A two wheeled car?
Now I have been known to say that some of
these tricked out Honda Goldwings look like two wheeled cars,
but that is just a joke. However, a two wheeled car did exist!
This not well-known fact was passed on to me by Robin, one of
the readers in Pattaya, so I followed it up.
The
vehicle was made by the normally very staid Wolseley people,
but this story shows what anyone will do for money (or rather,
for people with money)! This was the Wolseley Gyrocar, and I
am also indebted to the Wolseley Register for much of the
details. It is a tale of brilliance, engineering problems
overcome, inexplicable decisions and ultimately short-sighted
philistinism. Read on.
Even though it was made by Wolseley, its real name is the
Schilovski Gyrocar, after Count Peter Schilovski, a member of
the Russian Royal family in the early 1900’s.
In those early years of button-up boots, the Wolseley Tool and
Motorcar Company had grown into a very large concern, already
notable for their engineering expertise and their production
of a wide range of motor vehicles. In fact, during the
Edwardian period Wolseley was the leading producer of
motorcars. Perhaps it was inevitable that, in 1912, the
Russian Count Peter Schilovski should visit Wolseley and
present them with his plans for a gyroscopically-stabilized
motorcar running on only two wheels.
With possible military contracts in mind, the Count credited
his yet-to-be-built invention with a number of exciting
characteristics that he claimed would be superior to normal
vehicles. For starters, would it be possible that a car would
work with only two wheels?
Propulsion was by a Wolseley 20hp engine mounted behind the
front wheel and driving the rear wheel via an offset
driveshaft. This was not a very powerful engine for a vehicle
weighing 2.75 tons but, again, anything that was sufficient to
prove the theory would be deemed successful.
The
gyroscope itself was powered by a 1.25 hp electric motor, and
was mounted in the middle and revolved at between 2,000 and
3,000 rpm. This is not quite a hybrid, as the gasoline engine
provided the forward motion, while the electric motor kept the
car upright, but as far as I can deduce, the petrol engine
also turned the 110 volt dynamo to provide the electric
current for the gyroscope.
Inertia/balance was maintained between the gyroscope and the
body of the car through a rack and pinion system linked by
cords to two pendulums. If the gyroscope was to stop, spragues
automatically came down on each side to stop the car tipping
over (like a motorcycle side stand, but with a small wheel on
the end of it).
The first public demonstration is recorded as being in
Regent’s Park in central London on April 28, 1914 and by all
accounts it was a great success. A newspaper report at the
time described how people could jump on and off the Gyrocar
when it was driven slowly, and it would still maintain its
balance - this must have been quite a sight to behold,
especially as this was no small motor carriage.
At the time, a Wolseley employee reported that when out on one
test run the engine stopped, and so naturally the car fell
over on to the side stand. He wrote, “It was lifted by eight
men, the engine restarted, and the car driven back to the
experimental department, but it was supported by outside
assistance as His Excellency did not attempt to balance the
car in the street.”
Despite the initial success of the gyroscopic principle
applied to a motor vehicle, the Gyrocar was put aside by
Wolseley when the First World War broke out in 1914. The Count
disappeared to return to Russia where he was involved in the
production of a gyroscopically balanced monorail running from
St. Petersburg, while Wolseley turned over to war work.
Reports were that for a number of years, even after the end of
hostilities, the Gyrocar lay abandoned in the factory and
eventually the Wolseley directors decided they needed to be
rid of it. Not knowing what had happened to Count Schilovski -
but mindful of the fact that he could therefore still reappear
at any moment, they came up with the most incredible decision
to bury the Gyrocar complete, instead of dismantling it.
Then in 1938 Wolseley had second thoughts and decided to
resurrect the Gyrocar. By then a railway yard had been built
on top of the site, but the tracks were lifted where need be,
the car was unearthed and hauled out and it was restored by
Wolseley to be displayed in the company’s own museum. This
sounds like a much more fitting end to the gyrocar saga – but
it wasn’t! The gyrocar was housed there for only a few years
until the Wolseley directors came up with an even more
incredible decision – it was broken up for scrap metal in
1948!
Autotrivia
Quiz
Last week I mentioned that the pre-war Opel Kadett
resurfaced in 1947 in another country, and called the “Son of
XXXXXX”. I asked by what name was it known as in the rest of
the world? The answer was the Moskvich, which apparently means
“Son of Moscow”.
So to this week. An easy one. What was the engine in the
Hurrycane coupe?
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be the first correct
answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
Now a one wheeled
motorcycle!
Again
I am indebted to a reader (and an old friend) John English, my
partner in the race team for many years, who dug up this
photograph. The thing is a motorcycle, complete with
handlebars and the engine simply turns the outside ring. As it
spins, the whole contraption will then move forwards. I don’t
think it will catch on, as it can’t carry the requisite family
of four as per the Honda 125 in this country!
Thailand Hondas to
Australia
Go-Auto in Australia reports that the Honda
management Down-under is looking to double its market share by
the end of this decade, and that 75 percent of its vehicle
line-up will be coming from Thailand. This must be good news
for the Thai auto industry.
Honda Australia is looking for the new Civic to boost their
market share this year as they believe they will have a
significant price advantage with the Thai-sourced cars,
compared to their competitors sourcing vehicles from Japan,
South Africa and Europe. There will also be the face-lifted
Accord due out mid-year which will have new cabin trim, a
restyled rear end and bumper changes.
The Jazz that is sold in Australia is currently being built in
Japan, but the new model, due out 2008, will also be
manufactured in Thailand and exported to Australia from here,
with cost advantages against the similar models from Suzuki
and Mazda.
By the way, the spies have it that the Honda NSX super coupe
will return in 2008 with a V10 engine, Ferrari-beating
performance, and even a hybrid model to make it popular with
the environmental lobby.
Alfa Spider returns
Alfa
Romeo comes back with an all-new Spider, to be released at the
Geneva Motor Show at the end of this month. Known as Project
946, the Alfa Spider comes with a choice of engines and
transmissions. The ‘cooking’ model has the 2.2 JTS (190 bhp /
235 Nm) engine, while the performance model gets the 3.2 V6
JTS Q4 (260 bhp / 335 Nm) motor, plus All Wheel Drive, with
the predominance going to the rear wheels.
According to Alfa Romeo, the Alfa Spider recalls the glorious
Alfa Romeo tradition in this sector (from the Giulietta Spider
in the ‘50s to the Duetto and the Nineties model), and rolls
out some cutting edge solutions in terms of mechanical
specifications and engines.
The new Spider is a generously-sized two seater – 1,830 mm
wide, 4,396 long and 1,367 high. The interior of the Alfa
Spider is inviting and it has automatic dual-zone climate
control, steering wheel mounted radio controls, from VDC to
cruise control. With air-conditioning being standard, Alfa
Romeo expects that the roof will be up for much of the time.
The Spider has high double wishbone suspension at the front
and Multilink at the rear to complement the Q4 AWD. Alfa Romeo
also say that the Spider will feature the most sophisticated
electronic vehicle dynamic control devices. Let us also hope
they have managed to stop the rust problems that have beset
Alfa Romeo for many years!
Will Valentino go to
Ferrari?
Many are predicting that two wheel star Valentino
Rossi will switch from two wheels to four at the end of 2006,
when his contract with Yamaha runs out. I would suggest that
all the pointers would have to agree.
He is undertaking “testing” with Ferrari all this year, and he
would not be doing this if there was no intention of ever
racing an F1 car. If it were just a passing whim, then he
would have stopped after experiencing it the first time. “OK,
I’ve done that, what’s next?” sort of thing. But no, he has
continued to test, and recently at the same time as other F1
drivers.
Rossi recently took part in a three-day test program with
Ferrari at Valencia. It started off badly when he spun on lap
1 in the rain, but by the end of the three days, even Michael
Schumacher was heaping praise on the motorcycle champion.
According to Schumacher, Rossi’s first day spin was
explainable. “That mistake was understandable,” he told the
French newspaper L’Equipe. “When a driver sets off with wet
tyres they cool down straight away on the first lap and so
it’s easy to skid. For him it would have been like driving on
ice.”
By the end of the three days, Rossi was lapping only one
second slower than Schumacher, and faster than many of the
current F1 drivers at Valencia. Schumacher believes that Rossi
could make it in F1. “He has enough talent to succeed. It’s
entirely possible for him. I’d even say it’s easier to go from
motorbikes to cars than the reverse. And when, like Valentino,
you have this special feeling on two wheels, you can easily
use that with four.”
With many predicting that Schumacher will hang up his helmet
at the end of the year, would Ferrari take on Rossi? Of course
they would. An Italian in an Italian car is the publicist’s
dream combination.
Natter Nosh and Noggin
The monthly car enthusiasts meeting will be at
Jameson’s Irish Pub on Soi AR next to the Nova Park
development. The car (and bike) enthusiasts meet on the second
Monday of the month, so this time it is Monday (February 13)
at Jameson’s at 7 p.m. This is a totally informal meeting of
like minded souls to discuss their pet motoring (and
motorcycling) loves and hates. Just ask any of the lovely
Jameson’s girls where the group is and they will point us out
and give you a push.
