_Punctured float._--I mention this trouble as I have personally experienced it, but it is very rare and may not occur in the whole life of a car. The float is a hollow cube, for the purpose of regulating the height of petrol in the carburetter. The float, if punctured, allows the petrol to enter, causing it to remain at the bottom of the carburetter, gradually taking in more petrol. The effect of this is that the float does not perform its office, as it becomes weighted with the petrol, and this holds open the petrol inlet, which overflows out of the carburetter. I believe I have now enumerated all the troubles that you are likely to meet with, and which you can look after yourself, but because the list is long do not think for one moment that every time you go out in your little car you are going to experience them. You may drive for weeks, months, almost years, without [Illustration: _Photo, H. W. Nicholls._ BE SURE THAT ALL NUTS AND BOLTS ARE TIGHT--A RATTLE IS ANNOYING] a tiny bit of trouble, if you are careful. The looking after the little things saves a heap of trouble. The testing of this thing, the dusting of that, the tightening of a nut, the loosening of a screw--all these may be commonplace trivial matters, but if attended to will pay in the long run. Prevention is better than cure, and the careful motoriste who looks after her car as she looks after herself will have little use for the hints in this chapter of mine. Above all, whatever may arise, try to forget to weep and remember to laugh. Then you will have won half the battle of “Motor Woe.” CHAPTER VI HINTS ON EXPENSES Motoring need not be an Expensive Luxury--Two Hundred Pounds will go a long Way if properly spent--The Second-hand Car--Motor Clubs--The Ladies’ Automobile Club--The Automobile Association--Motor Schools and Driving Lessons By the time you have read and thoroughly digested the preceding chapters I feel sure you will be able to take your car out for a spin without any misadventure. There are but a few points which I want to impress upon you in this chapter. Do not let what you may think the great expense debar you from the pleasure of motoring. There is no great expense unless you want to make it so. In my first chapter I spoke of the price of cars and accessories. I gave a total of £300 as the average probable outlay. By no means do I want to revise these figures, but wish to remind you that the figures quoted [Illustration: _Photo. H. W. Nicholls._ “BE SURE THAT THE PETROL TANK IS FULL”] are, in every instance, for articles of the very best quality.