Lightburn and Co. of Camden near Adelaide , makers of tools, cement mixers, washing machines and fiberglass boats, perceived a need for a minicar.

The first Zeta model was introduced in 1963 at a price of £595. 

The Sedan was not equipped with a a rear hatch so access to the cargo area required removal of the front seats, the ease of which was advertised as a positive feature. The four speed dog clutch Villiers Engineering gearbox had no reverse so the engine had to be switched off and started backwards which provide four reverse gears. The fuel gauge was a plastic pipe running from the top to the bottom of the tank with a graduated glass tube section on the dashboard. As a Wheels (magazine) road test in 1974 put it “it read anywhere from full to empty depending on gradient, throttle and probably Greenwich mean time”.

“With the Zeta, however, failure was engineered into the product from day one.”

bikefreak:

americabymotorcycle:

wtf.

I am so incredibly in love with this picture,because i really want to know how this thing even worked,seeing as how it has no visible form of cooling on the engine,and how the power got to the rear wheel would also be interesting.

This is EJ Potter, the “Michigan Madman”, who built a series of seven continuously evolving V8 motorcycles called “The Widomaker”.

It was a drag bike, so it didn’t need cooling.  The motor only had to run for 8-10 seconds!  You can see the water line is just looped.

You can see a picture of the driveline on the other side here:

http://www.corvettesconquercancer.com/EJ_Potter_-_65_s.jpg

As you can see, he fabricated his own bellhousing, then mounted a belt or chain with a cover, which drove a jackshaft back into the bike.  No clutch, just direct drive.  Kick it off the stand to start.

Because of the almost nonexistent load on the engine, it pretty much “ran away” during the run.

Here’s a recollection:

“I don’t know where E. J. Potter came from, the first time I became aware of him was when he was racing/showing off his exotic motorcycle. He took a Harley Davidson frame and put a small-block chevy engine in it, sideways. This engine had Hilborn injectors and burned Nitro, and was producing about 500 Hp. It was started by having a couple guys hang on from the side, and it was pushed with a truck. When the engine fired, the assistants lifted the rear of the bike (these must have been some strong guys!) and put it up on a wooden stand that kept the rear tire, a 10” wide racing slick, off the ground. When the christmas tree said go, E. J. would rev the engine to 6000 RPM and the assistants would push him off the stand! It did a wheelie about half-way down the strip, and did about 160 MPH in the quarter mile. E. J. tried to find a small, light clutch for the thing, but he never found anything that would work. He tried helicopter clutches, but even they didn’t quite do it. The rear wheel was coupled to the engine with a huge multi-width roller chain. Well, one day he reached the end of the strip and closed the throttle, and nothing happened - the throttle was stuck! He cut off the magneto, but a very hot engine (no radiator, just the thermal mass of the water in the block) burning nitro at wide open throttle doesn’t need much ignition! It kept right on running. He hit the brakes (dual caliper aircraft brakes) and that slowed him to about 150 MPH, but he could feet the handle retreating under his grip. There was no fuel cutoff! As he was approaching a line of trees at the end of the strip, he took the only action he could think of, he jumped off! He slid on his rear until it burned through his chaps into his skin, and then did some somersaults. Amazingly, he ended up being able to walk after all this, and followed the new gap into the forest to see what became of his machine. All he could find was an engine block! Nothing else recognizable.”

You can see a video here:

http://bangshift.com/blog/mad-man-video-ej-potter-runs-the-widow-maker-v8-bikes-in-the-1990s.html

(Source: masterbike)

This is a Nazi Messerschmitt Me 163, the only operational rocket aircraft.  About 300 of them were built and used in WWII.  The wheels in this picture aren’t part of the plane, they’re a dolly.  The aircraft’s landing gear is the skid.  The reason for this is that the pilots weren’t really expected to come back, and if they did, well, do your best at landing it.

(Source: retrowar)

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3897891-Space-Age-styled-cars-Retro-Futurism&s=35a00d318689e9e20880a5463c9601ae

(via t-s-k-b)

Armored Mini Moke from Rhodesia.

When Issigonis designed the Mini, he planned another vehicle to share the Mini’s mechanical parts, but with a more rugged body shell. This was an attempt to take a portion of the military vehicle business from Land Rover. Issigonis had previously designed the Nuffield Guppy in a failed attempt to break into that market. By 1959, BMC had working prototypes of what was codenamed “The Buckboard”, later to become the Mini Moke. These prototypes were shown to the British Army as a parachute-droppable vehicle, but poor ground clearance and a low-powered engine did not meet the most basic requirements for an off-road vehicle. Only the Royal Navy showed any interest at all in the Buckboard—as a vehicle for use on the decks of aircraft carriers.

Early promotional material made much of the lightness of the vehicle, showing four soldiers travelling in the Moke off-road, then picking it up by its tubular bumpers and carrying it when (inevitably) its low ground clearance proved inadequate.

In a further attempt to make something for the army, a few four-wheel drive Mokes were made by the addition of a second engine and transmission at the back of the vehicle with linked clutches and gear shifters. This did nothing for the ground-clearance problems, and mechanical complications discouraged development beyond the prototype stage.This vehicle was called “The Twini” and was shown to the US Army—again with no success.

via Sushpanzer

What could go wrong?

http://thiscircularparade.com/2012/02/15/innovative-baby-carriage-is-powered-by-gasoline-motor/

What appears, at first glance, to be an airplane without wings, is, in reality, a road vehicle driven by a motorcycle engine and propeller. Airplane parts have been used for nearly all of the construction, and on smooth roads the little machine is capable of good speed. Braking is accomplished through two hardwood reels that are pressed against the two rear wheels. The construction, while light, is strong, and the machine has stood severe tests over rough country roads.

http://thiscircularparade.com/2012/02/17/aeromobile-zips-along-courtesy-of-a-motorcycle-engine/

France 1928

shushpanzer

From some picture book of wacky vehicles from the 70’s