America's Golden Age of the Automobile Lives on in Sweden!

Take a look at the video linked below. An amazing story of Europeans who love those American "dinosaurs in the driveway."  Why do they do this?  Is it because in the 1950s in America it was the last time for the young to have fun? And the Swedes have somehow perceived that, and by recreating the past, escape their own desperate present, and perhaps future?

http://www.tagesschau.de/videoblog/nord_nord_ost/oldtimer106.html

Rat Rod Cruise-In -- A contribution from Ed Garten

The creation of Ed. "Big Daddy" Roth

Lakeview Drive-In Cruise-In

RATS IN WINONA

While driving to business meetings in Minnesota last week, this writer spent a wonderful day and evening in the Mississippi River town of Winona, Minnesota, where he happened upon an evening cruise-in at Lakeview Drive-in, an eatery that dates to 1938.  But the centerpiece of this particular cruise-in seemed to be a preponderance of  what are termed as "rat rods."

The "rat rod"  is a style of hot rod or custom car that, in most cases, imitates (or exaggerates) the early hot rods of the 1940s and 1950s. The style is not to be confused with the somewhat closely related "traditional" hot rod, which is an accurate re-creation or period-correct restoration of a hot rod from the same era. Most rat rods appear "unfinished", regardless of their status, as only the vehicle's bare essentials are driven.

Rat rods were originally a counter-reaction to the high-priced "customs" and typical hot rods, many of which were seldom driven and served only a decorative purpose. The rat rod's inception signified a throwback to the hot rods of the earlier days of hot-rod culture-built according to the owner's abilities and with the intention of being driven. Rat rods are meant to loosely imitate, in both form and function, the "traditional" hot rods of the era.

The typical rat rod is a late-1920s through to late-1950s coupe or roadster, but sometimes a truck or sedan. Many early pre-World War II vehicles were not built with fenders, hoods, running boards, and bumpers. The bodies are frequently channeled over the frame and sectioned, or the roofs were chopped, for a lower profile. Later-era post-war vehicles were rarely constructed without fenders and were often customized in the fashion of lead sleds or low riders. Maltese crosses, skulls, and other accessories were often added.  Note that the "rat" seen in Winona, Minnesota on cruise-in night has "fake" rats clamoring in the truck bed and one appearing to emerge from the vehicle's gas tank.

Recently, the term "rat rod" has been used to describe almost any vehicle that appears unfinished or is built simply to be driven.  Chopped tops, shaved trim, grills, tail lights, and other miscellaneous body parts continue to be swapped between makes and models.

Frames from older cars or light trucks are sometimes preferred for rat rod conversions due to the chassis that is used for these types of vehicles-the chassis type provides a sturdy base for subsequent alterations. Older cars in poor condition are often advertised as candidates for rat rod conversions and, in some cases, the owner will purchase a custom frame, or design and build it himself/herself. In other cases, a rat rodder may use a small pick-up chassis, such as a Chevy S-10, to insert into an older car body, in order to create a vehicle that features the look of a classic rat rod, while also maintaining the reliability of a modern vehicle.

Rat rods often appear unfinished and, at most, primer-only paint jobs are applied; satin, or matte, black and other flat colors are also common. "Natural patina" (the original paint job, with rust, blemishes, and sometimes bullet holes, left intact); a patchwork of original paint and primer; or bare metal, in rusty or oiled varieties, with no finish at all are some of the other finishes that may be used-such finishes honor the anti-restoration slogan that "it's only original once".  Contrary to the aesthetic of many car builders, rust is often acceptable and appreciated by rat rod owners.

Interiors of rat rods can range from fully finished, through to a spartan form. Mexican blankets and bomber seats form the basis of many rat rod interiors, and most are designed to be functional without many comforts; although, this will vary in accordance with the owner's taste.

Though a variety of engines may be used, the most common engine type that is used in rat rods are: Flathead V-8 Ford, early Chrysler Hemi engines, or more modern small block V8 engines from any manufacturer (Chevrolet is a common choice of small block engine). Straight 8's, straight 6's and straight 4's are also fairly commonly used in the construction of rat rods-these engines may exhibit varying displacements and modifications. While diesel engines are occasionally used, these engines are rarely fitted with emission controls, as such a feature was not part of the original construction, or the feature was not required under special license.

Most rat rods are rear wheel drive, with an open driveline. The rear endss and the transmissions are typically passenger vehicle pieces.

My interest in "rat rods" was renewed this past spring while attending the Auburn Spring car auction and swap meet where I met the son and daughter-in-law of the late "Big Daddy" Roth, one of the major customizers and artists associated with rat car culture.

"Rat Fink" is one of the severa hot rod characters created by Roth, one of the originators of Kustom Kulture of automobile enthusiasts. Roth conceived Rat Fink as an anti-hero answer to Mickey Mouse.  Rat Fink is green, depraved-looking with bulging, bloodshot eyes, an oversize mouth with yellowed, narrow teeth, and a red T-shirt with yellow "R.F." on it.  Yes, I bought an R. F. tee-shirt from Roth's son and plan to wear it to swap meets and car enthusiastic events (see attached photo).

Roth began airbrushing and selling "Weirdo" t-shirts at Car Shows and in the pages of Hot Rod publications such as Car Craft in the late 1950s. By the August 1959 issue of Car Craft, "Weirdo shirts" had become a full blown craze with Ed Roth at the forefront of the movement.

Nonetheless, "Rat Fink" and "Rat Cars" have been closely associated since the late 1950s.  But who would have thought that the nice clean town of Winona, Minnesota, would be a hot-bed of rat rod culture?  Rats!!!!!

Society of Automotive Historians Call for Papers, Stanford University, April 10-12, 2014

Note the dates -- proposals due October 31,2013; Conference April 10-12.

AUTOMOTIVE HISTORY CONFERENCE

CALL FOR PAPERS



The Society of Automotive Historians is seeking proposals for papers to
be presented at its Tenth Biennial Automotive History Conference to be
held in Palo Alto, California, USA, from April 10 through 12, 2014.The
conference will be co-sponsored by the Revs Automotive Research Program
at Stanford University and will take place at the Vail Automotive
Innovation Facility on the Stanford campus.

The conference theme is *“The Evolution of Automotive Technology” *and
will focus on the continuing development of the motor vehicle and its
process of manufacture over a 120-year history.Although considered by
many to have reached a plateau a half-century ago, the industry and its
products seem in recent years to have entered a new phase of creative
development addressing again issues once thought resolved and responding
to new economic, social, and environmental conditions through
fundamental research.

Papers may address the search for an effective and portable source of
energy, one of the first issues confronted by automotive pioneer
designers and one that is being studied again from the point of view of
contemporary requirements. Papers may address the development of
standardized vehicle control systems, the arrangement of power
components or safety devices and the interface between the vehicle and
the driver, all of them under reconsideration in ways that have the
potential to fundamentally alter the relation between the vehicle, the
driver and the road.At the same time the industry, until recently
believed to be entering a phase of business consolidation, has expanded
to embrace many new producers, a process that could only be made
possible through innovations in production technology and international
trade agreements. Proposals for papers on automotive subjects unrelated
to the conference theme will also be considered.

The keynote speaker will be Dr. Rudi Volti, Emeritus Professor of
Sociology at Pitzer College, Claremont, California.Professor Volti’s
fields of expertise cover technology and society, social bases of
economic structure and behavior, automobility, and the sociology of work
and occupations.

Following the conference, a certain number of the conference papers will
be selected for publication in /Automotive History Review/, the journal
of the Society.

The Society of Automotive Historians is a unique interdisciplinary
organization devoted to all aspects of automotive history – engineering,
design, economics, the lives of automotive pioneers and innovators, the
history of motorsport competition, the integration of motor vehicles
into modern life and the culture of cars.In its publications and
conferences, historians of technology, business historians and social
historians interact to share their knowledge and perspectives.

Proposals should include the title of the submission, names and
affiliations of presenters, chairs, participants, etc., together with
addresses, phone/fax numbers, email addresses of contact personnel,
proposed format (paper, panel, workshop, etc.) and a one-page abstract
describing the content of the presentation.Proposals must be received by
October 31, 2013; notification of preliminary acceptance is anticipated
by November 30.Proposals should be submitted by email to Arthur W.
Jones, Conference Chair, _nomecos@verizon.net._

First Internal Combustion Engine in Flight? Wolfert, Cannstatt, Germany,1888.

On 10 August 1888 Leipzig-based bookseller Dr Karl Wölfert took off in a motorised airship from the factory yard of the Daimler Motor Company at the Seelberg in Cannstatt for a flight to Kornwestheim. The drive system was the famous single-cylinder Daimler engine with an output of 2 hp (1.5 kW) which powered two propellers: one in a vertical position and the other horizontal.

Leipzig-based bookseller Dr Karl Wölfert undertook experimental flights with steerable balloons for many years. In 1896 Gottlieb Daimler supplied him with a 7-hp (5.1 kW) two-cylinder phoenix engine with a light alloy crankcase for his "Deutschland" airship. Wölfert completed several successful test flights. In June 1897 he crashed and was killed when the balloon caught fire.

Stuttgart – One of mankind’s oldest dreams came true on 10 August 1888: Wölfert’s motorised airship successfully completed the world’s first engine-driven flight with a combustion engine. The flying machine belonging to the Leipzig-based bookseller Dr Friedrich Hermann Wölfert, powered by a single-cylinder Daimler engine, flew four kilometres from the factory yard of the Daimler Motor Company (Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft) at the Seelberg in Cannstatt to Kornwestheim. Thus Gottlieb Daimler’s vision of motorising vehicles on land, on water and in the air became reality.

At 9.00 a.m. on 10 August 1888, a new era of aeronautics began in the factory yard of the Daimler Motor Company (DMC) in Cannstatt: an airship slowly lifted up above the company premises and flew off with an audibly clattering four-stroke Daimler engine in a north-westerly direction. It was the first successful engine-driven flight in history with a combustion engine as a drive for the propeller.

Even if the single-cylinder Daimler engine was still too heavy to be used over long distances, the flight in 1888 proved the suitability of the fast-running combustion engine as an aircraft engine. Later, DMC equipped numerous Graf Zeppelin airships with engines – from the Z1 in 1900 to the LZ 130 in 1938 which flew with Mercedes-Benz diesel engines. The combustion engine also established itself as a drive for propeller-driven aeroplanes meaning that engines by Mercedes-Benz and the previous brands conquered the skies.

On that Friday morning in 1888, the airship designed by Dr Friedrich Hermann Wölfert landed after four kilometres on the Aldingen parade ground near Kornwestheim where it was welcomed by the amazed officers. Despite the short distance covered, the flight was a success for the book-selling aviation enthusiast. Wölfert, who was two metres tall and weighed around 100 kilogrammes, did not personally steer his airship from Cannstatt to Kornwestheim; it was in fact the 30-kilogramm-lighter Daimler employee, Gotthilf Wirsum, who took the helm. Two days later Wirsum steered the hydrogen-filled airship from Cannstatt on another four-kilometre flight.

The dream of flying

Friedrich Hermann Wölfert, born in 1850, began to dream of building an airship very early on. After studying Protestant theology in Leipzig, he founded his publishing house there in 1873. In 1880, he joined forces with forester Georg Baumgarten in order to be able to pursue his love of flying. His inventions include amongst other things a robust suspension for the airship gondolas using ropes which were guided through the envelope of the toughened balloon to its apex.

In that same year, Wölfert and Baumgarten built a 26-metre long airship with a cigar-shaped body in Dresden. Contemporaries found it very difficult to understand this visionary aircraft. The “Dresdener Anzeiger” newspaper was also amazed at “the sight of this monster of an airship and its individual parts which are hardly in proportion to one another”. Whilst the aviation pioneers made progress in the construction of the gas-filled envelope and the control system, they had no reliable source of power.

Baumgarten powered his airship models with amongst other things a spring mechanism motor. During a test flight in 1879, one such machine with a 12.5-meter long body proved itself both movable and steerable against the wind. However, the “clockwork” unit was hardly able to serve as a reliable motor over longer distances. The attempts of French engineers to use battery-electric motors in the “La France” airship in 1884 did not bring about a solution either: the unit comprising an energy storage unit and a motor was much too heavy for the airship.

Wölfert looked for a light, powerful drive system for the newest development stage of his airship – he looked at various electric motors and gas engines but none of the machines seemed suitable. Then Gottlieb Daimler contacted him and recommended that he use the fast-running four-stroke petrol engine that he and Maybach had developed as a source of power for the airship.

Daimler saw Wölfert’s airship project as an opportunity to finally realise his dream of motorising vehicles on land, on water and in the air. His engine was already working reliably in the “riding car” from 1885 (the first vehicle in the world with a combustion engine and a forerunner of the present-day motorcycle) and the world’s first four-wheel motor vehicle presented in 1886. Furthermore, there was also the “Marie”, a motor boat, the four-seater trolley car and a tram (all in 1887).

However, he also wanted the engine to conquer the skies in a flying machine. Initially Daimler recommended his single-cylinder engine, known as the “grandfather clock” due to its form, to an Augsburg-based airship designer and even the Prussian war ministry as a drive system for an aircraft – but in vain. He recognised a new opportunity in the late autumn of 1887, after reading an article about Wölfert’s airships. Daimler invited the bookseller to Cannstatt and agreed that they build an engine-driven airship.

The “grandfather clock” learns to fly

The 84-kg engine was fitted into the gondola of the airship which hung under the cigar-shaped body and was made of wooden slats and ropes. Using a control lever, the pilot was able to apply the engine’s power to both the vertical (for longitudinal propulsion) and horizontal propeller (for controlling altitude). The 2-hp (1.5 kW) engine drove the propellers at speeds of up to 720 revolutions per minute. The airship was steered using a large rudder at the bow of the gondola which, like the two propellers, was covered with fabric.

Following the two flights from the factory yard of the Daimler Motor Company, the airship started on a third flight from the Cannstatter Wasen fair grounds in September 1888. In 1889, Wölfert presented a new airship in Ulm which was also powered by a Daimler engine. In June 1897, Wölfert’s newest airship, the “Deutschland” caught fire on a flight in Berlin and crashed killing both the aviation pioneer and his co-pilot.

A true-to-original reconstruction of the gondola – including Gottlieb Daimler’s engine – on exhibit in the Mercedes-Benz Museum recalls Wölfert’s 1888 airship.

Technical data:

Wölfert’s motorised airship with a Daimler engine
Cylinders: 1
Displacement: 603 cubic centimetres
Output: 2 hp (1.5 kW) at 720 rpm

A not-so-flattering commentary on BMW and Prius owners: from WSJ

Drivers of BMWs frequently come in for anecdotal criticism for habits on the road that are perceived as aggressive.

Now, a couple of studies, one in the U.S. and another from the U.K., appear to provide statistical evidence that BMW drivers are, to be polite about it, complete jerks.

In the older study, by researchers at the University of California, BMW drivers were far less likely to stop for a pedestrian who had just entered a crosswalk, the New York Times notes. 

“In our crosswalk study, none of the cars in the beater-car category drove through the crosswalk. They always stopped for pedestrians," researcher Paul K. Piff told the paper. He added that not only were "fancy cars were less likely to stop," but also that "BMW drivers were the worst."

Drivers of BMWs and other high-status cars (including Prius hybrids) were also more likely to cheat at four-way-stop intersections, according to the research.

In the second study, in the U.K., motorists were asked to identify the make and color of the car from which they have most frequently suffered road-rage incidents, the Daily Mail reports.

The study of 2,837 motorists found men between the ages of 35 and 50 driving blue BMWs were most likely to be reported as having engaged in road-rage behaviors such as aggressive driving and swearing.

Rally Photos from 1963, Mercedes-Benz 230 SL Pagoda

Liege-Sofia-Liege Rally, 1963. Eugen Böhringer (centre) and Klaus Kaiser (on the left) after winning in their Mercedes-Benz 230 SL (W 113).

Liege-Sofia-Liege Rally, 1963. The subsequent winners Eugen Böhringer and Klaus Kaiser with their Mercedes-Benz 230 SL (W 113), No. 39.

Stuttgart – From Belgium to Bulgaria and back, 5,500 kilometres in 90 hours: from 27 to 31 August 1963, Eugen Böhringer drove the red Mercedes-Benz 230 SL (W 113) day and night, hurtling through narrow passes and along distant motorways. Together with co-driver Klaus Kaiser, he secured overall victory in the ‘Marathon de la Route’, the renowned Belgian long-distance rally. Böhringer had already won the ‘Liège–Sofia–Liège’ event in 1962, the year in which he became European Rally Champion, driving a Mercedes-Benz 220 SE (W 111) with Hermann Eger as his co-driver.

In 1963, Böhringer lined up in a brand new car: the Mercedes-Benz 230 SL, nicknamed ‘Pagoda’ because of its dome-shaped hardtop and the successor to the 190 SL (W 121) and 300 SL (W 198) models. The elegant Roadster, which was the first ever sports car to feature a safety body, took part in the ‘Marathon de la Route’ to display its racing capability. Böhringer’s SL with starting number 39 was based on a pre-production vehicle. It featured the typical rally modifications of the era, such as reinforced suspension and larger tanks. The rally car also had a hardtop rigidly attached to its body. Thanks to its larger displacement (2.6 as opposed to 2.3 litres), the engine produced about 20 hp (15 kW) more power than its series-production counterpart. This meant that there was around 170 hp (125 kW) on tap as well as more torque. Led by Erich Waxenberger, the Mercedes-Benz test department prepared the 230 SL for rally use. Following its race victory, the car, still showing all the traces of its participation in the rally, was displayed at the Frankfurt International Motor Show in the autumn of 1963 for the official German premiere of the W 113 on the Mercedes-Benz stand. The motor sport community still found it hard to gauge the new Roadster’s chances. On 6 September 1963, the British magazine ‘Autosport’ wrote: “As last year’s winner, Eugen Böhringer started among the favourites for the 1963 Marathon de la Route, but the fact that he was driving a new car, as yet untried in competition, did not particularly encourage his supporters.”

But Böhringer, a hotelier born in 1922, proved his doubters wrong. Starting in Spa, the route took in the Saarland, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria before moving on to Austria, Italy, and Yugoslavia. Then there was a slight detour to Romania followed by a short stop in Sofia, before heading back to Yugoslavia and Italy again, where the toughest Alpine passes awaited the rally contestants.

On the way back, Böhringer had a minor accident in Dubrovnik, but this only cost him two minutes. “Eugen Böhringer slightly reshaped the beautiful 230 SL but pressed on,” wrote ‘Autocar’ in its report of the minor mishap. Racing towards Rovereto, Böhringer and Kaiser were close behind Rauno Aaltonen and Tony Ambrose in an Austin-Healey. On the Vivione Pass, the car driven by Aaltonen and Ambrose left the road, allowing Böhringer to take the lead in the 230 SL – a position which he held until the finish line in Belgium.

It was a tough competition. “Whereas the official line was that it would be a leisurely parade-type affair, the participants were working to a revised schedule,” wrote German magazine ‘auto motor und sport’ in its 1982 portrait of Böhringer and the customs of the ‘Marathon de la Route’. This is borne out by the statistics: 129 vehicles started the event in 1963, but only 20 of them finished it, making the victory achieved by Eugen Böhringer and Klaus Kaiser all the more impressive, as they reached Liège with only 8 minutes of penalties. After the rally, British magazine ‘Autocar’ wrote: “The Royal Motor Union of Liège set a murderous pace for their classic event and Böhringer’s fabulous performance shook them rigid.”

“His competitors feared him because he always took it right to the limit, always risked everything, asking absolutely everything of himself and of Klaus Kaiser and of the Mercedes-Benz 230 SL which they drove in the rally,” wrote the magazine ‘Kristall’ in its autumn 1964 report about Böhringer and the ‘Marathon de la Route’. Asked about the dangers of the rally by an interviewer, Böhringer replied that 80 per cent of fast driving on public roads was an “easily calculable risk”. Kristall’s chief reporter Rolf Winter then responded by asking about the other 20 per cent. “Oh, well! depends on the circumstances,” replied the Mercedes-Benz works racing driver in his Swabian dialect.

Eugen Böhringer, who died in June 2013, will always be remembered as a two-time winner of the ‘Marathon de la Route’. In fact, the hotelier from Stuttgart almost achieved three wins in succession, but he only finished third in the last staging of the rally in 1964. Nevertheless, the organisers honoured him in 1964 with a special trophy for two victories and two excellent placings in four consecutive years.

At the La Jolla Ferrari Dealership

Having trouble with my internet connection right now! Photo taken by Leon Chow at the Ferrari of La Jolla dealership a few days ago for Rebecca Morales and my book title coming out next Spring, Stealing Cars: Technology and Society from the Model T to Gran Torino.