Tuesday 19th September 2017

0-62mph in 0.5sec using water: Time For Tea?

Only water coming out the back, and not a hydrogen fuel cell in sight

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Francoise Gissy is a man you really need to know about. He enjoys strapping himself to home-made contraptions, and setting world records at eye-watering - pun intended - speeds. Having hit 207mph in 4.8 seconds(!) on a rocket-powered bicycle(!!) in 2014, he has now attempted to one up himself with something potentially even more extreme.

What could be more extreme than that? A homemade, water-powered, trike capable of hitting 162mph, of course. Using the simple physics most people learn playing with bottle rockets as children, he pressurised rainwater collected in a carbon fibre hold tank to 6,000psi, attached some wheels and connected it to a motorcycle front fork. Then unleashed the sheer power down the start/finish straight at Paul Ricard circuit. Vive la France!

To the numbers then. Gissy pulled 5.1G, doing 0-62mph in 0.5 seconds, and the first 60ft were taken care of in just 852 milliseconds as he rode to a top speed of 162mph in 1/8th of a mile. All powered by water. For some perspective, those figures aren't too dissimilar to the ones achieved during aerobatic displays and Olympic luge runs.

Watch the video here

 

[MrBarry123]

When they offer one that'll do 300 miles on a single tank, I'm there.

[V8 FOU]

Wonderful, pointless, I love it!
Salut!!

[SevenR]

I genuinely laughed out loud at this. Well done that maniac.

[Burwood]

he genuinely is man as a box of frogs

[kneilson]

Crazy...I love it!

[anonymous-user]

Being second inline at the traffic lights is going to become tedious......... ;-)

[lowflyingcat]

How does the Olympic luge compare to this? Apart from, possibly, the 5.1g, which would be generated via cornering force and not accelerative force, then there is no comparison whatsoever.

[SystemParanoia]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Dont be silly..

It needs to do at least 1000 miles in a single tank to be viable.. also I drive London to Scotland to see family twice a week with 6 kids and 2 Great Danes, so has to cope with that too.

[Toltec]

SystemParanoia said:

Dont be silly..

It needs to do at least 1000 miles in a single tank to be viable.. also I drive London to Scotland to see family twice a week with 6 kids and 2 Great Danes, so has to cope with that too.

Not to mention the vomit.

I wonder if you get regenerative braking if it rains?

[Shewie]

That is properly mental..... Fantastic!

[theholygrail]

MrBarry123 said:

When they offer one that'll do 300 miles on a single tank, I'm there.

This is why I love PH

The video is straight out of the Wacky Races. I love how his neck has to be tethered to stop his head flying off!! Maximum man points.

Edited by theholygrail on Tuesday 19th September 16:58

[SpunkyM]

J'sus that was entertaining. It would have been even more entertaining if the tank had exploded!!! 6,000psi - there would have been nothing left of him or the trike. Crazy mad dude. Love it.

[poing]

We need crazy people like this, it's just a shame he's not long for this world! Proper lunatic.

[Kawasicki]

Not powered by water though, is it?

Edited by Kawasicki on Tuesday 19th September 20:09

[Toltec]

Kawasicki said:

Not powered by water though, is it?

Edited by Kawasicki on Tuesday 19th September 20:09

Reaction mass only

[Douglas Quaid]

Can that level of acceleration be good for you? His head flew back as if he'd been punched. Must've felt amazing.

[QuattroDave]

Max_Torque said:

Being second inline at the traffic lights is going to become tedious......... ;-)

Not really - free car wash! Removes all trace of dirt, wing mirrors, grille, paint..

[havoc]

Burwood said:

he genuinely is man as a box of frogs

Utter fruitloop in the best sense...love it!

[FN2TypeR]

That is mental, I love it

[Greg_D]

what else does an 1/8 mile in less than 4. that'd be a pretty serious drag racer....