Tag Archives: Diesel

Diesel Record Breaker – Peugeot 404 Diesel

The Pininfarina styled Peugeot 404 was launched in 1960 and by 1964 it was available with 4 different body styles and a 63hp diesel engine option.

Peugeot 404 Diesel, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

In 1965 Peugeot built today’s featured single seat 2163 cc / 130 cui 4 cylinder diesel powered 404 prototype to help publicise the capabilities of the at the time relatively under used, outside the commercial vehicle arena, alternative to petrol.

Peugeot 404 Diesel, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

In June 1965 Peugeot took the car to Montlhery outside Paris and set a new 5,000 km / 3106 mile diesel record by averaging 99 mph.

Peugeot 404 Diesel, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

One month later the motor was replaced with a smaller 1,948 cc / 118 cui 4 cylinder diesel and the car was driven at an average speed of 100 mph for 11,000 km / 6,835 miles around Montlhery, in all the record breaking car captured 40 world diesel records.

Peugeot 404 Diesel, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

A 1965 group test of diesel powered cars from Peugeot, Mercedes Benz and Austin showed the 63hp diesel Peugeot comfortably out performed it’s competitors in every area except fuel consumption at which the Austin was the more miserly.

The 404 Diesel which still belongs to Peugeot is seen in these photographs at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Thanks for joining me on this “Diesel Record Breaker” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at all 11 Super Saturday winners at this years Silver Jubilee Silverstone Classic. Don’t forget to come back now !

Share

Bristol and South Gloucestershire Stationary Engine Club Rally Details – Coalpit Heath

A couple of weeks ago during the course of one of my Advanced Driving lessons I observed a hand written sign reading “Bristol and South Gloucestershire Stationary Engine Club Rally Coalpit Heath Today” and made a mental note to go and visit it once my lesson was over.

Jowett Javelin, Bristol and South Glos Stationary Engine Club Rally, Coalpit Heath

A the stationary engines in this case were all petrol driven if various sizes and used for powering farm equipment, generators and pumps. There was also a display of vehicles that included the 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui flat four powered 1951 Jowett Javelin above designed by Gerald Palmer who was also responsible for the design of the MG Y Type and ZA Magnatte.

Douglas, Bristol and South Glos Stationary Engine Club Rally, Coalpit Heath

Built just down the road in Kingswood Bristol was this 1924 Douglas motorcycle.

Fordson Major, Bristol and South Glos Stationary Engine Club Rally, Coalpit Heath

Regular readers may remember that pairs of Fordson Major tractors were used to build the amazing Doe Double Drive.

Hillman Aero Minx, Bristol and South Glos Stationary Engine Club Rally, Coalpit Heath

The cockpit above is that of a 1933 Hillman Aero Minx.

Ford Escort , Bristol and South Glos Stationary Engine Club Rally, Coalpit Heath

It’s a dawg’s life sitting in the boot / trunk of a 1972 Ford Escort.

Wolseley 16/60, Bristol and South Glos Stationary Engine Club Rally, Coalpit Heath

The Wolseley 15/60 was the first of a range of badge engineered mid sized British Motor Corporation models designed by Pinin Farina launched in December 1958. The 16/60 was the last of the Pinin Farina designed midsize models to go out of production in 1971, three years after the Austin, MG, Morris, and Riley variants had disappeared during rationalisation enforced by the newly merged British Leyland Motor Corporation.

Thanks for joining me on this “Bristol and South Gloucestershire Stationary Engine Club Rally Details” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again for Maserati Monday tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Share

Striped Tomato Editon – Volkswagen Golf Mk III CL Diesel

Volkswagen introduced the third iteration of it’s popular Golf to Europe, the UK and the USA in 1991, 1992 and 1993 respectively the latter was delayed by quality problems and industrial action in Volkswagen’s Mexican Puebla plant.

Volkswagen Golf CL Diesel, Avenue Drivers Club, Queen Square, Bristol

Additions to the the range were an estate / station wagon version and a six cylinder VR6 motor. The VR motor , standing for Verkurst Rheienmotor – shortened in line motor in English, featured a two banks of 3 cylinders separated by just 15 degrees so that the cylinders are effectively staggered meaning the six cylinder motor could easily fit into the space normally occupied by a four cylinder motor.

Volkswagen Golf CL Diesel, Avenue Drivers Club, Queen Square, Bristol t

Volkswagen sponsored European Tours by the Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones and Bon Jovi during the production life of the Golf III, also known as the Mk 3, which led to special editions featuring the bands names, further special editions included the Movie, Joker, Savoy, New Orleans and multi coloured Harlequin.

Today’s featured Starsky and Hutch Striped Tomato Edition seen at an Avenue Drivers Club meeting in Bristol last year, is a one off peversely low performance 1996 Golf CL Diesel.

Thanks for joining me on this “Striped Tomato Edition” of Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Share

Fearless Freddy and the Cummins Diesel Special

Staying with the 1952 Indy 500 which I started to look at yesterday today we are looking at the Cummins Diesel Special, thanks to a photograph taken by Ed Arnaudin in 1982.

Cummins Special, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The history of Cummins the diesel engine manufacturer dates back to 1919 Clessie Cummins set out to exploit the hitherto unrealised commercial potential of Rudolf Diesels high compression thermal engine which takes it’s name from it’s inventor the diesel engine.

Based in Colombus Indiana Cummins a self taught engineer was also quick to spot opportunities to promote his products through events like the Indy 500 and in 1931 entered a car built around a Duesenberg road car chassis fitted with an 85 hp Cummins deisel marine engine which started last but thanks to it’s fuel economy came home 13th and in the process became the first car ever to complete the Indy 500 without making a pitstop.

This car was subsequently prepared for use on the road and used by Cummins and his marketing manager WG Irwin on a promotional tour of Europe.

In 1934 Cummins returned with a two car entry the #5 powered by a two stroke diesel which went the distance coming in 12th and the #6 by a 4 stroke diesel which retired with transmission failure.

In 1950 Cummins returned to the Brickyard with the #61 Cummins Deisel ‘Green Hornet’ a 340 hp supercharged diesel sitting in a Kurtis Kraft chassis driven by Jimmy Jackson who started 32nd and retired after 50 laps of the rain shortened race. The Green Hornet would take the diesel land speed record at Bonneville after it was timed at 165 mph on the famous salt flats.

For 1952 Cummins held nothing back from their Indy 500 programme working again with Kurtis Kraft the chassis now accommodated a 380 hp 6.6 litre / 401 cui six cylinder turbocharged engine, mandated at twice the size of the gasoline powered vehicles in the race.

The motor featured an aluminium block and head with a magnesium crank case, this unit was lain 5 degrees off flat which gave the #28 three advantages, reduced centre of gravity, reduce the frontal area and thanks to the offset engine some of it’s weight could be distributed so that the car was heavier on the left (inside) wheels.

Fearless Fred Agabashian was hired to drive the Cummins Diesel Special on the recommendation of Kurtis. After the car was tested for the first time the team, comprising almost entirely regular Cummins employees who worked as engineers and mechanics apart from the driver, knew they had a veritable ‘Rocketship’ on their hands.

Fred sandbagged for much of the month of May until Pole day by lifting off on the back straight one lap cruising through a turn on another never completing a whole lap under full power so as not to draw attention to the ‘Rocketship’ capability of the car and risk having the rules changed.

Come 5:45 pm on pole day Fred and the heavy, 3,100 lb, Cummins Diesel Special fitted with a fresh engine made their mark on the world of motor sport by setting an individual lap record of 139 mph and a record 4 lap average of 138 mph.

Qualifying over 1 mph faster than the next nearest competitor in one of the most famous races in the world with a vehicle powered by what was in essence a truck engine subsequently repaid Cummins investment many times over in the volume of publicity this feat generated.

Having shredded their tyres in qualifying the Cummins team needed a different strategy in the race and planned to run a half a tank of diesel and make one pit stop for fuel and tyres. The heavy Cummins Diesel Special was in good company with Ascari and his heavy Ferrari, both cars bogged down at the start but climbed through the field.

Agabashain in the Cummins was running as high as fifth when the car probably claimed a world first, retirement due to…. turbo failure after 71 laps, the air intake for the turbocharger, placed low in the nose, had sucked up debris into the turbine housing damaging the blades.

Cummins however were not in the least disappointed they remain the only manufacturer of truck engines to have recorded an Indy 500 pole. An achievement possibly only eclipsed recently by the 4 victories Audi Diesels in the Le Mans 24 hours since 2006, interrupted by a Peugeot Diesel victory in 2009.

A small post script allegedly in 1953 a spark plug manufacturer was advertising its wares, in the 1953 Indy 500 programe, with a picture of the 1952 Cummins Diesel Special, the only car in the 1952 field without need of them.

My thanks to Steve Arnaudin for scanning and forwarding his Dad’s photograph.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s “Fearless Freddy” edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil, psycho on tyres’ and that you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Share