“…the Marussia team saw its 2014 car complete only three laps around the track because some witless oaf in the team garage downloaded a “Trojan-type virus” onto its computer system.”
SOCHI, Russia Feb 13 (Reuters) – Formula One’s newest venue is a fenced-off building site, lines of skips and diggers parked along what will be the main straight, on the rubble-strewn fringes of an otherwise glittering Sochi Olympic Park. The pitlane …
As every tenth of a second counts in F1 racing, the way technology is optimised can ultimately make tens of millions of dollars’ difference to a team’s annual revenue, says chief executive Matthew Carter, parachuted in by owners Genii Capital to try to …
You have probably heard by now that eight Corvettes were eaten up by a sinkhole which opened up in the Skydome room of the National Corvette Museum on February 12. The cars will eventually be restored by GM at the automaker’s Heritage Collection in …
Before I start ‘publicly’ documenting my work on the 1966 Dual Twin Bridgestone motorcycle, I want to cover a bit about how I handle the administrative part of a project.
Let me start out by letting you know that I admire the guy that can take a car or motorcycle a part, toss everything in a box and then put it all back together. Oh how I wish that were me, but I don’t even pretend to have that super power. Nope, I need to help.
So I take images and videos to make sure I know how the cabling, tubing and electrical were laid out and where the parts came from and (hopefully) where they go back on. It also serves the secondary purpose of making these blog entries a but more informative/helpful and entertaining. “Entertaining?” you might ask. Yes, I’m not a cinematography and I don’t do retakes and I don’t edit videos, so what you see is what get.
I wasn’t lying about not being a video editor….but I assure that wasn’t sideways when I took it. (I don’t think….LOL)
Here are your Auto Factoids for this week in automotive history.
A very light week, but a couple of biggies.
First up is the debut of AMC’s AMX that happened back in 1968 on Feb 24th. Born to be muscle and destined to be a classic from the start.
They were sharp-looking and a curb weight of only about 3,000 lbs they weren’t heavy weights. Impressive engine configurations of 290, 383, 360, and 390 with nothing but a 4 barrel carb (and one twin 4 barrel) you got horse power from 225 (the 290) to 420 (390 with twin 4 barrel carbs). Impressive! Sadly only a two-year run.
1969 Hurst version…NICE!!!
Had to dig for this one. Found it on http://forums.cadillaclasalleclub.org. Back in 1905 a Cadillac was the first car to cross the Andes (the mountain range not Andes, New York) that happened on Feb 25th, but I don’t know why, nor does anyone else seem to know. I can tell you the Andes are in South American and average about 14,000 feet in altitude. The ’05 (that’s 1905 not 2005) Caddy was, well let’s say “airy”. That ‘brave’ (pronounced ‘Crazy’) soul was Jose Piquero. But wait, some sources say it wasn’t a Caddy at all, but a Oldsmobile.
So I would imagine either in either ride the trip was a tad bit chilly.
1905 Olds
1905 Caddy
Less we forget that Ralph Nader has a birthday this month, you can celebrate that (anyone? Bueller, Bueller…) if you absolutely can’t find another reason to have an adult beverage. That day was Feb 27 back in 1934. I wonder if he fell out of a car seat when he was young?
1962 Lakewood
As luck would have it Mother Nature tends to even the playing field, so a few years later Mario Andretti was born in February on the 28 back in 1940 in Montona, Italy.
There is always something leaking out of any automotive project. Oil, gas, power steering fluid or transmission fluid dripping out of something is a common event. The mess associated with is a pain to clean up.
Here is one way I help keep the mess to a minimum.
Yup that’s a turkey baster and a cat litter box contain with the top cut off.
You can use the turkey baster to extract the oil or other fluid and deposit into the litter.
In this case I’ve taken the oil tank for my DT 175 and let it drain into the litter.
Since I’ve actually started the disassembly so I’ll make this the last of the Prequels.
A few more details on the mechanic of the bike
Oil Injection – the pump is located next to the left side carb. The amount of oil that the engine receives is in direct proportion to how much throttle is applied and engine revs. The oil does mix with the case.
Sport-Shift – Located on the left side of the transmission. leaving it in the forward position and you can only use the standard 4 speeds. Move it to the back position engages the overdrive. The overdrive 5th gear extends the top speed of the Dual-Twin to 80-85 miles per hour. Normally when you stop a motorcycle you’ll need to shift back down through all the gears. The rotary shift pattern of the Bridgestone transmission, 1st gear can be engaged directly from 4th gear by just depressing the shift lever forward twice. This brings you through neutral to 1st gear. Additionally, it can be started in gear without going back to neutral.
I mentioned Bridgestone’s racing department. That research paid off as the 90 & 175 racers won the famed Daytona International race in 1966.
There are some more unique features but I think we’ll look at those (as well as the ones already mentioned) when we get to the disassembly.
For now I’ll get started with the restoration of the Dual Twin serial number 16D 07481.
16D 07481
Frame Number TA1 – 07554 (TA1 indicates a DT 175)
Serial No. 16D07481 (16 indicates DT 175 and the D indicates it was produced in April.
Thanks for reading and keep checking back for updates.
This a beautiful car, especially if you like station wagons.
These were huge cars. Weighing well over 4K pounds. There were two stations wagons produced that year for Buick the 49 and the 49D. Total production for both was 13,020 units.
The engines in the Buick Special Estate Wagons were a V8 Overhead valve, cast iron block. The power plant displaced 364 cubic inches. The bore was 4.125″ and the stroke was 3.4″ giving the car 9.5:1 compression ratio. Top that will a 2 barrel Stromberg (model 7-106) or a Carter (2529 or 2536 model) carb and it could produce get about 250 hps.
Sorry let this slip a couple of days. Here are your Auto Factoids for this week.
2/16/1951 – Nash Healey debuts in US
This was a totally by change partnership. Healey was on his way back to England for the US after GM refused to sell him Cadillac engines for his cars, when he met George Mason of Nash-Kelvinator on the ship. For 1951 Nash-Kelvinator supplied the engines and drivetrain, specifically an inline six-cylinder OHV 234.8 cu in (3.85 L) engine and three-speed manual transmission with Borg-Warneroverdrive, plus torque tube and differential. Healey made a few mods to the engine like higher-compression aluminum cylinder head (replacing the cast-iron stock item) with twin 1.75-inch (44 mm) SU carburetors that were popular on British sports cars. This increased power from the stock 112 hp (84 kW; 114 PS) version to 125 hp (93 kW; 127 PS). The car was longer and heavier than most European cars and although the 125 hp helped, it fell short of the original expectations that included Cadillac’s 331 cu in (5.4 L).
This what we here in the US were able to purchase for the first time in 1951.
1951 Nash Healey
2/18/1952 – Studebaker 100 years
Studebaker turned 100-year-old this date in 1952 and it offered up a few beauties for their customers.
Like the Star Light, Land Cruiser and 1/2 ton Pickup.
52 Star Light – Love the ‘split 4 piece’ rear window.
This huge ’52 Land Cruiser would get across country with room for luggage!!
Workhorse 1/2 ton pickup. Hard to find one now that hasn’t been customized.
2/18/1898 – Enso Ferrari born in Modena, Italy
Would you by a car from this face?
What if they looked like this?
Hell Yeah!!!!
2/20/1954 – Detroit – Chicago Auto show saw Dodge’s Fire Arrow
Ghia Dodge Firearrow II Sports Coupe 1954
That is a nice looking car!!! If you visually mess around it a bit, you might see some resemblance to the Crossfire. Yes? No?
Maybe?? A little?
Or something from a different manufacture.
’64_Pininfarina Corvette
2/21/1948 – NASCAR’s first race – held in Daytona, FL
Historic First – a bit dusty…but awesome (no I wasn’t actually there!!).
And let’s go waaaaay back 2/22/1732 – George Washington was born in Virgina.
Well George didn’t actually own a car…but if he did, ask yourself “What would George Drive?” Post up what you think the father of our country would drive today.
The Countach lived on your wall as a kid, and you probably knew that the Miura was the original supercar, but did you know there’s a direct link between the Miura and modern IndyCars, that there was a Dodge sedan based on a Lamborghini concept, or that Ferruccio Lamborghini started out making tractors? To honor the man who died on February 20th, 1993, we hit the books and came up with 18 things you probably didn’t know about Lamborghini.
1. Ferruccio Lamborghini was the original Tony Stark.
During WWII, he was stationed on the isolated island of Rhodes as a vehicle maintenance supervisor for the Italian Royal Air Force. Needless to say being stuck on an island in the middle of a war makes it pretty tricky to secure spare parts, forcing Lamborghini to cobble together scraps to keep his machines running. He quickly earned the reputation of being a master mechanic, and an even more prolific tinkerer. Kind of like that time Tony Stark built a nuclear reactor in a cave. But real.
2. The first Lamborghinis were tractors, and they’re still made today.
Because of that WWII experience, when he got home he started piecing together tractors out of spare parts. People loved them, and his tractor business took off overnight. They’re no longer part of the same company, but Lamborghini Trattori are still designed by the same firm that created the Gallardo and the Maserati MC12. They range in price from $30,000 to over $300,000 – the only question is, will your neighbor still give you credit for owning a Lambo?
3. Lamborghini was founded because Ferrari used tractor clutches and had crummy customer service.
Ferruccio famously owned a Ferrari 250GT, which he took in to be serviced at the Maranello headquarters after realizing that the clutch was identical to the one being used on his production line. He politely asked Enzo Ferrari for a replacement part, who replied “You’re just a silly tractor manufacturer, how could you possibly know anything about sports cars?” Like any red blooded Italian, he spit on the floor, walked out and started designing his own sports car. Four months later he unveiled the Lamborghini 350GTV. Boss.
4. The first Lamborghini Miura didn’t even have an engine when they unveiled it.
The Miura may have been the world’s first mid-engined V12 supercar, and the car most often credited with kickstarting the genre, but when it was first unveiled at the Turin Auto Show it wasn’t even finished. So they put a bunch of bricks where the engine should be and kept the hood shut the entire time.
5. And it was designed by the guy who builds IndyCars now.
Gian Paolo Dallara did much of the Miura’s chassis and engineering work, then went on to work in F1, before starting his own race engineering firm, which happens to build every single IndyCar chassis you see today.
6. In the late 1960s, if you didn’t own a Miura, you were nobody.
Today, they’re owned by people like Nicholas Cage and Jay Leno, but in the sixties Miuras were driven by people like Saudi King Fahd and Prince Faisal, Rod Stewart, Dean Martin, and Frank Sinatra, who famously said about his orange Miura with orange shag and wild boar skin seats: “You buy a Ferrari when you want to be somebody. You buy a Lamborghini when you are somebody.”
This one was really interesting:
18. They built the very first Viper engine.
The Dodge Viper was developed in the late eighties, while Chrysler owned Lamborghini. Rather than simply dropping a truck motor into the car, Dodge had Lamborghini cast an aluminum version of it for the prototype. It wasn’t the one used in production, but somewhere, locked away in Detroit, is a Lamborghini powered Viper.
It seems as though the Lamborghini Huracan has been around for quite a while now, yet only Lamborghini customers have been able to take a close up look at it in the flesh. These pictures from outside the factory show the car going out, presumably on a …
This Lamborghini Jalpa P350 was originally purchased by a man named Nick who while impressed with its driving characteristics, was somewhat disappointed with the 25 5hp produced by its V8 engine. As a result, Nick decided to completely replace that …
here is the link for the live camera overlooking the hole in the floor of the Corvette museum.
