Special Racing Column
The current Grand Prix formula stipulates the engine capacity under 3-litre.
The Grand Prix formulae have changed many times. Seventy years ago, in 1926, the formula of Grand Prix car was under 1.5-litre with/without supercharger.
French Delage put Albert Lory in charge of designing a Grand Prix car of 1.5-litre. He chose straight-eight configuration with supercharger. He used many ball- and roller-bearings to reduce friction. The straight- eight engine became a little hevy, but it gained 165bhp/8400rpm, an exceedingly high power at that day.
The body of the Grand Prix car in those days had minimum width of 80 cm, and must have two-seat, though riding-machanic no longer sit there, and the driver sit at the right side seat.
The great designer Lory made a careless mistake. He made hot exhaust pipes pass at the right side of the body, and driver's right boot became burned by red hot exhaust pipe.
Lory designed Delage was very fast, but it needed to stop at the pit every few laps to cool the right foot of the driver and cockpit by bucketful water. So Delage Grand Prix car of 1926 lost time at the pit, and it achieved only one Grand Prix victory at Brooklands. In some races, body panel was burned down and driver's food was burned directly by red hot exhaust pipe only five centi-metre apart.
In witer, Lory redesigned the engine to put the hot exhaust pipe on the left side of the body by inverting the intake and exhaust ports. He put the engine/gearbox/propeller-shaft moved to the left by 10 centi-metres to make the driver's space bigger.
As the basic design was sound and excellent, the Drage Grand Prix car of 1927 became the mightiest car, and won all the Grand Prix races that year, French, Spanish, Italian and British Grands Prix, except German Grand Prix which was by sports-car.
Nine years later, when British up-and-coming driver Dick Seaman chose
his racing car, he bought this old Delage with the advice of Giulio Ramponi,
who had been the mechanic for Antonio Ascari. Ramponi modified the old
Delage greatly. Dick Seaman raced it in 1.5-litre class against latest ERA
and Maserati and won voiturette races at Ile of Man, Pescara and in
Switzerland to be invited to join in Mercedes works-team.....
I have written here an old history of seventy-years ago. Because Team KUNIMITSU did not notice the lesson of Lory's front-engined Delage Grand Prix car of 70-years ago, their Honda-NSX burned the foot of drivers in the 24-hours race at Le Mans this year (1996). The NSX was a midship- engined car, so the team had not cared the lesson in the history of front- engined era.
Next year, in 1997, when the Team KUNIMITSU participates in Le Mans 24-
hours race, they can issue the following press-release at Le Mans:
"We Japanese participated in motor racing behind Europe by 70-years. Seventy-years means from 1894 Paris-Rouen to 1964 German Grand Prix which Honda 1500cc Grand Prix car first appeared.
"And Team KUNIMITSU made the same mistake in preparing Honda NSX as the great designer Albert Lory made just 70-years ago in designing Delage Grand Prix car to burn the foot of the driver.
"Lory's Delage became free of the defect of burning the foot of the driver in 1927, and won every Grand Prix race that year.
"Team KUNIMITSU's NSX is now without that defect this year. Please, pay
attention to Team KUNIMITSU's NSX, whether it performs well at Le Mans as
Lory's Grand Prix Delage did 70-years ago."
If such press-release will be issued at Le Mans next year, in 1997, European motor-sports journalists will think, "Well, Team KUNIMITSU is different from other Japanese teams who looks only for win or lose. This team knows something of our history and tradition. We can treat them as friend." I'm sure they will treat the team warmly.
As my old computer does not allow me to make my own home-page in
Internet, I borrow some space in Mr. Mitsuru Sugaya's homepage to
present my work to you.
I have written this article to the Le Mans issue of "NSX-Press" in the
summer of 1996. "NSX-Press" magazine is published by HONDA for users of
HONDA NSX.
** Note **
Mr. Tadashi Kosai is a author of SCI/FI stories, Racing Novels and translator for many foreign books of automobile, motorcycle and auto/moto racing. (Mitsuru Sugaya)