fordac's Blog

Outside of Asia, Japan is known for two things; blisteringly cool technology and awesomely tacky gadgetry. In a perfect merger of both of these factors, the people of Japan have whipped out yet another awesome combination of large flashy toys and kitschy art.

Dekotora Trucks are highly customized trucks which the cult Japanese community decks out to look like artsy monsters. You could easily confuse one of these Dekotora trucks as something other than an automotive, yet the brute power behind these pieces is enough to cause geeks to wet themselves with envy.

Participants in the Dekotora community get together for truck shows where they showcase their prized vehicles. Sometimes these monsters are used as special art promotion trucks at events. And something tells us that they surely draw a crowd.

If we had the money, there is no doubt we would create a Dekotora of our own to cruise around the suburbs, scaring children and possibly mowing down a few nuns on the way. And if we didn’t have vehicular homicide on our minds, we’d no doubt be showing these bad boys off to all the ladies.

Source: I.Z. Reloaded

Even great Formula 1 drivers like Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton start from karting, but I’m pretty sure they didn’t have the luxury of sitting on this Hayabusa-powered Go Kart. For those who are not in the know, a Hayabusa has held the record for being the fastest production motorcycle in the world for many years in its history, so you can imagine what happens when a Hayabusa engine is placed in a Go Kart. No amount of mushrooms in Mario Kart will be able to outrace this monster, that’s for sure.

Source: TechEBlog

At first glance, this modified Cuban bike is just a regular pushbike with an engine bolted on. Look closer, though, and all sorts of neat details appear. From the beefed-up front forks, through the front chainwheel with the pedals removed – and now driven by a belt from the engine (an ingenious way to get the power to the back wheel by using the existing drive mechanism), to the motorbike-style suspension on the seat (itself a bunjeed-on cushion).

The whole thing is so gloriously crude, yet shows the elegant simplicity born of need. Form is certainly following function here, and it' wonderful. Walter Gropius would be proud.

Cuban Motor Bike [Street Use]

The Wartsila-Sulzer RTA96-C turbocharged two-stroke diesel engine is the most powerful and most efficient prime-mover in the world today. The Aioi Works of Japan's Diesel United, Ltd built the first engines and is where some of these pictures were taken. It is available in 6 through 14 cylinder versions, all are inline engines. These engines were designed primarily for very large container ships. Ship owners like a single engine/single propeller design and the new generation of larger container ships needed a bigger engine to propel them. The cylinder bore is just under 38" and the stroke is just over 98". Each cylinder displaces 111,143 cubic inches (1820 liters) and produces 7780 horsepower. Total displacement comes out to 1,556,002 cubic inches (25,480 liters) for the fourteen cylinder version.

 Some facts on the 14 cylinder version:

Total engine weight: 2300 tons (The crankshaft alone weighs 300 tons.)

Length: 89 feet

Height: 44 feet

Maximum power: 108,920 hp at 102 rpm

Maximum torque: 5,608,312 lb/ft at 102rpm

Fuel consumption at maximum power is 0.278 lbs per hp per hour (Brake Specific Fuel Consumption). Fuel consumption at maximum economy is 0.260 lbs/hp/hour. At maximum economy the engine exceeds 50% thermal efficiency. That is, more than 50% of the energy in the fuel in converted to motion. For comparison, most automotive and small aircraft engines have BSFC figures in the 0.40-0.60 lbs/hp/hr range and 25-30% thermal efficiency range. Even at its most efficient power setting, the big 14 consumes 1,660 gallons of heavy fuel oil per hour. A cross section of the RTA96C:

The internals of this engine are a bit different than most automotive engines. The top of the connecting rod is not attached directly to the piston. The top of the connecting rod attaches to a "crosshead" which rides in guide channels. A long piston rod then connects the crosshead to the piston. I assume this is done so the the sideways forces produced by the connecting rod are absorbed by the crosshead and not by the piston. Those sideways forces are what makes the cylinders in an auto engine get oval-shaped over time. Installing the "thin-shell" bearings. Crank & rod journals are 38" in diameter and 16" wide: 

 
The crank sitting in the block (also known as a "gondola-style" bedplate). This is a 10 cylinder version.

Note the steps by each crank throw that lead down into the crankcase:

 A piston & piston rod assembly. The piston is at the top. The large square plate at the bottom is where the whole assembly attaches to the crosshead:

 

 

 

The first completed 12 cylinder engine:
 

 

 

WOW THAT IS ONE POWERFUL ENGINE.