Letting off some steam: vapor-powered car goes for land speed record
A British team is out to demolish the land speed records for a steam powered vehicle in both the kilometer and the mile. The records are 121.6 mp for the kilo, set in 1906, and an unofficial 145.6 mph for the mile, set in 1985. As if using tap water to go stupid fast wasn't cool enough, they're doing it in a vehicle straight out of Buck Rogers' garage. The chief designer worked on both the Thrust 2 Jet Car and the ThrustSSC. The "car" in question is made of aluminum and carbon composites sitting a tubular steel frame. Out back, there's a two-stage, LPG-fired Curtis-type steam turbine fed by four boilers. Total output is only 325 bhp, but the team expects to break 200 mph using an output shaft gear ratio of 5:1. No word on whether Peter Gabriel is providing the official theme song.
Thanks for the tip, sr20boston
[Source: Steam Car]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
DiedFamous 6:46PM (6/27/2007)
Sure its only got 325 BHP, but one must remember the kind of torque that steam-drive kicks out. I would be quite interested to know how many ft-lbs they plan on making.
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Yago Bal 7:50AM (6/28/2007)
You're right! It's a very low-revving engine so, to reach those 325bhp, it must have amazing torque values!!
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