Charismatic engines - your nominations please
Discussion
Yertis said:
Everyone says Audi 5 cyl turbo - and I’d not argue that it sounds great (being lucky enough to have owned all the principle versions over the years) but... the n/a Audi 5-cyl sounds even better. The turbo takes the edge of the groove.
You missing the point a bit, I think. It's all rally stage, spitting flames, chirping and whooshing of the turbo and all that. Civilian 5cyl n/a sounds great against the civilian 5cyl T, but then again the turbo is a few mods away from sounding like a rally car. A common misconception, even among professional pilots, is that at an airfield with an Air Traffic Controller, you’re not allowed to enter the runway until the aircraft ahead has started it's takeoff roll. In fact, once you have been cleared to line up, you can pull forward of the taxiway hold line (or hold “bars” as they are referred to) to any point short of actually ramming the aircraft ahead of you on the runway. If every aircraft cleared to line up at Heathrow waited for the aircraft ahead to actually commence it’s takeoff roll, then Heathrow would grind to a halt. (Yes, more than it already does!)
So it was, that many years ago, as a newly minted Boeing 737 First Officer with British Midland, we were cleared to line up after the departing “Concorde Speedbird One”.
Andy, my Skipper, pulled forward across the hold at what is now November-one-one (for those in the know) and entered runway 09R. We came to a halt at a 45° angle to Concorde, in her left aft three-quarters (the 7 o’clock position) and about fifteen meters behind the jetpipes. Andy then opened his DV window (“direct vision”; the sliding window outboard of each pilot on larger commercial jets).
As the burners lit, the wall of sound was crushing. Just absolutely devastating. For a while afterwards, both of us were left giggling. Neither of us would admit it at the time, but we were laughing because we were FRIGHTENED; it was that visceral!
It seemed like a good idea at the time. But I doubt that either of us felt the need to repeat the exercise........
So it was, that many years ago, as a newly minted Boeing 737 First Officer with British Midland, we were cleared to line up after the departing “Concorde Speedbird One”.
Andy, my Skipper, pulled forward across the hold at what is now November-one-one (for those in the know) and entered runway 09R. We came to a halt at a 45° angle to Concorde, in her left aft three-quarters (the 7 o’clock position) and about fifteen meters behind the jetpipes. Andy then opened his DV window (“direct vision”; the sliding window outboard of each pilot on larger commercial jets).
As the burners lit, the wall of sound was crushing. Just absolutely devastating. For a while afterwards, both of us were left giggling. Neither of us would admit it at the time, but we were laughing because we were FRIGHTENED; it was that visceral!
It seemed like a good idea at the time. But I doubt that either of us felt the need to repeat the exercise........
hilly10]I am biased but the Triumph straight six in my TR6 does make lovely noise bags of low down torque and is a very reliable piece of kit said:
Edited by hilly10 on Monday 10th February 20:02
I am also a big fan of N/A petrol straight 6 engines!
I've had a couple of Mercedes with them, and am now on my 5th and 6th BMWs with that format - they are just wonderful.
Mr Tidy said:
That looks lovely.
I am also a big fan of N/A petrol straight 6 engines!
I've had a couple of Mercedes with them, and am now on my 5th and 6th BMWs with that format - they are just wonderful.
I know what you mean Mr Tidy I also had a BMW straight six in the Z4 which was a delightI am also a big fan of N/A petrol straight 6 engines!
I've had a couple of Mercedes with them, and am now on my 5th and 6th BMWs with that format - they are just wonderful.
AAGR said:
Talking of engines noises, this is what the ever-analytical genius Cosworth founder, Keith Duckworth , had to say when he first heard the spine-chilling note of the 1960s V12 Matra F1 engine ;
'Just think of how much power that is costing them ....'
He was no doubt right but, oh, what a noise!'Just think of how much power that is costing them ....'
spyder dryver said:
Gojira said:
AAGR said:
Am I allowed to mention a Concorde on take-off ?
Only if you shout very loudly....
A supersonic passenger plane with afterburners, whats not to like?
Apologies for listing engines that have been mentioned before but these are some of the ones that stand out from my experience.
Alfa Romeo 1300 Twin-Cam. The one I tried had been tuned and really wasn't interested in doing anything below about 3,000rpm, but keep it above that and it sounded great and felt really willing.
Lancia Fulvia sport 1.3 V4. A V4 shouldn't be any good, there are all manner of theoretical objections on the grounds of breathing and balance why this Lancia shouldn't work, so I can't quite explain why it was as good as it was. I don't like "thrashing" other people's engines so I treated it fairly gently at first and was astonished by how well, and smoothly, it pulled. Once advised that I wasn't likely to over-rev it, I was a bit more generous and found that it just got better the harder you drove it; the performance (or the feeling of performance, anyway) belied the size of the engine.
BMC C-series, in the Austin Healey 3000 Mk III and Triumph 2.5 PI in the TR6. Big-hearted, willing, torquey, unsophisticated and sound absolutely glorious.
I've not driven one but the Bristol (ex-BMW) straight six is one of my favourites, with its distinctive sound. I've been a passenger in a Bristol 404 and seen plenty of Bristol-powered Coopers, Frazer Nashes and ACs in action at various race meetings.
And stretching "accessible" although I think that went out of the window a long time ago, the Ferrari 3.3-litre, two-cam, six carb V12. My passenger experience of the Ferrari V8 wasn't that great, but a proper Ferrari V12 is a glorious thing indeed.
Alfa Romeo 1300 Twin-Cam. The one I tried had been tuned and really wasn't interested in doing anything below about 3,000rpm, but keep it above that and it sounded great and felt really willing.
Lancia Fulvia sport 1.3 V4. A V4 shouldn't be any good, there are all manner of theoretical objections on the grounds of breathing and balance why this Lancia shouldn't work, so I can't quite explain why it was as good as it was. I don't like "thrashing" other people's engines so I treated it fairly gently at first and was astonished by how well, and smoothly, it pulled. Once advised that I wasn't likely to over-rev it, I was a bit more generous and found that it just got better the harder you drove it; the performance (or the feeling of performance, anyway) belied the size of the engine.
BMC C-series, in the Austin Healey 3000 Mk III and Triumph 2.5 PI in the TR6. Big-hearted, willing, torquey, unsophisticated and sound absolutely glorious.
I've not driven one but the Bristol (ex-BMW) straight six is one of my favourites, with its distinctive sound. I've been a passenger in a Bristol 404 and seen plenty of Bristol-powered Coopers, Frazer Nashes and ACs in action at various race meetings.
And stretching "accessible" although I think that went out of the window a long time ago, the Ferrari 3.3-litre, two-cam, six carb V12. My passenger experience of the Ferrari V8 wasn't that great, but a proper Ferrari V12 is a glorious thing indeed.
LOTUS110 said:
Straight 6 Triumph as in the GT6...
and the Vitesse. A lovely warm, melodious sound. For some reason nicer even than the 2.5 in the TR5/6 etc. It’s a bit over-muted with a standard exhaust though. OTOH the standard TR6 engine/exhaust combo (with all its manifold failings) sounds nicer than better-performing sports exhaust systems. IMO.Gassing Station | Classic Cars and Yesterday's Heroes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff