Aircraft Engines In Cars?

"S65" (granthp) 06/05/2017 at 16:46 • Filed to: Aircraft, Engines

2

17

I know there’s this custom “Merlincar” running around, are there any others? Is there some dragster with a V-1650 somewhere?

Jcarr > S65 06/05/2017 at 16:54

1

Lots of tractor pullers running surplus Allison V12s.

KnowsAboutCars > S65 06/05/2017 at 16:59

1

There’s this Goggomobil.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:00

2

A Bentley with a Rolls Royce Merlin engine out of a Spitfire:

Cé hé sin > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:02

1

If I recall correctly, that supposed Merlin powered car actually had a tank engine.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:06

2

Aircraft engines in cars was for a very long time the easiest way to get *big* displacement and big performance, and because the modern tech of squeezing big numbers out of smaller displacements at higher stress hadn’t matured, all the way up into the ‘30s it was a thing. By the time the Beast (the car in your post) was made, it was pretty much done - a dead end - but it’s still a thing undertaken by retro aero-engine fans. One of the earliest series of aero-engine racers were the Chitty Chitty Bang Bangs of Count Louis Zborowski:

Those cars were what Ian Fleming was alluding to when writing the book - Zborowski himself got it from a Royal Air Corps song.

Other notable aero-engine cars included various land speed and track record cars like those of John Cobb:

The Brutus that appeared on Top Gear was an homage vehicle to that era:

And Jay Leno’s Blastolene Special is closely related:

Drag builder Jim Lyttle built a number of Allison aircraft engined dragsters in the ‘60s, including the Quad Al, which may never have even run:

Here’s another one of Lytle’s cars:

Tom Carrigan built one more recently, as have a couple of others:

More Lytle:

Art Arfons, more famous for building a jet land speed car, made this one:

So in short, yes, there are a lot of GIANT displacement V12 cars that have been made.

TahoeSTi > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:06

2

I see this Allison V12 every weekend during the summer, it finally starts around 4:19.

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > Cé hé sin 06/05/2017 at 17:07

1

They pretty much all do. I’m only aware of one genuinely Merlin-engined car, street legal car, Final Objective .

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:11

1

As well as the big-horsepower glory boys, there’s also a fair number of smaller aero engines in cars. See for example:

https://homebuiltnz.blogspot.co.nz/2016/07/historic-nz-cars-lycoming-special.html

http://www.speedhunters.com/2016/03/plucked-skies-plonked-riley/

Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 06/05/2017 at 17:11

0

IIRC that was the tank engine, not the aircraft version

Frank W. Doom > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:13

2

this one

AuthiCooper1300 > S65 06/05/2017 at 17:51

1

https://www.supercars.net/blog/1931-rolls-royce-phantom-ii-merlin/

I understand that was the real deal Merlin (and if it is indeed a Merlin I, it is the earliest production version).

And now for something completely different - wasn’t the engine in the Tucker a modified aero one?

Future next gen S2000 owner > S65 06/05/2017 at 18:05

0

S65 > AuthiCooper1300 06/05/2017 at 18:25

0

I think it was a helicopter engine but I am not quite sure of that

Kiltedpadre > S65 06/05/2017 at 19:53

2

How about a 1939 Plymouth truck with a 300hp radial engine? The full story is available from Motor Trend online, but kinja has decided I’m not allowed to provide you the link.

arl > TahoeSTi 06/06/2017 at 11:46

1

Scaring women and children at 4:22! What a great sound....

TahoeSTi > arl 06/06/2017 at 11:47

0

Didn’t want anyone to skip that part ;)

Duck Duck Grey Duck FTMFW! > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 06/07/2017 at 11:28

0

My favorite thing about Jay’s car is he turbocharged it! As if it being a GIANT tank engine wasn’t enough. Lemme call my friend Gale Banks to put turbos on it.