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If you've ever driven a sports car through a tunnel, you'll appreciate why this shot brings back good memories. Western Class 52 no.1049 Western Monarch gets signal checked at Teignmouth with the southbound motorail service from Kensington Olympia to St Austell. The curved lines and high walls through Teignmouth are exaggerated with the telephoto lens here and it was these curves that forced the trains to slow down, but also led to them invariably opening up at just the right moment,.so that the twin Maybachs could be heard reverberating off the high sided walls. Southbound stopping service departures from a standing start were a particular speciality at this location! Ref: SL201
The old sawmill on the Renishaw Hall estate originally provided electricity to the hall using a water driven generator.
Later it was adapted for use as a sawmill driven first by a water turbine and then by steam. The steam engine, a Ruston's stationary engine, was originally ordered by Imperial Russia but was never delivered because of the Revolution.
The engine has been restored and is on display in the stable yard.
Renishaw Hall is a Grade I listed building and has been the home of the Sitwell family for over 350 years.
The current owner of Renishaw is Alexandra Sitwell, daughter of the late Sir Reresby and Lady Sitwell.
The house was built in 1625 by George Sitwell (1601–67) who, in 1653, was High Sheriff of Derbyshire. The Sitwell fortune was made as colliery owners and ironmasters from the 17th to the 20th centuries. Substantial alterations and the addition of the west and east ranges were made to the building for Sir Sitwell Sitwell by Joseph Badger of Sheffield between 1793 and 1808 and further alterations were made in 1908 by Sir Edwin Lutyens.
The owner until 2009 was Sir Reresby Sitwell, 7th Baronet Sitwell of Renishaw the eldest son of Sir Sacheverell Sitwell brother of Edith and Osbert.
The gardens, including an Italianate garden laid out by Sir George Sitwell (1860–1943), are open to the public. The hall is open for groups by private arrangement. The park is listed in the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England as Grade II*.
The 1980 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice used footage shot at Renishaw Hall. D. H. Lawrence is said to have used the local village of Eckington and Renishaw Hall as inspiration for his novel Lady Chatterley's Lover.
The Sitwells have always been avid collectors and patrons of the arts and the history of the family is filled with writers, innovators and eccentrics.
Dame Edith Sitwell (1887 - 1964) was a grandly eccentric poet and novelist, described by one observer as “an altar on the move.”
Sir Osbert Sitwell (1892-1969) wrote prose, poetry and also many short stories and novels, including Before the Bombardment (1926)
Sir Sacheverell Sitwell (1897-1988) His first volume of poetry, The People’s Palace, was published in 1918. He is also well known for his writing on art, architecture and ballet.
Information from Wikipedia and the Hall website.
This racecar was introduced 1954 and was driven by Juan-Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss in 1954 and 1955.
Parts of the loop road through Monument Valley run right over bare rock, complete with all the bare rock pot holes. The Honda handled it all just fine. Here's the Honda looking car-commercial cool.
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
Both Imperial Japanese Army and Navy Aviation (IJA and IJN, respectively) were very aware of the developments of jet engines, esp. through close contact with Germany and mutual exchange of blueprints and even hardware. But it was the IJN which basically drove jet-powered aircraft, e. g. through the Kyūshū J7W2 Shinden or Nakajima J9Y1 Kikka fighters.
The IJA was far behind schedule. Its primary jet projects had been conversions of existing, piston-engine-driven bomber types, but the increasing threat through high and fast incoming B-29 bombers, as well as the potential danger of even faster, jet-powered types, stirred the development of fast and agile interceptors with a heavy armament.
Since no such indigenous design existed (the IJA rejected the logical option to adapt an IJN types!), German engineers and design had a strong impact on what was to become the Ki-202 - a parallel development to the two-engined, heavier Ki-201 "Karyu", which resembled much the German Me 262.
The Ki-202 was developed by the Nippon Kokusai Koku Kogyo in a very short time frame: initial work started in late 1944, and the prototype was ready in summer 1945. The Ki-202 was regarded as a light, dedicated interceptor for spot defence, which should be produced in large numbers and with less investment of sparse resources and work labor per unit than the Karyu.
The Ki-202 was a very compact and simple aircraft. Outwardly it bore a striking resemblance to Kurt Tank's Ta 183 "Huckebein" jet fighter that had been under development in Germany since 1942, but the Ki-202 was much more simplified, both concerning construction and aerodynamics, as it was so direly needed and, beyond the jet engine, no big development risk was to be dared.
For instance, in order to avoid trouble with swept wings (which had not been incorporated in Japanese aircraft design yet, even though some wind tunnel test results already existed, as well as scientific input from Germany), the Ki-202 featured straight wings with a laminar-flow profile. The tail section was also different from the Ta 183: instead of the Ta 183's highly swept tail fin and a T-tail arrangement, the Ki-202 featured a relatively slender, staright tail boom above the jet exhaust, carrying a conventional stabilizer arrangement with only moderate sweep.
The fuselage resembled much Hans Multhopp's Ta 183, with a nose air intake, the pressurized cockpit placed above the air duct. The cockpot featured a frameless bubble canopy with an armored windscreen that offered an excellent field of view. Another novelty for the IJA was a tricycle landing gear that retracted into the lower fuselage. The engine (initially a single Ishikawajima Ne-20 turbojet, rated at 4.66 kN/475 kgf) filled the whole lower fuselage half. It lay between the main landing gear wells, with fuel cells above them and in the wing roots.
The aircraft had a rather stubby appearance, but turned out to be easy to handle and highly agile. Its weak spot was the Ne-20 engine, which was based on the German BMW 003 turbojet. Its low power output limited the Ki-202's performance so much that the initial prototypes (two were built) could only take off with reduced fuel - in fact, one of these machines was lost when it overrun the runway and crashed beyond repair.
Hence, only basic flight testing without any military equipment on board could be done until April 1945, and after the starting crash the other prototype was actually towed into the air, where it would, at safe height, power up its engine and perform a very limited test program.
When it became available in May 1945, a slightly uprated Ne-20-Kai engine was installed, but this measure hardly made the aircraft suitable to serious military service.
Things changed dramatically with the introduction of the much improved Ne-230 and Ne-330 engines. The latter had a thrust rating at 12.75 kN/1.300 kgf of thrust - nearly three times of what the early Ne-20 could deliver and close to the German 2nd generation Heinkel HeS 011 turbojet.
This new engine necessitated a slightly widened exhaust nozzle, and in the course of this modifications many detail refinements on prototypes #3 and 4 were made, including anti-flutter weights on the horizontal stabilizers and small wing fences.
In September 1945 this "new" aircraft eventually entered IJA service as "Ki-202 Kai", officially called 'Goryō' (御霊 - "Vengeful ghost") but also nicknamed 'Nezumi' (ネズミ - "Mouse") by its crews
The new type proved to be an immediate success. The Ki-202 Kai had a very good rate of climb, the short wings, coupled with a center-heavy CG due to the compact "pod and boom" layout, offered a very high manouverybility that was on par with contemporary Allied piston-engined fighters. As a bonus, its small size made the 'Goryō' a target which was hard to acquire or hit.
On the other side, the aircraft sported a powerful cannon armament (two fuselage-mounted 20 mm Ho-5 cannons, each with 150 RPG, plus two fuselage-mounted 30 mm Ho-155-II cannons, each with 50 RPG), and it was able to carry unguided air-to-air missiles under its wings, or two 150 L (40 US gal) drop tanks on either wing or a pair of 250 kg (550 lb) bombs.
On the downside, the Ne-330 engine had a very high fuel consumption rate, its throttle response was marginal, and its reliability was poor, especially in the initial production batches which suffered from material failures and lack of engineering experience.
General characteristics
Crew: one
Length: 8.96 m (29 ft 4 in)
Wingspan: 9,74 m (31 ft 10 1/2 in)
Height: 3,69 m (12 ft 1 in)
Wing area: 17.5 m² (188 ft²)
Empty weight: 2,380 kg (5,247 lb)
Loaded weight: 4,300 kg (9,480 lb)
Powerplant:
1× Ishikawajima Ne-330 engine with 12.75 kN/1.300 kgf of thrust
Performance
Maximum speed: 855 km/h (531 mph)
Stall speed: 140 km/h (92 knots, 106 mph) (power off, flaps down)
Range: 1.250 km (673 nmi, 776 mi)
Service ceiling: 14.000 m (45,932 ft)
Rate of climb: 20,4 m/s (4,020 ft/min)
Wing loading: 196 kg/m² (41 lb/ft²)
Thrust/weight: 0.37
Armament
2× 20 mm Ho-5 cannons with 150 RPG
2× 30 mm Ho-155-II cannons with 50 RPG
2× underwing hardpoints for up to 250 kg (551 lb) each
(for racks with unguided missiles, drop tanks or bombs)
The kit and its assembly:
A spontaneous project, inspired by a similar build (in French livery, though) on whatifmodelers.com some time ago, and an interim project while I waited for ordered decals for another whif on the bench.
I had a surplus Ta 183 from PM Models in store, and eventually considered it for conversion. When I recently got hands on several PZL TS-11 'Iskra' trainers from Master Craft, I eventually got the inspiration (and parts!) I needed and decided to make a kitbash, retro-fitting the rather futuristic Ta 183 with straight wings and a tail boom.
Conversion was rather straightforward, even though little from the Ta 183 was left: just the fuselage halves, air intake, canopy and parts of the landing gear. The Iskra 'donated' its wings and tail, as well as the front wheel.
Main wheels, cockpit interior, exhaust pipe and pilot figure come from the scrap box - noteworthy is the landing gear well interior. The PM kit just has a shallow, blank fairing - I cut that away and inserted parts from a jet engine (from a Revell F-16, the old kit which comes with a truck, trolley and a spare engine as props) - finally got use for these rather crude parts!
Some putty work was necessary at the fuselage/tail intersection, as well as at the wing roots, but overall the body work was rather quick and simple.
The packs of unguided missiles under the wings actually belong to the Matchbox BAC Strikemaster - I found an illustration of a similar arrangement on a Japanese rocket fighter, and they suit the 'Vengeful Ghost' well.
Painting and markings:
By tendency, I rather keep whifs' liveries simple and unspectacular - but I already have built some and want to avoid repetition. So I settled for an improvised camouflage scheme on bare metal, which I kept for the lower sides. AFAIK, such makeshift paint schemes were pretty common, and since no primer was used, quickly deteriorated.
To keep things simple I painted the finished model with Metallizer from Modelmaster, with different tones in selected areas (e. g. Aluminum Plate, Steel). After that I applied a thin coat of Humbrol 172 with a soft, broad brush on the upper surfaces, the waterline on the flanks masked with Tamiya tape. The metal below was to shine through, streaks were welcome, so that the finish became willingly uneven (and more interesting). This was later enhanced with some dry-brushed Humbrol 102 on top of that.
For more contrast, I added white Homeland Defence bands under the Hinomaru markings on wings and fuselage. These were cut from white decal sheet, not painted, and the Hinomaru placed on top of that. The yellow bands on the wings' ledaing edges are decals, too, a very effective method! The other few markings came from AeroMaster Decals and Microscale sheets.
Weathering included, beyond a wash with thinned black ink, a light sand paper treatment on the leading edges and in areas with much external contact, for an even shaggier look, and some grinded graphite was rubbed onto the bare metal surfaces for a worn look and some extra metal shine.
Finally, everything was sealed under a coat of semi-gloss acryl varnish.
A 'quickie', and the result looks a bit odd, IMHO - like a Saab 29 hatchling, maybe?
Rolls Royce Phantom V (1959-68) Engine 6230cc V8 OHV Production 832
ROLLS ROYCE SET
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/sets/72157623690651737...
The Phantom was the top of the Rolls Royce range, on a huge 12 foot wheelbase and weighing 2.5 tons with 20 foot bumper to bumper. Powered by a 6230cc Rolls Royce V8 engine coupled to a four speed automatic gearbox, with power steering and dual circuit drum. Most were chauffeur driven and many went to heads of state. Including H.M. the Queen.
John Lennons car was a 1965 example, delivered 3rd June 1965, originally registered FJB 111 C and finished in black.. And it was in this form that the Fab Four drove to Buckingham Palace to receive their MBEs. In December 1965 John had a Sterno Radio Telephone fitted, and in 1966 the rear seat was modified to convert to a double bed, A custom interior/exterior sound system was installed along with a "loud hailer.", along with Sony television; telephone and a portable refrigerator. By February 1966 the car ws matt black, including its radiator and chrome trim. But in April 1967, Lennon took the car to J.P. Fallon Limited, a coachworks company located in Chertsey, Surrey to explore the possibility of having his car painted psychedelic, the artist Steve Weaver's pattern of scroll and flowers was chosen and the cost of the work was £ 2000 with Warner receiving £ 290.
The newly painted car drew awe and outrage in different circles. The Beatles used the car from 1966-69. In 1970 John and Yoko had the car shipped to the United States. And when available was loaned to other pop stars, the Rolling Stones, the Moody Blues, and Bob Dylan all used it at various times. The car eventually being put into storage. In 1977 Lennon was having problems with the US Inland Revenue, and the couple did a deal whereby the car would go to the Cooper-Hewitt Museum in New York City, a part of the Smithsonian Institute, for a $225,000 tax credit. After a short period on display the car returned to storage as the Museum could not afford the insurance to display it. In June 1985 the Museum took the decision to offer the car at auction. with Sothebys at an estimate of 200 to 300,000 US dollars, but it realised $2,299,000 (U.S.) and was purchased by Mr. Jim Pattison’s Ripley International Inc., of South Carolina for exhibition at Ripley’s "Believe It Or Not" museum. The purchase of the Phantom V through Sotheby’s resulted it being listed as the most expensive car in the world and installed with the South Carolina license plates LENNON. The Phantom V was then loaned to Expo ‘86 in Vancouver (Chairman: Mr. Jim Pattison) for exhibition. The American title was transferred from Ripley International Inc. to Jim Pattison Industries Ltd., in Canada. 1987, Mr. Pattison presented the car as a gift to Her Majesty in Right of the Province of British Columbia and displayed in the Transportation Museum of British Columbia at Cloverdale (near Vancouver). Then, in 1993, the car was transferred from the Transportation Museum and sent to the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria, British Columbia. Here the car would be kept for secure storage, displayed only for fund-raising and occasional use. The car was serviced and maintained by Bristol Motors of Victoria. .
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Shot 04:06:2014 in Malaga Motor Museum REF: 102-098
DRIVEN BY THE COMPANY OWNERS SON, DELIVERING AN EXCAVATOR TO THE SITE OF THE NEW GAMMA AVIATION HANGER
Built and driven by Claude and Bernard Marreau, and hidden in a private collection for many years. This example was their first attempt to win the Dakar Rally, after some earlier attempts with a Renault 4 Sinpar. They would eventually do so in 1982 with a similar car, now in the collection of Renault Classic.
Exposition : Renault 120 Years
13/07/2018 - 02/09/2018
Autoworld
Brussels - Belgium
January 2018
SOUTHSEA - IMO : 5335838
Built 1948, by William Denny and Bros, Dumbarton (Yard # 1411) as SOUTHSEA
GRT : 837 / DWT : 179
Overall Length : 61.1 metres x Beam 14.5 metres.
Machinery : 2 shafts each driven by a SULZER - ? stroke single acting 8 cylinder oil engine manufactured by Sulzer Brothers Ltd., Winterthur
Speed : 12.0 knots
History POR = Port of Registry
1948: SOUTHSEA : British Transport Commission : POR Portsmouth
1963: SOUTHSEA : British Railways Board : POR Portsmouth
1979: SOUTHSEA : Sealink (U.K.) Ltd : POR Portsmouth
1990: SOUTHSEA : Wightlink Ltd : POR Portsmouth
1998: SOUTHSEA : Brasspatch Ltd : POR Portsmouth
2005: Broken up at Esbjerg. After a long lay up, possible preservation was looking likely and renaming to SOUTHSEA SAGA but she was sold to Indian breakers and eventually broken up by Danish Shipbreakers Smedegaard at Esbjerg.
1st September 1948
Nationalisation. The big four railway companies and their shipping divisions are amalgamated to form British Railways. Their first ships are two motor vessels ordered by the Southern Railway in 1946 for the Ryde Pier service. Brading and Southsea are built by the famous William Denny Bros. of Dumbarton, and are 60 metres long and very broad at 13 metres wide. They are 837 gross tonnes and carry over 1,000 passengers in two classes. Their crossing speed is 14½ knots and they are the first Isle of Wight ships to carry RADAR.
29th March 1986
Modernisation at Ryde. Replacements for Brading and Southsea had been sought for some time, but the government decides that Sealink’s new owners should decide if conventional or high-speed vessels are needed. The answer comes from Tasmania in the shape of the 470 passenger Our Lady Patricia. Named after one of Lord Louis Mountbatten’s daughter’s, she crosses the Solent at 29½ knots, making Ryde in 15 minutes. She is joined by a sister, Our Lady Pamela in July, replacing the 38-year-old Southsea
SOUTHSEA photographed on 15 May 1986 arriving at Portsmouth
Ship Details : Miramar / www.clydeships.co.uk/
Autoroute [A480] | Grenoble 29/06/2015 19h20
We took exit number 2 on the autoroute A480 to get to the center of Grenoble where our hotel was located.
Autoroute A480 (France)
The A480 motorway is an urban highway of Grenoble, completely free and serving western conurbation over a distance of 12.5 km. The highway brought the number B48 until 1982.
It forms its western bypass, and borders on the river Drac almost entirely and links the A48 and the A51. It also links with the A41 by the ring road south. Since 2015, the widening of the highway from 2x2 to 2x3 lanes is causing a major source of contention in the Grenoble area.
[ Source and more Info: Wikipedia - Autoroute A480 (français) ]
Roadtrip [8] 29/06/2015
On my birthday the plan was to drive the Route Napoleon from Saint-Vallier-de-Thiey to Grenoble. The planning was 320 kilometers and a 6 hour drive. We started late this day and we had to go back to Grasse to find a gas station. About one hour and 29 kilometers extra was the result. We followed the Route Napoléon (former N85) via Castellane, Digne les Bains (McLunch), Sisteron, Gap, the Col Bayard (+1248 m), Corps, La Mure, Prairie de la Rencontre and we ended up in the center of Grenoble at a Best Western hotel. The highest temperature we experienced near Digne (+34° C).
In total we have driven 329 kilometers, all driven by Stewart. We arrived at Grenoble at 19h30 which means the average speed was quite low today. Leaving at 10h36, arrived at 19h30 means an average speed of only 37 km/h. Including photostops, lunch, rest and gas. The visit to the city of Grenoble was postponed to the next day.
driven by american indycar legend bobby rahal,in 1983..he won during the season in this..this is the car he raced at that years indy 500..
Monster Jam Triple Threat Series presented by AMSOIL @ Verizon Center, Washington, DC on January 28, 2017
Featuring:
Grave Digger driven by Krysten Anderson,
El Toro Loco driven by Armando Castro,
Pirate's Curse driven by Camden Murphy,
Megalodon driven by Justin Sipes,
Alien Invasion driven by Bernard Lyght,
Zombie driven by Ami Houde, Monster Mutt Rottweiler driven by JR Seasock,
Blue Thunder driven by Matt Cody,
Pictured is a 2008 Honda RA108 Grand Prix Car. The car is painted in 2011 Mercedes-Benz livery which featured on the MGP W02.
It was driven in Honda colours by 2009 World Champion Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello. The actual 2011 Mercedes car was driven by seven-times World Champion Michael Schumacher and 2016 World Champion Nico Rosberg.
This is the last Honda Formula 1 car to be raced, Honda Racing being purchased by team principal Ross Brawn at the start of 2009 and being re-christened Brawn GP. After winning the world championship in 2009, Brawn was itself bought out by Mercedes-Benz, bringing the German marque back to Formula 1 as a constructor for the first time since 1955.
This car never got close to winning a race, it's highest position being third with Rubens Barrichello in a British Grand Prix held in atrocious conditions. That result aside, the car only scored minor points on three other occasions. Barrichello and Button would end the season fourteenth and eighteenth in the Drivers Championship respectively. Honda would end their last season as ninth best constructor.
The actual 2011 Mercedes-Benz MGP W02 placed Mercedes fourth in the Constructors Championship, the best result of 2011 being Schumacher's strong drive to fourth in Canada. The drivers finished the championship in 7th (Rosberg) and 8th (Schumacher) positions overall.
Pictured in January 2012 at the Autosport International show at the NEC in Birmingham.
1969 Porsche 917 driven by Carlos Monteverde and Gary Pearson during Qualifying / Practice for the Masters Sports-Cars Race on Friday at the 2012 Spa Six Hours.
If you are interested in this, or any of my other photos from this event, please visit my website. prints.swankmotorarts.com/f910918478
Pictured is a 1995 Benetton-Renault B195 Grand Prix Car.
It was driven in 1995 by seven-times Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher and Johnny Herbert.
Having won the Drivers Championship with Michael Schumacher in 1994 much was expected of Benetton the following season.
After eight years as the 'works' Ford team Benetton went into 1995 with Renault power. The team was given equal 'works' status with Renault stalwarts Williams and would enjoy identical V10 power to that of the reigning Constructors Champions.
The season started well in Brazil with both cars qualifying in the top four (Schumacher second, Herbert fourth) and ultimately saw Schumacher win the opening round from the Williams of David Coulthard and take fastest lap. Herbert retired from the race after being taken taken out by Ligier's Aguri Suzuki.
However, the top two cars were disqualified from the results after the Elf fuel used by both Benetton and Williams was found to be different from the control sample supplied at the beginning of the year. Both teams appealed the decision and had their results re-instated, although the teams lost their Constructors points from the race.
The second round in Argentina was more problematic for Benetton with the B195 not being suited to the circuit. Schumacher qualified third with Herbert back in eleventh. The team had a quiet race with Schumacher finishing third (with fastest lap), over thirty seconds behind the race winning Williams of Damon Hill. Herbert made progress in the race and finished a lapped fourth.
The third round at Imola saw Schumacher take Pole Position for the San Marino Grand Prix. In damp conditions, Schumacher led the early stages of the race but decided to take a gamble and change to slick tyres. It was a gamble that didn't pay off. Shortly after his pit stop the German lost control of the car and slammed into a tyre wall to end his day early. Herbert finished seventh and out of the points, two laps down of race winner Damon Hill.
The Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona was where the team's season took off in style. Schumacher again took Pole Position and went on to dominate the race, taking a comfortable victory. Damon Hill had been running second but suffered a gearbox failure on the final lap that allowed Johnny Herbert to finish second and score the first podium finish of his Formula 1 career and gave Benetton their first 1-2 finish since the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix.
The following race in Monaco again saw Schumacher romp home to victory in the principality for the second year in succession with Herbert coming home a lapped fourth.
Round 6 in Canada turned into a nightmare for the team. Schumacher qualified on Pole Position and dominated the race until twelve laps from the finish when a gearbox glictch forced him into the pits. After a steering wheel change Schumacher rejoined the race and finished fifth. Herbert had been eliminated on the first lap after being harpooned by McLaren's Mika Hakkinen at the circuit's hairpin.
The French Grand Prix at Magny Cours saw another dominant victory for Schumacher with fastest lap to extend his championship lead. Herbert was once again eliminated early on, this time being hit by Ferrari's Jean Alesi on the third lap of the race. Things would get much better for the Englishman in the next race at Silverstone.
The British Grand Prix saw Schumacher and Hill swap the lead during their respective pit stops. Late in the race Schumacher was heading for another victory when Hill made a clumsy attempt at an overtake and took both cars out of the race. This left Johnny Herbert, who had been running third, to inherit the lead and he went on to claim his maiden victory on home ground.
Next time out in Germany Hill spun out of the lead at the start of the second lap which left Schumacher to romp home to an undisputed victory in front of the home crowd. Herbert finished a distant fourth.
The Hungarian Grand Prix was another circuit that just didn't suit the B195. Schumacher ran in second position for most of the race but retired late on with a fuel pump failure and was classified eleventh. Herbert did salvage some points for the team by coming home a lapped fourth.
The next round in Belgium saw mixed conditions for qualifying. Herbert managed to qualify fourth but the rain had started by the time Schumacher went for a flying lap and he could qualify only sixteenth.
Herbert took the lead of the race mid-way round the first lap but was passed on the second, although he did lead for two more laps shortly after. He eventually dropped down the order and finished out of the points in seventh.
Schumacher, meanwhile, had been carving his way through the field with a typical wet weather masterclass. Despite driving on slicks on a wet track for a number of laps he made his way to the front and took a brilliant victory from the eighth row of the grid.
The Italian Grand Prix at Monza was a carbon copy of the Silverstone race. Schumacher and Hill were running second and third when they came up to lap the Footwork of Taki Inoue. Schumacher passed the Japanese driver cleanly but Hill mis-judged his braking and slammed into the back of the Benetton taking both cars out of the race.
Once again at the end it was Herbert who stayed out of trouble to claim his second win of the season.
The next round in Portugal was dominated by David Coulthard who went on to take his maiden victory with Schumacher managing to split the two Williams cars to finish second. Herbert ended the race a lapped seventh.
The European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring was held in tricky conditions but saw Schumacher pull off a brilliant overtake around the outside of Jean Alesi late in the race to claim his second home victory of the year. It was a result that also saw him get within touching distance of winning the championship, arch rival Hill having crashed out earlier in the race. Herbert finished fifth, one lap down on his team-mate.
The Pacific Grand Prix at Aida in Japan saw another dominant drive from Schumacher and the victory handed the German his second world title with two races to spare. Herbert scored a solitary point for sixth position.
The next round at Suzuka saw Schumacher take another win with Herbert finishing third to give the team another double podium. That result was enought to clinch the Constructors Championship for Benetton, the team's first (and what would prove to be only) constructors crown.
The final race of the season in Australia ended on a sad note with Schumacher being eliminated from his last race for Benetton in a mid-race collision with Jean Alesi's Ferrari Ironically, Schumacher would be in the Ferrari and Alesi in the Benetton the following year. Herbert had been running second late in the race but retired with driveshaft failure in his final race for the team.
At the end of the season, the Benetton drivers would finish first (Schumacher) and fourth (Herbert) in the championship. With eleven wins from seventeen races Benetton comfortably took the Constructor's Championship.
Pictured in January 2008 at the Autosport International show at the NEC in Birmingham.
Specifications:
220bhp at 3,500 rpm, 7,982.81 cc, coupling rod driven single overhead camshaft inline six-cylinder engine with a 110 mm bore x 140 mm stroke, four-speed sliding pinion transmission with open propeller shaft, two SU carburetors, front and rear half elliptic leaf spring suspension, four-wheel drum brakes. Wheelbase: 156"
Walter Owen Bentley was educated at Clifton College in Bristol. He left in July 1905 at age sixteen to study engineering at King’s College in London. The course lacked a practical element and, finding theory boring, W.O. left and joined the Great Northern Railway as a premium apprentice.
W.O. spent six years at the Great Northern Railway Works at Doncaster, progressing through the various shops and finally ending up on the footplate of the company’s locomotives.
W.O’s next job was assistant to the works manager of the National Motor Cab Company where he was responsible for the maintenance of over five hundred London taxis.
Bentley’s first motorized transport was a Quadrant motorcycle. As time went on, he bought better motorbikes and began entering races and touring events. Bentley won a gold medal in the difficult London to Edinburgh trial and in 1909 competed in the Tourist Trophy but crashed his Speed King on the first lap.
W.O’s first car was a 9 hp Riley that he bought in 1910. About a year later he purchased a French Sizaire-Naudin. The path of his life could not have been predicted; this early in his life, his views on this form of transportation were not favorable. “The motor car seemed to me a disagreeable vehicle. Perhaps I should have realized the vast potentialities of internal combustion and recognized from my nursery days that it was to be the impelling force in my life. But the fact must be recorded that the motor car struck my young, literal mind as a slow, inefficient, draughty and antisocial means of transport. Motor cars splashed people with mud, frightened horses, irritated dogs and were a frightful nuisance to everybody.”
In March 1912, in partnership with his brother, Horace Milner Bentley, W.O. secured the British concession for three French motor manufacturers. Two, Buchet and La Licorne, were not considered very good and so the new company concentrated on the superior Doriet, Flandrin et Parent car. Bentley and Bentley had a showroom in Hanover Street and later in New Street Mews, off Upper Baker Street. Motor racing was a great way to promote and sell cars and W.O. began to develop the four cylinder 2,001 cc 12/15 hp D.F.P. for competition use. Humber, with a similar engine capacity, was dominating this class of racing – Bentley would soon change that.
W.O.’s first event was June 15, 1912 at Aston Clinton hill-climb where the D.F.P. easily won Class II. More modifications followed and considerable success was achieved at Brooklands, eventually averaging 81.98 mph over ten laps. After fitting alloy pistons, Bentley took the car to Paris and broke the flying half-mile record at 89.70 mph. In June 1914 Bentley finished an incredible sixth overall in the Isle of Man T.T. against out and out racing cars of much higher capacity. This competition experience led to the D.F.P. 12/40 hp, the first car in motoring history to be fitted with aluminium pistons as standard.
The First World War brought the brothers’ car sales operation to a halt. Having fitted alloy pistons to the D.F.P. car, W.O. Bentley felt that his knowledge of this technology could help the war effort. W.O. approached the Admiralty with the suggestion that this knowledge should be incorporated into aero engines used by the Royal Naval Air Service.
Lieutenant Bentley was sent to the experimental department at Rolls-Royce in Derby where his ideas were tried, even though the company had already used aluminium pistons in their Silver Ghosts in the Austrian Alpine Trial of 1913. Bentley also worked at Sunbeam and Gwynnes before he was given the opportunity to design his own aero engine.
Bentley went to Humber in Coventry where he met designer F.T. Burgess and later his old friend from his motorcycling days, now Admiralty Inspector S.C.H. Davis. Fredrick Tasker Burgess worked with W.O. to produce the Bentley Rotary aero engines the B.R. 1 and B.R. 2. Later he would work in design at Bentley Motors. W.O. said of him, “I soon recognised that we talked the same language, understood and appreciated the same things, and that he was a man in a thousand to have on design work.”
W.O. was to meet another person who would figure significantly in Bentley Motors, on an airfield in France during the war while under attack by the Red Barron. W.O.: “The adjoining canal seemed to be the only retreat left to me when a Fokker came over one day, and after a terrific hundred-yard sprint with the bullets dancing behind me, in I went with a splash and huddled under the overhanging bank. The plane’s next run across the airfield brought me company in the shape of Petty Officer (Nobby) Clarke, and side-by-side Bentley Motors’ future head racing mechanic and I huddled among the rushes, teeth chattering. The pilot who sent us there, and helped to seal a warm friendship, was Barron von Richtofen himself. I almost felt a pang of regret when Brown in a (Sopwith) Camel, powered by one of our B.R.1’s, caught him at last a year or two later.”
W.O. Bentley was awarded the M.B.E. (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for his service in World War I and the Royal Commission on Awards paid him £8,000 for his work designing the B.R.1 and 2 engines. This money would provide W.O. with the means to set up Bentley Motors. W.O. wanted to build a car. “The creative instinct is strong in most engineers, and, just as I hadn’t been satisfied for long to work on someone else’s rotary engine, so I had to produce my own car.”
After the war, in a small office in Conduit Street, Bentley began to design a new engine. He recruited F.T. Burgess from Humber and Harry Varley from Vauxhall. By September 1919 the design was complete and all the parts manufactured. Nobby Clarke, chief mechanic of one of the R.N.A.S. squadrons that had used Bentley rotary engines, was hired to assemble the first car engine.
The 2,996 cc four-cylinder engine followed the current customary long stroke, high efficiency principals with maximum power developed at just 3,500 rpm. The engine was successfully run for the first time at New Street Mews at the beginning of October and a mock-up chassis was made ready for the Olympia Motor Show in London.
The car made an immediate impression, with a tall, imposing radiator and winged Bentley badge that had been designed by famous motoring artist, F. Gordon Crosby. The Autocar reported that, “The Bentley chassis stands alone in its class as a car designed to give that peculiar and almost perfect combination of tractability and great speed usually to be found on machines built for racing, and racing only.”
Of course Bentley would go on to achieve incredible success in motor racing for many years, winning the Twenty-Four Hours at Le Mans four times in a row during the twenties. Bentley’s drivers included Woolf Barnato, Sir Henry ‘Tim’ Birkin, Jack Barclay, Glen Kidston and George Duller. The Bentley Boys, as they were known, would become part of the Bentley legend. W.O.’s policy was to “race on Sunday, sell on Monday.”
S.C.H. Davis gave a 3.0-liter Bentley with an open four-seater tourer body its first road test for The Autocar in January 1920. Bentley moved to a factory in Oxgate Lane in Cricklewood where the Bentley cars were assembled. The first customer 3.0-liter was delivered in August 1921. Bentley would go on to produce models of 4.5-liters and 6.5-liters and finally between 1930 and 1931 the mighty 8-Litre.
The 8-Litre was basically an enlarged version of the Speed Six. It had a new lower chassis frame, with out-set rear springs and an ‘F’ series gearbox differing from all previous Bentley designs with its casing split down the centre, as opposed to the square box with a lid on top which was used in all earlier cars. This layout allowed for larger bearings which provided extra strength and reduced engine noise.
The first 8-Litres appeared at the Olympia Motor Show in October 1930 and created a sensation. This magnificent machine would top 100 mph with limousine coachwork and eight people inside.
Bentley’s Sales Manager Arthur Hillstead in his book, Those Bentley Days, wrote. “Eight litres! Nearly three times the cubic capacity of the never-to-be-forgotten 3! And what a motor it was! Having a six-cylinder engine with a bore and stroke of 110 mm by 140 mm respectively, and a top-gear speed range (with a ratio of 3.5 to 1) of a minimum of 6 mph and a maximum of 104 mph – what more could man ask for? Yes, indeed; and add to that an acceleration capacity of 10 mph to 100 mph in 50 seconds with a fully equipped saloon body, and surely we had the answer to the sporting motorist’s prayer? The sporting motorist! Speed cum refinement in its highest form! A creation evolved from years of racing experience!”
The 8-Litre was clearly aimed to go head to head with the Rolls-Royce Phantom II, challenging to be the best car in the world, although Hillstead was impressed by the fact that the Bentley outperformed the supercharged Mercedes of that time, on both acceleration and maximum speed, “but it performed with a silence that was uncanny.” He said, “There was nothing like it in the world.”
The 8-Litre was clearly aimed to go head to head with the Rolls-Royce Phantom II, challenging to be the best car in the world, although Hillstead was impressed by the fact that the Bentley outperformed the supercharged Mercedes of that time, on both acceleration and maximum speed, “but it performed with a silence that was uncanny.” He said, “There was nothing like it in the world.”
It would have been interesting to see what developed in this rivalry but Bentley was in deep financial trouble. Bentley Motors effectively ended in 1931 when they notified London Life that they would be unable to make their June 30th mortgage payment. W.O. was confident that the company would continue under the proposed new ownership of Napiers of Acton, London. The receiver’s sale of Bentley’s assets was regarded to be a formality, but in the Royal Courts of Justice in London’s Strand a barrister representing the British Central Equitable Trust made a counter offer, much to everyone’s astonishment. Napier immediately offered more, but the judge informed the court that he was not an auctioneer and gave the two parties until 4.30 in the afternoon to come back with sealed bids. W.O. said, “I don’t know by how much precisely Napier were out-bidded, but the margin was very small, a matter of a few hundred pounds. All I knew that evening was that the deal would not be going through after all.”
Later W.O. commented on the bankruptcy. He said, “When people ask me (and they are too tactful to do so often) why Bentleys went bust, I usually give three reasons: the slump, the 4-Litre car, and the ‘blower’ 41/2s; in proportions of about 70, 20 and 10% respectively.”
Following the court case, it became apparent that the B.C.E.T. was representing Rolls-Royce. Having acquired all of Bentley’s assets, including the design of the 8-Litre, it is perhaps telling that the model was never again produced. Napier’s original bid had been for £103,675, their sealed bid £104,775. Rolls-Royce paid £125,256.
After the acquisition of Bentley by Rolls-Royce, Walter Owen Bentley was asked to call at Rolls-Royce’s London offices to see Sir Henry Royce. Royce, like Bentley, had started working life on the Great Northern Railway. Bentley said, “It might be called an exploratory interview, I suppose, and I have often wondered what was its purpose.”
Royce asked, “I believe you’re a commercial man, Mr. Bentley?”
Bentley replied, “Well, not really, primarily, I suppose I’m more a technical specialist.”
Royce, in some surprise, said, “You’re not an engineer, then, are you?”
“Yes, I suppose you could call me that.” Bentley replied. “I think you were a boy in the G.N. running sheds at Peterborough a bit before I was a premium apprentice at Doncaster.” This was accepted with a nod, W.O. recalled, and he was then offered a job, “on not ungenerous terms…”
The first Rolls-Royce built Bentley was the 31/2 Litre. W.O. was heavily involved in the testing of this car, which became known as ‘The Silent Sports Car’. W.O. loved it.
Bentley were Rolls-Royce’s greatest rivals, but there was great mutual respect between the two men and admiration for the cars that they produced. The Bentley 8-Litre was superior to the Phantom II in a number of respects. Royce considered buying one, but rejected the idea. He said, “We can see in which way it can be better than we are.”
Chassis no. YR5076
Only one hundred 8-Litre Bentleys were built. The car presented here, chassis number YR5076, has its original open tourer coachwork by R. Harrison and Son, who were established in 1883. This incredibly handsome car has velvet green paintwork with a green leather interior and is in beautiful condition.
The 8-Litre was the last car designed by W.O. Bentley and of the hundred examples built, seventy-eight are still in existence today. Only sixteen 8-Litres were built with open bodywork,
six drophead coupés and ten open tourers; only twelve of these open cars survive today with their original coachwork. YR5076 is one of these extremely rare cars.
This car was delivered to Mr. W.B. Henderson, of Somerset, England on January 3, 1931 and was subsequently owned by G.R. Wilson and Lt. Col. A.J.A. Beck before being shipped to the United States in 1953 by Leo Pavelle from New York. The car then became the property of Bill Klein, who then had the largest collection of Bentleys in the world. The car remained in America in the ownership of Jimmy Black from Tennessee, Johnnie Bassett, Ed Jurist, Wayne Brooks and then David Van Schaick, who showed the car at Pebble Beach in 1989. YR5076 returned to the U.K. in 1995 having been sold to Richard Procter, the odometer showing just 43,000 miles, which was believed to be correct. The Bentley was restored during this time and was repainted and retrimmed. It was then sold to William Connor II in Hong Kong.
This car, chassis number, YR5076 has always been maintained to a very high standard and represents an exceptional opportunity to own one of these elegant, rare, high-speed touring cars. It is ready to be enjoyed at important events around the world.
[Text from RM Auctions]
www.rmauctions.com/lots/lot.cfm?lot_id=218906
This Lego miniland-scale Bentley 8-Litre Open Tourer YR5076 (1931 - Harrsion), has been created for Flickr LUGNuts' 89th Build Challenge, - "Over a Million, Under a Thousand", - a challenge to build vehicles valued over one million (US) dollars, or under one thousand (US) dollars.
This particular vehicle was auctioned by the RM Auction house on Saturday March 8, 2008, 2010, where it sold for $2,200,000.
Fitted with a flight test-probe and now painted in her new overall grey colour scheme with black Royal Navy titles, code letter and serial number, development Leonardo Merlin Mk.4 ZJ122/F caught about to land back at the former Agusta-Westland's Yeovil Airfield in Somerset.
Changes incorporated into the upgrades are a folding rotor head and tail rotor, strengthened landing gear, deck lashing points, and a fast roping point for the Royal Marines
Note also that unlike their original - now HM.2 Navy counterparts, instead of those single main wheels, these ex RAF machines have the dual wheels all round and no underbelly radar.
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