Honda Racing Fest this Saturday
Honda Jazz racer
The third round of the Honda Racing Fest is on Friday 10
(practice/qualifying) and Saturday August 11 (racing). These
have been very entertaining meetings, and the Honda Jazz One
Make races very competitive. Saturday racing begins around
10 a.m. and it is usually possible to visit the pits and see
the cars during lunch which normally begins at noon. There
will also be karts for rent at the adjoining Bira Kart
circuit.
Other categories include the Honda Pro Club cars (any racing
cars provided they have an “H” on the front) and then the
Club Cars, which are daily transport road cars (with some
safety equipment).
Note these are Saturday events, as opposed to the usual
Sunday meetings.
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week I mentioned that ice cooling
was used for three world land speed record attempts. I asked
what were the three cars? Clue: 1928, 1929, 1938. The
correct answer was Frank Lockhart’s Stutz Bearcat in 1928
(in which he was killed), Kaye Don’s Silver Bullet in 1929
and John Cobb’s Railton in 1939.
So to this week. Let’s try you on Speedway. Who are the
people in this pic? Clue: 1951.
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be the first correct
answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
More green stuff!
In a report from down-under, an edible
car made of vegetables has just hit 240 kph. The
super-greenie has tyres made of potatoes and brake pads from
ground cashew shells. The body was created from hemp (so you
can smoke it later) and rapeseed oil, and it runs on fuel
made from fermented wheat and sugar beet. Eco One is 95
percent biodegradable or recyclable, although its steering
wheel, seat and electrics are made of conventional
materials.
The
edible car?
The one-seater racing car - called Eco One - has been built
by experts from Warwick University who hope cars made in
such a way will one day be a regular sight on Grand Prix
circuits and that their ideas will be adopted by the mass
automotive industry.
Eco One was designed by Dr. Kerry Kirwan, a researcher at
Warwick Manufacturing Group, the university’s academic
department that provides solutions to industry, and built by
student Ben Wood, 23, over two months at a cost of $46,500.
Mr Wood said, “All the plastic components can be made from
plants and although the chassis has to be made from steel
for strength, steel is a very recyclable material. If we can
build a high performance car that can virtually be grown
from seed, just imagine what’s possible for the average
family car.” Stretching credibility a little far, I think,
with the steel chassis and the engine which was sourced from
a Triumph Daytona motorcycle. Mind you, with the power to
carrot ratio being as it is, Eco One does 0-100 kph in under
four seconds. That is supercar time, and you can’t smoke or
eat your average Porsche.
Electric motorcycles
The era of the electric road-going
motorcycle is upon us and it’s called the Enertia, a perfect
commuter machine built with a rigid light weight carbon
fiber chassis to contain the battery pack (and most of the
weight), a small electric motor which is enough for the
Enertia to accelerate harder than any automobile to its 80
kph top speed - all that’s needed around town.
Enertia
motorcycle
The Enertia’s secret is its weight - at just 125 kg ready to
roll, it’s 45 kg lighter than the featherweight Aprilia
Grand Prix Replica. It is zippy enough to shoot clear of the
traffic when the light turns green - the electric engine has
100 percent of its torque available from a standstill, and
it gets to 50 kph in 3.8 seconds, which is in the range of a
semi-sporty 250cc motorcycle.
In the fuel economy stakes, it travels nearly four and a
half times further on a MegaJoule of energy than a Toyota
Prius hybrid.
Enertia uses six batteries mounted directly to the
lightweight carbon-fiber monocoque frame beneath the “tank”
cover. The narrow, compact motor sits right in line with the
front sprocket, and the swingarm pivots pretty much right
off the engine bay. Brembo brakes and a simple suspension
setup look fine for a commuter, and the wheels are sized to
take good rubber, coming with Pirelli Sport Demons as OEM.
The batteries come from Texan innovators Valence Technology.
Six identical U-Charge XP units feed the motor using a
Lithium Phosphate formula that makes them non-flammable as
well as giving them an exceptional lifecycle. Over a testing
period of 600 charge cycles, or nearly two years assuming a
daily charge routine, they displayed an almost imperceptible
loss of performance when kept at 23 degrees Celsius. Hotter
conditions did see a performance decrease, with 600 recharge
cycles at 45 degrees Celsius resulting in a drop to around
80 percent capacity. However, in the average urban area,
battery lifespan won’t be a problem.
What did we learn from the Hungarian Grand Prix?
Well, we learned (if we didn’t know already) that the
Hungarian track produces boring races. Quite frankly, it
should be dropped from the calendar. Or play reruns of the
GPs if you are having trouble getting off to sleep.
Somebody at McLaren-Mercedes seems to have thrown a spaniard
in the works! The normally cohesive team (of late) has
certainly changed to one of subterfuge, intrigue and
downright poor sportsmanship. Alonso was very lucky to only
lose five grid positions. A certain Michael Schumacher lost
22 grid places at Monaco last year for meddling with another
competitor’s chance at a quick lap. So did Alonso do it
deliberately? Or did the McLaren team do it? The stewards,
by penalizing both McLaren and Alonso believed they were
both guilty. Saying they were holding Alonso back by 20
seconds so that he could enter the circuit in an
unrestricted position was so much codswallop. There were
only four cars on the circuit at that time! Drivers can also
position themselves on the track, it only takes a little
slowing on the out lap to allow them to make their own
buffer, so Alonso did not need to sit there for a further 10
seconds. We are talking about the current world champion
here, not Dozy Dora in the supermarket car park!
It is difficult to write about any Grand Prix without
mentioning the sterling job being done by Lewis Hamilton. In
public, he kept his cool after the qualifying debacle, he
kept his cool during the race, despite being harried by
Raikkonen, and he maintained his dignity during the
post-race press conference. As a sportsman ambassador for
the UK he is exceptional. And the kid can drive. I have
likened him to a talent similar to Michael Schumacher, but
with a much nicer personality. Mind you, having said all
that, the kid is also subject to emotional outbursts
following the extremes that motor racing can produce, having
a slanging match with his boss Ron Dennis immediately after
being denied a further chance at a quick lap. It is
difficult for the public to imagine the psychological
build-up of stress in a competitive race driver. I was so
furious, I once threw my helmet at an official who had
black-flagged me. (I did apologize later!)
There was not much else to learn from the Hungarian GP. I
suppose it is noteworthy that that Ralf Schumacher actually
did not hit anybody, though Fisichella did manage to end
Anthony Davidson’s race, breaking the Englishman’s rear
suspension after a decent hit. Fisi is still hopeful that he
will be driving for Renault next year. Briatore, who always
plays his cards close to his chest, is not saying anything,
claiming he hasn’t made up his mind. Don’t believe him. He
has. Fisi is out to pasture next year.
What else? BMW are now firmly the best of the rest after
McLaren and Ferrari. Honda is the best of the bottom. In the
next three weeks until the Istanbul race, there will be
ritual Hara-kiri at Honda.
The next GP is the Turkish, let us hope that it will produce
some delights. The Hungarian certainly did not.
Planes flying on green
pond algae?
The following item came from New Zealand, and
initially I thought that someone was having me on - but no.
This is a genuine item.
According to the report, Air New Zealand and airliner
manufacturer Boeing are secretly working with New
Zealand-based biofuel developer Aquaflow Bionomic
Corporation to create the world’s first environmentally
friendly aviation fuel, made of wild algae.
It is understood Air NZ is undertaking risk analysis. If
everything stacks up it will make an aircraft available on
the Tasman to test the biofuel.
The fuel is essentially derived from bacterial pond scum
created through the photosynthesis of sunlight and carbon
dioxide on nutrient-rich water sources such as sewage ponds.
Air NZ would most likely test the fuel on one engine while
normal aviation fuel would drive the other engine. Fuel is
held in separate tanks on the aircraft that can be directed
to a specific engine. The focus is on testing algae-derived
jet fuel, especially its freezing point.
Natter Nosh and Noggin
The monthly car enthusiasts meeting will be at
Jameson’s Irish Pub on Soi AR next to the Nova Park
development. The car (and bike) enthusiasts meet on the
second Monday of the month, so this time it is Monday
(August 13) at Jameson’s at 7 p.m. This is a totally
informal meeting of like minded souls to discuss their pet
motoring (and motorcycling) loves and hates. Last month we
had a chap arrived from the UK, having been to the Festival
of Speed at Goodwood, who had some very interesting
snippets. Bring along any magazines, photos of old vehicles,
old girlfriends or the latest Spyker road car (or an AMG
Mercedes, or just bring a photo) for us all to lust over. I
should have been for a run in an Aston Martin DB9 by then. I
will give a first hand report!
