Rotary Engine Collection (#2)

Union Type 2-6, In-line 6 Engine, ca. 1917. Creator: Union Gas Engine Company
The Union Gas Engine Company (later the Union Diesel Engine Company) of Oakland, California designed this aircraft engine in 1915. In 1917, it was the first to pass the U.S. government 50-hour test

Hall-Scott A-7-A In-line 4 Engine, 1917. Creator: Hall-Scott
The Hall-Scott Motor Car Company, with general offices in San Francisco and factories at Berkeley, California, began specializing in the construction of airplane engines in 1911

Clement V-2 Engine, 1903. Creator: Clement-Bayard
This French engine powered the Santos-Dumont Airship No. 9 in 1903. It performed two tasks: propulsion and the operation of a belt driven blower to pressurize the airships envelope

Stringfellow Steam Engine, 1868. Creator: John Stringfellow
Like the Wright brothers, who followed, John Stringfellow and his associate William Henson are an important link to early aeronautical researchers

King-Bugatti U-16 Engine, 1919. Creator: Duesenberg Motors Corporation
Ettore Bugatti designed the prototype of this engine in France during World War I. The U.S. Governments Bolling Commission

Wright Whirlwind J-4B, Byrd North Pole Flight, Radial 9 Engine, ca. 1926
Charles Lawrance started his designs for an air-cooled engine in 1915. In 1921, Lawrance designed his first engine for a U.S

Hispano-Suiza (Wright-Martin E), V-8 Engine, ca. 1916. Creators: Wright Aeronautical
Hispano-Suiza engines were developed by Marc Birkigt, of Swiss origin, and first manufactured in Barcelona for use in automobiles

Rolls-Royce Buzzard V-2240-56 (Model H. XIV) V-12 Engine, ca. 1928. Creator: Rolls-Royce
Following its success as an automobile manufacturer, Rolls-Royce began design and development of aircraft engines at the request of the British Admiralty at the beginning of World War I

Hall-Scott A-7-A, In-line 4 Engine, Cutaway, ca. World War I. Creator: Hall-Scott
The Hall-Scott Motor Car Company, with general offices in San Francisco and factories at Berkeley, California, began specializing in the construction of airplane engines in 1911

Packard DR-980, Radial 9 Engine, ca. 1930. Creator: Packard Motor Car Company
This diesel engine was designed and built under the direction of the Packard Companys Chief Aeronautical Engineer, L. M. Woolson

Hispano-Suiza A (Wright-Martin) V-8 Engine, 1918. Creator: Wright Aeronautical
Hispano-Suiza engines were developed by Marc Birkigt, of Swiss origin, and first manufactured in Barcelona, Spain for use in automobiles

Wright Cyclone P-1, Radial 9 Engine, ca. 1925. Creator: Wright Aeronautical
About the middle of 1923, the U.S. Navy signed a contract with Wright Aeronautical for three large air-cooled engine designs, which were to be built successively

Nakajima Ha 105 Toku, Radial 14 Engine, 15128, ca. 1940
The Nakajima Ha 105 began development as a transitional engine between the Ha 25 and the Ha 115, both of which were mass produced

Sturtevant D-6 In-line Engine, In-line 6 Engine, 1912. Creator
Beginning in 1911, the Sturtevant Manufacturing Co. produced a number of engine models, all water cooled in-line vertical and V-types. Later absorbed into the familys B.F. Sturtevant Co

Aeronca E-113, Horizontally-Opposed 2 Engine, Cutaway, ca. early 1930s
Aeronca (Aeronautical Corporation of America) built the first widely accepted light planes in the U.S. the Collegian. These were originally powered by an engine based on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle

Humber Ltd. (Bentley) B. R. 2, Rotary 9 Engine, ca. 1917. Creator: Humber Ltd
Initially asked in 1914 to study an overheating problem in rotary engines, Captain W. O. Bentley, an established car designer, developed a new and more efficient engine

Salmson Z-9, Radial 9 Engine, Circa 1917-1918. Creator: Salmson
Salmson aircraft engines, produced in France starting in 1913 by the Societe des Moteurs Salmson in Billancourt, Sein, were originally designed and patented by Canton and Unne

DePalma, V-4 Engine, ca. 1918. Creator: DePalma Manufacturing Company
C.H. Willis, Henry Fords Chief Engineer, who also led the DePalma Manufacturing Company, worked with famous inventor and General Motors executive Charles F

Adams-Farwell Rotary 5 Engine, 1907. Creator: Adams-Farwell Company
The first successful rotary engine is generally attributed to F.O. Farwell in 1896, and was built by the Adams Company of Dubuque, Iowa

Teledyne Continental Motors Voyager-200 Horizontally-opposed Engine, 1987
In 1930, Continental began development of air-cooled horizontally opposed engines for low-powered aircraft. For example, the Continental A-40 made the classic Piper Cub possible

Michigan Aero-Engine Corporation Rover L-267, In-line 4 Engine, ca. 1930
Designed by Harold E. Morehouse, a preeminent light aircraft engine designer, this was the first successful U.S. inverted air-cooled engine designed for that aircraft type

Pitcairn-Brewer Model F, Radial 9 Engine, ca. 1927-1928. Creator: Pitcairn-Brewer
The Pitcairn-Brewer Model F engine was developed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during 1927 and 1928. This engine was designed by Captain Robert W. A. Brewer and sponsored by Harold F. Pitcairn

Martin 4-333, Inverted In-line 4 Engine, ca. 1930. Creator: Martin Motors Company
The Chevrolet Brothers Aircraft Company, owned by Swiss immigrants Arthur and Louis Chevrolet, well known designers of automobile engines and drivers of race cars, designed this in-line

Pratt & Whitney Wasp Jr. R-985-AN-14B "Dancing Engine", 1942
Begun in 1925 by former Wright Aeronautical employees as a spinoff from a machine tool company, Pratt & Whitney became one of the worlds largest manufacturers of aircraft engines, and the Wasp Jr

Lawrance J-1, Radial 9 Engine, ca. 1922. Creator: Wright Aeronautical
Charles Lawrance, originally a race car engine designer, built his first air-cooled aircraft engine in 1921 for a Navy contract

General Motors X-250, Radial 4 (8) Engine, ca. 1940. Creator: General Motors
A direct-drive, liquid-cooled, supercharged, two-stroke cycle engine, this General Motors engine was a very unusual design incorporating four cylinder blocks

Detroit Horizontally-Opposed 2-Cylinder Engine, ca. 1910-11
This Detroit Aero Engines artifact is one of several engines designed by Fred Weinberg of Detroit, Michigan. Intended as an affordable power plant for amateur aviators throughout the U.S

CJ5 9061 Rotary engine, Peugeot motorcycle
Rotary engine, Peugeot motorcycle, Flywheel Bicester Saturday 20th June 2015, aviation, Bicester, cars, endeavour, Flywheel, Flywheel Bicester, Flywheel Bicester 20th June 15

Autogiro, designed by Spanish engineer Juan de la Cierva, 1928
Autogiro (1928), designed by Spanish engineer Juan de la Cierva (Cordoniu) 1896-1936. From Le Petit Inventeur, Paris, 1928

CM8 8577 Kevin Doyle, Mazda RX7
Kevin Doyle, Mazda RX7, MOTUL, Touring icons, Goodwood FoS 2015, 2015, Classic, entertainment, fearless, Festival of Speed, Flat out, FoS, Goodwood, Goodwood FoS 2015, Goodwood MMS 2015, heritage

CM8 7852 Mazda trio
Mazda trio, Goodwood FoS 2015, 2015, Classic, entertainment, fearless, Festival of Speed, Flat out, FoS, Goodwood, Goodwood FoS 2015, Goodwood MMS 2015, heritage, hill climb, June, MMS, motor sport

CM8 7846 Weldon Munsey, Mazda 797P
Weldon Munsey, Mazda 797P, flaming exhaust, Goodwood FoS 2015, 2015, Classic, entertainment, fearless, Festival of Speed, Flat out, FoS, Goodwood, Goodwood FoS 2015, Goodwood MMS 2015, heritage

CJ5 9063 Peugeot, petrol tank
Peugeot, petrol tank, Flywheel Bicester Saturday 20th June 2015, aviation, Bicester, cars, endeavour, Flywheel, Flywheel Bicester, Flywheel Bicester 20th June 15, historic, Historic motoring

Wankel engine principle, artwork
Wankel engine principle. Computer artwork showing the internal workings of a Wankel rotary engine. The Wankel engine is a type of internal combustion engine that uses an eccentric rotary design to

2005 Mazda RX8

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The rotary engine, also known as the Wankel engine, has a rich history and has left an indelible mark on the automotive industry. Developed by Felix Wankel in the 1950s, this unique type of internal combustion engine offers several advantages over traditional piston engines. One of the most iconic a rotary engine-powered vehicle is the Mazda 787B. This legendary race car made history in 1991 by becoming the first and only Japanese car to win the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. Its distinctive sound and impressive performance showcased the potential of rotary power. Another notable figure in rotary engine history is Mark Tishurst, who piloted a CM8 7842 powered by this innovative technology. Tishurst's achievements behind the wheel demonstrated that rotary engines could compete with their piston counterparts on both road and track. Weldon Munsey was another pioneer who pushed boundaries with his Mazda 797P prototype racer. With its sleek design and powerful rotary engine, it became a symbol of innovation and speed. But it wasn't just Mazda that embraced this revolutionary technology; other manufacturers like DKW also experimented with it. Ed Wilson's CM32 series featuring DKW W200 models showcased how different companies were exploring new possibilities for propulsion systems. Ed Wilson continued to push boundaries with his later creations such as CM32 6649, CM32 6265, CJ10 5958, CJ10 5294, CJ10 5292, and CJ10 5261 - all equipped with DKW W2000 engines. These vehicles exemplified how versatile rotary engines could be across various platforms. However, before these modern marvels came into existence, there were earlier iterations that laid down foundations for future innovations. The Wright Vertical-4 Engine developed by Wright Company in1906 marked an important milestone in aviation history as one of the earliest successful aircraft engines.