NEW MOTOR RECORDS

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXVI, Issue 148, 8 June 1936, Page 11

NEW MOTOR RECORDS

Made Daring Storm HARDLY ABLE TO SEE COURSE (Own Correspondent—By Air Mail.) WENDOVER, Utah, May 1. Driving through a heavy mist and over a course strewn with puddles, Capt. G. E. T. Eyston has created new world’s records for Diesel-engined cars on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Ho made six runs, three in each direction, over a seven-mile course near that on which Sir Malcolm Campbell attained his world’s speed record last September. The best figures achieved were: Flying kilometre: Speed, 159.099 m.p.h. Flying mile: Speed, 158.87 m.p.h. Capt. Eyston had intended to take out his car, the Flying Spray, this morning, heavy rain yesterday morning having made the saltbeds sticky. Then the rain cleared off anti the sun came out, and he decided to take his chance at once. The salt was still soft when he set off, and the wheels of the Flying Spray scattered it in showers, but Capt. F.yston’s greatest handicap was poor visibility. Because of the flying salt he had to drive with an enclosed cockpit, looking through a narrow slit. 'The approaching storm cut down his vision so much that he could hardly see the course, and twice had to lift his foot from the accelerator during his best run. Capt. Eyston is pleased in every way with the results. The car, he said, ran perfectly. Owing to the broken weather the attempts on the 24-hour and other records with the Rolls-Royce petrol engine substituted for the Diesel engine will have to be postponed for probably a fortnight. The previous official recognised record for Diesel-engined cars was 94.70 m.p.h. for the flying kilometre, and was made by R, J. Munday on a Munday Diesel car at Brooklands last October. At Daytona a speed of 137.195 m.p.h. was claimed to have been reached by George Cumming. The 12-cylinder heavy-oil engine used by Capt Eyston is on the Air Ministry secret fish and these new records may prove of vast importance to the R.A.F.