As we head into the summer driving season the air conditioning experts that designed climate control systems for everything from the modern Ford GT to complete solutions for almost every classic car illustrate how a modern A/C system functions.
What: The new video from Vintage Air breaks down how an air-conditioning system works to help users and installers better understand what happens behind the vents.
Contrary to what many think, making cold air isn’t actually what the system is doing. What the system actually does is remove heat from the air within the cabin, making cold air. This video will show you how the system does that and what else is important to know about it.
Why: Familiarizing yourself with air conditioning systems is the first step to get any classic, hotrod or project cooled and comfortable to drive year-round. By understanding the system and knowing how to ensure a vehicle is properly sealed and insulated, installing a system at the shop or in a driveway becomes a much simpler process.
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Jaguar Classic will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the famed C-type with a limited run of new and hand-built copies of the 1950s sports and racing car.
“Driven by some of the most-admired racing drivers in history, the C-type laid the foundations for Jaguar’s success in endurance racing and is synonymous with design and engineering innovation,” Dan Pink, Jaguar Classic director, is quoted in the company’s announcement.
“Seventy years on, Jaguar Classic is proud to be able to utilize the latest innovations in manufacturing technology – alongside traditional skills and unrivaled expertise – to reintroduce this legendary car for a new generation of enthusiasts to enjoy.”
The cars will be produced at the Jaguar Land Rover Classic Works facility in Coventry, England, the company said. The continuation cars will be “full authentic, disc-brake-equipped C-type” vehicles. However, a new “online configurator brings 3D CAD engineering data to life, allowing prospective customers and enthusiasts to specify their perfect C-type virtually,” it added.
Even those not ordering cars can use the configuration to build and share their favorite versions on the JaguarUSA Instagram, Facebook or Twitter websites.
“Eight C-type Continuation cars will be built ahead of a racing-inspired celebration event for their owners in 2022,” Jaguar Classic said. “Each example will reflect the 1953 Le Mans-winning works team car specification, including a 220hp 3.4-liter inline-six engine with triple Weber 40DCO3 carburetors and disc brakes.
“Additional options available to C-type Continuation customers
include an FIA-approved Harness Retention System. Not just for show, these C-types will be eligible for historic racing, track and closed-road use.”
Jaguar Classic added that the C-types will be built “on the experienced gained with previous Jaguar Classic Continuation programs for
Lightweight E-type,XKSS and D-type, (for which) Jaguar Classic engineers consulted the Jaguar archives and cross-referenced scan data taken from an original C-type in conjunction with the latest computer-aided design (CAD) technology, to create the most authentic new C-type possible.
“Exclusive access to original engineering drawings and company records created by the original C-type development team – including Malcolm Sayer, competitions manager Lofty England, and engineers William Heynes, Bob Knight and Norman Dewis – ensure the 1953
specifications are accurately maintained.”
C-type takes victory at Le Mans in 1953 | JDHT photos
Jaguar launched the C-type in 1951, with Peter Walker and Peter Whitehead driving to victory at Le Mans.
In 1952, Jaguar and Dunlop introduced disc brakes to motorsports with Stirling Moss winning the Reims Grand Prix in France with such a setup.
Jaguar won again at Le Mans in 1953, with Tony Rolt and Duncan Hamilton in the winning car and with Walker and Moss finishing second and Whitehead and Ian Stewart fourth in other C-types.
From 1951-53, Jaguar produced 53 C-type sports cars, with 43 of them — all equipped with drum brakes and engines tuned to 200 horsepower as in 1951 — sold to private owners.
1953 C-type beneath the sheetmetal
Pricing of the continuation cars was not included in the news release. For more information on the C-type continuation cars, visit the Jaguar Classic website.
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With fingers, keys, and jewelry always bumping up against them, car door handles can get easily scratched. But this common problem is also easy to fix, according to Larry Kosilla. He’s the founder of car-detailing company Ammo NYC, and in this video he demonstrates how to remove car door handle scratches in just 10 minutes.
The first step is to thoroughly wash the area, making sure to brush around the handle while opening and closing the door to get at any trapped dirt. It’s important to do the same while drying to clear out any trapped water. The actual scratch removal requires pulling on the handle, so it’s best to lock the car for that.
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The main challenge is getting cleaning tools into the cups behind the door handles. That means polishing by hand, rather than with a machine. You can also prop the door handle open, assuming you have something that won’t damage the paint.
It may be more labor intensive than polishing with a machine, but hand polishing also makes this process simple and straightforward. It also avoids possible friction-related damage to the plastic door handles on most modern cars.
To protect the area from further scratches, you can also put a clear bra around the handle. 3M even sells kits specifically for door handles.
Larry Kosilla is a car detailing evangelist, and thankfully he’s produced dozens of videos covering everything from the basics of car detailing to more elaborate projects like stripping paint off a car or installing a vinyl wrap.
This article was originally published by Motor Authority, an editorial partner of ClassicCars.com.
Rimac Automobili shares a photo and even a YouTube video of the crash tests of its C-Two electric supercar | Rimac Automobili photos
I’m still not quite over the shock. It’s been around 30 years since I was among a group of American automotive journalists invited to visit Germany to see some of the newest technological innovations developed by Mercedes-Benz and its engineering team.
At one point during our visit, we were led onto a balcony in a large, warehouse-style building, where all of a sudden, lights were flashing and a brand-new and not-yet-on-sale 500 SL was zooming along a track and violently smashed into a concrete barrier.
The horrific sound of the crash reverberated through the building and while parts of the car were scattered about, the dummies riding along where people would otherwise be sitting would have survived with little if any injury.
It was a haunting experience to see a spanking-new, $80,000-plus sports car destroyed in the blink of an eye.
As horrific as it was to see such a car demolished, the same thing takes place for all vehicles offered for public sale, even million-dollar supercars, such as the Rimac C Two electric-powered hypercar, as you can see for yourself:
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Rimac Automobili plans to start production of the C_Two in 2021, and it is crash-testing early versions to verify that they meet global safety standards.
The company employs 800 people in Sveta Nedelja, Croatia, and since its launch has been doing electric engineering consulting with a variety of the world’s automakers in addition to preparing to launch the C_Two.
Part of that process involves instrumented crash tests, and the video shows off-set tests at speeds of 40 km/h (nearly 25 mph) and then at 56 (nearly 35 mph).
“There was no damage to the monocoque, meaning there was next-to-no deforming of the cabin, intrusion of the pedals or excessive forces exerted onto the driver and passenger,” Rimac said.
And these are just the latest cars to be destroyed. Such testing began in 2019.
Rimac C-Two in full production guise
“This latest full-vehicle physical testing – necessary to finalize the behavior of the carbon composite during an impact – is a confirmation of the virtual modeling,” the company said, adding that 13 prototypes and 5 production cars will be involved in such testing to complete global homologation of the electric-powered sports car.
When a person makes the step into car collecting, it is with a sense of joyous pursuit. Go to any car event; the people there just ooze passion. Bruce Valley and his marvelous book, Zen and the Art of Collecting Old Cars: Adventures in Toyland, takes that passion and puts it into words and stories that both captivate and teach.
The author and his wife Nancy with the 1954 Corvette
Old cars are like old anything: they need refurbishment, upkeep and TLC. The author has had a lifetime of car collecting across six decades, restoring and driving amazing machinery from a pre-war turret-top V12 Cadillac to a Pontiac GTO (his first new car) to Studebakers and Packards, a Lamborghini 400GT, and so many others. Each car had its own personality and set of lessons, he notes. Each chapter is dedicated to a facet of his car collecting. Most are specific cars, but he combines experiences on British and Italian cars, station wagons and pickup trucks in their own chapters.
Valley himself has had an interesting life as a Navy test pilot, Washington speechwriter and aerospace executive, but cars were his lifelong passion. As he declares in the book’s introduction “This is not a book about Zen. Nevertheless, Zen pervades its pages.”
The Lamborghini 400 GT
In the early 1970s, he read the cult classic, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values by the late Robert Pirsig. Valley says he re-read the book several times throughout his life.
1966 GTO, the author’s first new car
The lessons he took from the book were far from just maintenance. It was about good life, seeking quality and peace of mind. These were lessons he took to heart in all aspects of life. He truly channels Pirsig’s philosophical spirit into the car collecting hobby.
This is one of the most emotional books I have read about automobiles. The stories are personal and deep. He speaks of weeping as he delivered his 1954 Corvette to its new steward, the joy of junkyards and the hunt for parts, his love of Mercedes-Benz.
1958 Dodge Swepside
I really don’t want to give away too much as I encourage reading this terrific book. But after reading Zen and the Art of Collecting Old Cars, you might find yourself changed a little. But isn’t that the joy of the written word?
$25.00
Title
Zen and the Art of Collecting Old Cars: Adventures in Toyland
Author
Bruce Valley
Edition
illustrated
Publisher
GREAT LIFE Press, 2020
ISBN
193839447X, 9781938394478
Length
260 pages
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