Splinter Update: Students making progress on wooden supercar

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:29:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Green, Supercars, Cadillac, Chevrolet

Click above for new high-res renderings of the Splinter Wooden Supercar

The world's greenest supercar project is progressing nicely. The last time we checked in with Joe Harmon and his team of ~~woodsmen~~ craftsmen from North Carolina State University, the all-wooden car's hand-laid bodywork had been mated with the chassis, which was awaiting installation of the twin-supercharged, 32-valve Cadillac-sourced V8 engine and six-speed rear-mounted transaxle from a modern Chevrolet Corvette. Those 600 ponies will be funneled to the rear wheels, which have center hubs made from pressed and laminated wood, naturally. Even the transverse leaf springs are made from orange osage wood.

Work on the project has slowed so Harmon and his colleagues can finish school, but the Splinter continues to garner attention having appeared in a flattering piece published by Automobile Magazine. While we wait for Team Splinter to graduate and finish the car once and for all, take a look at these new high-res renderings of the arts and crafts supercar.

The Splinter is one of those rare projects that's truly inspiring, and Harmon seeks to prove that wood is anything but an outdated material with no place - outside the dashes of expensive luxury cars, of course - in modern automobiles. Point taken.

Gallery: Splinter Wooden Supercar

[Sources: Joe Harmon Design, Automobile Magazine]

Splinter Update: Students making progress on wooden supercar originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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eBay Find of the Day: 1952 Ariel Square Four wooden racer

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:58:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Performance, Auctions, Motorcycle

Click above for more shots of the custom Ariel-powered wooden car

We bet that most people are only faintly aware that the Ariel motorcycle brand existed at all. There was a time, though, when the British company was a pioneer in new and exciting technologies, innovating where others were content to soldier forward with tried-and-true methods. In fact, its eventual failure was due in part to its futuristic designs. For instance, Ariel introduced the world to its Square Four motorcycle in 1931. Named for its oddly-shaped engine architecture that placed four cylinders in a box pattern, the Square Four was completely unlike anything else offered at the time and used two sets of pistons mated at the flywheel inside a single engine block that was capped by a single head casting. Different to say the least, but ultimately pretty successful for Ariel, which went on to sell over 15,000 of the bikes before production ceased in 1959.

An interesting home-built hotrod has just shown up on eBay that mates this classic engine to a custom wooden body designed by - get this - a boat builder. The vehicle itself was inspired by a Modern Mechanix Magazine article from the '50s and features a French connection by way of suspension components from a Citroen. Cadillac bullet-shaped tail lights may look a little out of place, but are nothing if not period correct. The low-slung shape and open wheels actually remind us of a certain other more modern racer from Ariel. One thing is for certain: there aren't any other vehicles that you could purchase for $30K that are nearly as unique as this, and you can rest assured knowing that you'll never, ever see another car like it on the road. That's got to be worth something, right?

Gallery: Custom Ariel-powered Car

[Source: eBay via Next Autos]

eBay Find of the Day: 1952 Ariel Square Four wooden racer originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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