feature of the event was the consistency of the winning machine, Simpson’s slowest lap being only 18 seconds longer than his record, apart from his replenishment and standing start laps. He finished six and a half minutes ahead of the second man. Another excellent performance was that of T. Oscarsson, a local Velocette rider, who was first home in the 350 c.c. class at a speed of 68 m.p.h. Oscarsson won a T.T. Replica in the Isle of Man this year.
Excellent organisation characterised the race which was well supported and very popular. The Crown Prince of Sweden was an interested spectator and a crowd of eighty thousand was present.
The B.P. Competition. For the recently organised ” B.P.” Competition, in which competitors were invited to place the ten leading properties of petrol in their order of merit, 444,644 entries were received. Of this total only one coupon proved to have all the properties in the order as determined by the majority vote. The winning coupon was sent in by Mr. Maurice White of Pool Farm, Corsley, Wiltshire, his order being 1, Miles per Gallon ; 2, Easy Starting ; 3, unvarying Quality ; 4, Power ; 5, Acceleration ; 6, Cleanliness ; 7, Speed ; 8, Freedom from Deposit ; 9, Non-pinking ; 10, Hill Climbing. Mr. White received the first prize of £1,000. The other leading prize winners were as follows :—£250, Mr. V. E. Haslam, 27, Gap Road, Wimbledon, S.W.19. £100, Mrs. E. C. Avery, 132, Charing Cross Road, W.C.2. £50, Mr. Angus Miller,
120, Petershill Road, Springburn, Glasgow. £25, Mr. H. R. Coward, High Street, Carisbrook, Isle of Wight. In addition, 50 prizes of £.5 each and 325 prizes of gl each were awarded.
According to the terms of the competition, a cheque for £5,558 Is., has been sent to H.R.H. The Prince of Wales’ Personal Fund (The Legion Book Fund) in aid of the British Legion—this sum representing a donation of 3d. per coupon received.
“Officially Recommended.”
Shell Oil is now the only lubricant officially recommended by Morris Motors, Ltd., for use in cars of their manufacture.
It must be obvious that no motormanufacturer alone can specify, nor oil manufacturer alone produce, the best lubricant for any engine. The ideal is that the chemists and engineers of both companies should cooperate with each other over a number of years and pool their experience. This is just what the Morris and Shell concerns have been doing for ten years past.
All the oil concerns have a research laboratory, but Shell-Mex Ltd. go two steps beyond that. They run a travelling laboratory, i.e., fitted with some twelve special instruments to observe the behaviour of lubricants in engine, gear-box and back axle under actual working conditions ; and they employ the celebrated Ricardo engineering laboratories at Shoreham to reproduce road conditions as faithfully as possible, and make tests and investigations in engines actually at work.
Again, no car manufacturer takes greater pains than Morris Motors, Ltd. to look after the cars they have sold, to keep them in service, and to retain the goodwill of their owners. Thus a recommendation from this particular firm of manufacturers—and in a matter so vital to the life of a car as oil—is of more than ordinary value and importance.
The correct grades of Shell for Morrises, it may interest readers to know, are ” Double ” for all four-cylinder models in summer and winter ; and for all six-cylinder models “Triple ” in summer and ” Double ” in winter.
To assist the owner-driver the Shell Company publish a novel and exceptionally clear form of lubrication chart which embodies close-up illustrations of each lubrication point, as well as the usual view of the chassis. This can be obtained from Shell-Mex, Ltd., Kingsway, W.C.2., and another recent publication worth writing for at the same time is the booklet they have just issued in connection with the Morris recommendation. It is entitled “Co-operative Lubrication.”