Machines

Bob Sorrell was a talented automotive designer/builder of the 1950s. He built road racing cars, drag racers, land speed racers, hot rods, customs, show cars and teether cars. The 1954 SR-100 was powered by a Chrysler Marine Hemi V-8. Only seven cars were built.

The 1961 Isetta pickup truck was essentially an Isetta coupe with a stubby cargo bed added to the rear above the engine. It was built not in Germany but by the British licensee, Isetta of Great Britain Ltd. of Brighton and is the only factory-built Isetta pickup known to exist.

Designed by Ferdinand Porsche, the 1937 Mercedes-Benz T80 land speed record car incorporated an Daimler-Benz aircraft engine with 44,5 Liters running off pure alcohol with MW injection and tuned to 3,000 hp - enough, it was believed, to propel the aerodynamic three-axel T80 up to 750 km/h. But due to the outbreak of war in September 1939, the T80 (nicknamed Schwarz Vogel/Black Bird) never raced. Many people over the decades have urged Mercedes to fully restore the T80 and test run her to see if she would have reached 750 km/h (465 mph).

 As chief Designer of the Ford GT and the SVT Studio, Camilo’s team worked on the 2005 and 2006 production Ford GT. At the end of the work day at Ford, Camilo continued to explore an additional avenues of art & design. With the integration of Design principles and the abstractions of Fine Art, Camilo explores alternative design solutions.

Created by Ron and Lee Will the 1978 Turbo Phanton was built by the Phantom Vehicle Company in California. Ron Will worked as a designer at GM for the Corvette Studio when he started the project. It was powered by a turbocharged Honda Goldwing Motorcycle engine that gave the car a top speed of over 260 km/h. Only three prototypes are known to have been built.   

Clearly inspired by a delta wing fighter Jet, the 1954 XP-21 was the first turbine powered car coming from the States. It showcased a bullet shaped body made of reinforced fiberglass with side wings and flap brakes, finished by a vertical fin and topped by a plastic bubble canopy. The only man qualified to drive this 370 bhp jet car was Emmett Conklin who was leading the whole project. The first time he took it out for a spin, he drove it up to 100mph in first gear. When he shifted into second gear, the wheels lost traction under the extreme engine torque and Coklin's survival instinct kicked in and forced him to slow down.

Designed by Dan Gurney, the Toyota Eagle made its racing debut in 1991 and would continue until 1993. The cars were powered by a four-cylinder engine 1.4 turbo with 750 horsepower. During its racing career, the Eagle would rack up an impressive 21 wins.

The 1967 Cheetah by Bill Thomas Race Cars, was meant to be Cobra-killer, but unfortunately, the Cheetah never made production. A fire in the shop stopped production somewhere around the 16th car. Practically every piece in the drive train, from the radiator back to the rear hubs was right out of the Corvette and the engine was an fuel-injected Chevy small-block 6.2 L V8.  There has never been another car like it, at least 8 cars survive.

Aurel Persu was one of the first men to understand the importance of aerodynamics. Persu was inspired by the simple raindrop, and wanted to create a vehicle which had a similarly low drag coefficient. His masterpiece was the 1923 Persu Streamliner, a teardrop  shaped vehicle with aerodynamic bodywork and wheels which were set within the body – as opposed to sticking out, like on most other vehicles of the time. Powering the vehicle was a 1.4 litre four-cylinder engine which produced just 20 horsepower. Yet despite such a feeble powerplant, the slippery profile of the vehicle allowed for a 50 mph top speed.

The Chevrolet Engineering Research Vehicle (CERV I), looks more like a race car than a prototype sports car. It was first demonstrated in November 1960 ahead of the Formula One United States Grand Prix in Riverside, California, and was later tested at Pikes Peak. The engine was the lightweight version of the Chevrolet 283 cubic inch V8 with 350 hp. The car from which the modern Corvette was born.

Designed by Bertone’s designer Marcello Gandini who already had designed the Lamborghini Miura and Countach, the 1974 Stratos had an Ferrari Dino V6 24 valve engine with 320 hp. It was a very successful rally car, winning the World Rally Championship in 1974, 1975 and 1976. The HF stands for High Fidelity.

on the picture above: Team Gunston and John Love via http://www.lotuseuropa.org/

on the picture above:  The original prototype Cobra Daytona Coupe that has been missing for 30 years, was recently sold for over $3 million. via http://thecarsource.com/shelby/cobra/daytona/csx2287.shtml

Built in 1965 by the Italian automobile manufacturer De Tomaso and designed by Pete Brock, the Sport 5000 came along with the 5.0 litre Ford V8, 475 hp engine. Only one Sport 5000 chassis was ever made.

The EV3 is an electric version of the famous Morgan Three Wheeler, the electric engine produce 101 bhp with 240 km of range.   

The Xperimental Vauxhall Research (VXR) was the first Vauxhall concept car ever to be exhibited in public at the 1966 Geneva Show. Designed by David Jones, the car had an engine of 1594 cc with 71 bhp. Only three cars were built.

Fritz Von Opel was the grandson of Adam Opel, founder of the Opel company. On May 23, 1928 he reached a speed of 230 km/h in the RAK.2, driven by 24 solid-fuel rockets.