It’s difficult to imagine Ducati without their trademark desmodromic engines, but before Fabio Taglioni implemented an early triple camshaft desmodromic design on the 1956 Trialbero Racer, all Ducatis used conventional springs to close their valves. For the uninitiated, a desmodromic engine uses a camshaft to both open and close the valves, rather then relying on a…
CERV I (Chevrolet Engineering Research Vehicle) was developed by Corvette icon Zora Arkus-Duntov, with design work by Larry Shinoda and Tony Lapine. It was created as an open-wheeled testbed to assist with engineering for the Corvette that had the wheels, tires, and suspension visible to engineers at all times. In order to maximise forces going through…
Robert “Rocketman” Maddox has been building pulsejet-powered vehicles since the 1990s, and is now considered one of the world’s foremost experts on pulsejet design and construction. Robert first became interested in pulsejets after taking up skydiving, and becoming curious about the mysterious engines that powered the German V-1 buzz bombs during the Second World War….
What’s Under Your Hood? is a ’70s era instructional film that does a remarkably good job of explaining how an engine works, as well as explaining the internal workings of the gearbox, differential, and braking system. At just 10 minutes in length, it’s an excellent introduction to how it all works for those who might…
The Vanguard Roadster is a new low production volume motorcycle designed and built in New York, that’s due to go on sale in 2018 for $29,995 USD. At its heart, the Vanguard Roadster utilises a modified S&S X-Wedge Engine, which is used as a stressed member to both reduce kerb weight and improve rigidity. The…
The Tucker 48 is unquestionably one of the most beloved American cars of all time. The story of its development, production, and downfall are the thing of legend – and it’s a story known by many thanks to the Francis Ford Coppola film Tucker: The Man and His Dream starring Jeff Bridges. Preston Tucker named…
Bandit 9 is a custom motorcycle garage that can lay claim to building genuinely unique bikes – a rare thing in and of itself. The head of Bandit 9 is Daryl Villanueva, a designer and custom builder who started the company in Beijing, before moving it to Vietnam. The EDEN series of Honda Supersport-based bikes takes…
The Lola F1R is the result of a bet between Lola engineers about whether it was possible to build something close to a Formula 1 car, that would be UK road registrable. The UK has notoriously finicky road restrictions, despite (or perhaps because of) the fact that southern England has more motorsport engineering companies than…
In the twenties and thirties overhead valve engines were well known to be more efficient and consequently more powerful than either side-valve engines or the hybrid “F-head” with its overhead inlet and side exhaust valve. Overhead valve engines were the province of motor-sport performance engines where power was at a premium and maintenance could be…
The Steyr-Puch Haflinger was developed in the late 1950s as a replacement for the ageing American-built Jeeps that were still being used by the Austrian military. The engineering that went into the unusual looking Haflinger was outstanding, and despite its unconventional appearance its capabilities as an off-roader are exceptional. The head engineer was Erich Ledwinka,…
The F-head was the first in a long line of “big” Harley-Davidon V-twins, and it set a precedent that is still going strong today over 100 years later. This is its story. William S. Harley was a boy in Milwaukee who in 1901 got the notion that he would put an engine in a bicycle…
The Invention of the Ford V8 Engine is a documentary about the development of the original Ford V8 – the Flathead that made its debut in 1932, forever cementing the “Deuce” in the annals of hot rod history. The video has clearly been encoded from film and it’s a little crackly at times, but if…
