iamsuperdan Posted January 12, 2020 Posted January 12, 2020 Reminds me of the Chev Turbo Titan III. Gas turbines were big in the 60s. If I recall, Ford, GM, and Chrysler were experimenting. And I think it was horrible economy that eventually killed off the turbines.
peteski Posted January 15, 2020 Posted January 15, 2020 (edited) They even tried this on railroads. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pacific_GTELs Edited January 15, 2020 by peteski
Brian Austin Posted January 17, 2020 Posted January 17, 2020 There was a tin toy version... https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/1964-big-red-ford-turbine-semi-truck-1904919802
Richard Bartrop Posted January 19, 2020 Posted January 19, 2020 On 1/15/2020 at 2:56 AM, peteski said: They even tried this on railroads. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Pacific_GTELs Canadian National, and later Via Rail had turbine trains running regular service from 1968 to 1982
SSNJim Posted January 19, 2020 Posted January 19, 2020 Interesting that gas turbines never really caught on for land-based use because they are heavily used in ships. Most non-nuclear powered warships built since the early 70's have them. The range of the ships seem to be comparable to their oil/coal-fired steamship predecessors. Gas turbines are also used as portable and fixed generators on land and sea. General Electric is still one of the major suppliers.
delta99 Posted January 21, 2020 Posted January 21, 2020 I was in the coast guard, and one of my ships had gas turbine propulsion, Pratt Whitney FT4As. 36,000 HP. We also had diesel propulsion which we used most of the time
peteski Posted January 21, 2020 Posted January 21, 2020 While in a different class (propelled by jet engine exhaust thrust), there was also the Black Beetle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-497_Black_Beetle
Ralph Henderson Posted January 21, 2020 Posted January 21, 2020 43 minutes ago, peteski said: While in a different class (propelled by jet engine exhaust thrust), there was also the Black Beetle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-497_Black_Beetle 183.68 MPH?? wow!! looks like something out of Mad Max...
89AKurt Posted January 21, 2020 Posted January 21, 2020 That's so quaint! Shame we couldn't hear it run. Are any semis that tall? Looks like a Prevost tourbus, but the driver sits much lower. Reminds me of the GM Futureliner. Here is a turbine-powered motorcycle, heard it start up.
Oldmopars Posted January 22, 2020 Posted January 22, 2020 2 reasons the Turbine never caught on, the complexity cause them to be very expensive and the emissions output was too high and could not be reduced. Given time both issues could have been resolved, but the emissions restrictions just kept getting tighter and the costs were going through the roof. Piston engines worked and could be made to pass emissions with less cost. I love the idea of Turbine powered vehicle, but the dream never came to reality. As for this bike, OH HECK NO! I ride a bike, but would never get on this thing. On 1/20/2020 at 9:49 PM, 89AKurt said: That's so quaint! Shame we couldn't hear it run. Are any semis that tall? Looks like a Prevost tourbus, but the driver sits much lower. Reminds me of the GM Futureliner. Here is a turbine-powered motorcycle, heard it start up.
Brian Austin Posted January 22, 2020 Posted January 22, 2020 Kenworth experimented with turbines: https://www.hemmings.com/blog/2011/05/09/turbine-powered-oddities-no-466-the-see-through-kenworth-boeing/
Ace-Garageguy Posted June 11, 2021 Posted June 11, 2021 Don't overlook Jaguar's TURBINE-ELECTRIC HYBRID C-X75
stitchdup Posted June 11, 2021 Posted June 11, 2021 Funnily enough I disappeared down a rabbit hole this morning reading about big red, https://www.thedrive.com/news/37925/we-found-fords-incredible-turbine-powered-semi-truck-big-red-thats-been-lost-for-decades
alan barton Posted June 11, 2021 Posted June 11, 2021 Went to the biggest toy fair in Australia last weekend and spent the whole weekend anguishing over whether I should have bought a tin plate toy of Big Red, very close to 1/25th scale and in stunning condition for $170. I came so close but a) I have no room, b) I have no room and c) if I had room I would use it for more hot rods! But it was gorgeous and would have looked right at home in my collection. I know the guy well who owns it and it wasn't sold when I left. I doubt whether many other people in the hall even knew what it was. My mate Dave summed it up best - you don't collect trucks but the cool factor is off the scale! As a true friend, I tried to talk him onto buying it as he predominantly collects Mustangs and there is a Mustang in the double paged advert so I said it WOULD fit his collection - then I could go and visit it any time I wanted! What are mates for! Cheers Alan
Danno Posted June 11, 2021 Posted June 11, 2021 American LaFrance 'toyed' with a turbine-powered fire engine . . . only built a few.
stitchdup Posted June 11, 2021 Posted June 11, 2021 20 minutes ago, Danno said: American LaFrance 'toyed' with a turbine-powered fire engine . . . only built a few. so did hungary
Joe Handley Posted June 11, 2021 Posted June 11, 2021 5 hours ago, stitchdup said: so did hungary Change the outfits of the people in the background, that would look like the set of a Mad Max movie!
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now