Car with aircraft engine

[Jenn]

Comment: I doubt that this is possible. Apparently this car contains a plane
engine instead of the standard engine. Is this really true?

[crescent]

Looks like a modified Tucker. Tuckers did use engines that had been designed for aircraft. Here's a cite, even if it is just Wikipedia. I remember reading about the aircraft engines somewhere else, too.

ETA: On second thought, it only looks a little like a Tucker, with the central hole in the front where Tuckers had a swivel headlight. The rest of the car does not look much like a Tucker, although from what I understand, pretty much every Tucker is different, because they never really moved much into mass production.

[me, no really]

I don't know for certain if this one is true or not, but there are plenty of cars out there that have had aircraft engines, both internal combustion and jet. Most of them were not production cars though.

This is my current favourite: http://www.ronpatrickstuff.com/

me

[Singing in the Drizzle]

Chrysler did produce a small number of turbine cars for testing. Did not do very well and did not look like the picture on the OP.

In the 60s having a call that looked like it had a jet engine in it was cool. So it would not surprise me if a car are two were modified to look like it had one.

We have seen the bug with turbine here before. Again I will say that it is all show and no go. You can not convert a turbine used for torque in to a pusher.

[RichardM]

The Tuckers used air cooled engines originally designed for helicopters.

Aircraft engined autos were very common, well okay, sort of common, in the 1920s and 30s. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was the actual name bestowed on one such car.

This continued into the 50s with the V12 Mustang engine being very popular for such conversions.

As to the photo in the OP, I don't actually recognize it so I can't say without more research.

[Troberg]

Originally Posted by me, no really

I don't know for certain if this one is true or not, but there are plenty of cars out there that have had aircraft engines, both internal combustion and jet.

Jets are internal combustion engines (with the possible exception of an afterburner). The only external combustion engines in popular use today are steam engines and Stirling engines.

[OmmeLise]

I read the headline as 'CAT with aircraft engine'... Imagine my dissapointment!

[DrRocket]

That is a car based on the Buick Le Sabre (Also known as the XP-8) concept car from 1950. It was designed by Harley Earl, the chief of styling for General Motors. The similarity to a jet engined aircraft was quite intentional. However, it was powered by a 215 cu in aluminum V8 with a roots type supercharger.

While it doesn't look quite as the original appeared at the Dec 1950 introduction, it's known that several iterations or prototypes were made before the final one appeared in public, and this may very well be one of them. It's a bit taller, and chunkier, with less chrome (Chrome was an Earl trademark.) but all the design and styling elements are there.

Here is a very good online article from "How Stuff Works dot com" on the final concept vehicle that Harley used and drove for quite a while.

[RichardM]

You're a better car guy than me DrRocket!

[Macheath]

And that's a fine Web site you linked to as well!

Mack da "not biased at all" Knife

[Rbartrop]

The car is the Cramer Comet, and it does have an Allison aircraft engine. More photos of the car, and its engine, can be found here.
http://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/z...mer-Comet.aspx

The car is not so much based on the Le Sabre, as inspired by it. Here are some more examples of cars inspired by the Le Sabre:
http://www.kustomrama.com/index.php?...951_GM_LeSabre

[GaryM]

That's not an aircraft-engined car, this is an aircraft-engined car:

[Fanatic]

More here. (In Czech, but the pictures are cool).

[High Eight]

Originally Posted by OmmeLise

I read the headline as 'CAT with aircraft engine'... Imagine my dissapointment!

Be careful what you wish for.........