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Detroit, 10:32 AM
Thu Dec 10
28 posts in the last 24 hours
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11/02/09
Official engine of the Anadol, Turkey's first mass-production car. #1960s
11/02/09
11/01/09
11/01/09
Is it because I didn't use Whitworth wrenches? Or did the non-paraffin oil I used damage the British alyoominium in the pistons?
11/01/09
11/01/09
Oh, Ford. If only you'd shared this with the US. (I believe this Capri also packed the Kent.) #1960s
11/01/09
@Novaload: Or as seen here in later production form. #1960s
11/01/09
11/01/09
11/01/09
The twin fender mirrors on this car were not normal fittings. They look more like the mirrors once seen on Japanese home-market cars. Wonder if this Capri lived in Japan?
11/01/09
08/27/09
That wing on top: in a corner, it'll add downforce to aid traction, but it will also add a push to the outside of the corner, largely negating the added traction. The sharper the corner, the more it'll lean, the more of the aerodynamic force will be directed in the wrong direction. It'd be more effective being mounted on the running gear.
The leaning mechanism: it's mechanically linked to the steering, meaning that for a given turning circle the angle of lean appears to be determined, independent of the speed. Make a tight slow turn, as in a u-turn, and it'll lean the full 45 degrees. So, the full benefit of leaning will only be realized at a certain speed. Faster, and you'll want it leaning further (you'll still be pressed to the outside). Slower, and you'll want it to lean less (you'll be falling down to the inside).
To the extent that the batteries counterbalance the passenger pod, the center of gravity won't move as it leans. So, the leaning won't decrease the tendency for the inside wheels to lift, for the thing to flip.
And this:"Each differential is connected to two motors, one for each wheel" just doesn't make any sense. It's no clearer on his own site ("Each pinto rear-end has 2 computer sync motors with chain drive.") unless he's removed the differentials.
Just the same, I'm sure it's a blast and I'm sure he had a blast making it, and what the hell have I ever done, anyway? Some things are worth doing just 'cause you can, not because it's objectively a good solution.
Hat's off to the guy.
(Edit: Why does Gawker hate linefeeds?)
08/24/09
08/24/09
Always loved that show.
08/24/09
08/24/09
08/24/09
As a consumer, this makes me a little peeved that new cars cost so much. However, I then realize that this was one man designing it and not a team of engineers, he built it at non-union wages, and it didn't have to be tested for reliability, crash-worthiness, and the host of other regulations automakers have to prove their cars meet now.
I guess the bottom line is, this shows that there is still a healthy dose of ingenuity out there, but that's about all you can take from it. Well, that and a quirky little car that all of us Jalops should be looking at with a little dragon-envy.
08/24/09
08/24/09
08/24/09
Hello, junkyard?
Yeah?
Do you guys have a copter in stock?
Uh, no........
08/24/09
Oh, and LeMons! (Probably will spend most of the time charging though :P)
08/24/09
08/24/09
:)