New Record Bid

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19803, 3 December 1938, Page 13

New Record Bid

IVETAILS have been received of the car with which the famous American driver Ab. Jenkins, hopes to eclipse the world’s land speed record of 357 miles an hour at present held by G. E. T. Eyston. Jenkins’s car is now stated to be complete. It takes the form of a convertible vehicle with which he can also attack long-distance records. Driven on all four wheels, the new car is smaller than Eyston’s and built on more conventional lines.

For the land speed record it will be fitted with two Curtiss Conqueror aero engines of 1200-h.p. each, the engines being fitted one at each end of the chassis, with the driver placed between them. In Eyston’s car the two engines were side by side behind the driver.

The total weight of the "Mormon Meteor,” as Jenkins’ car is called, is about 3 toils, : slightly lighter than Ccbb’s “Railton,” the first car to achieve 350 miles per hour, and about 4' tons lighter than Eyston’s gigantic “Thunderbolt.” When Jenkins sets out to attack the long-distance records one of the engines will be removed, as the powei output of the two is far too high for the circular track which necessarily must be used for these efforts.

Performances by Jenkins

Jenkins already holds the most important long-distance records, so that he will be attacking his own figures.

The best of these are the hour record, 177 miles 86 yards; the 24 houi record, 3,774 miles; and the 48 hour; record, 7,134 miles. If conditions are favourable at Bonneville Salt Flats it is expected that Jenkins will get busy with his on slaught on records early in December. He will probably attack the longdistance runs first with the object o' becoming thoroughly familiar with hi; new machine at comparatively low speeds.