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04-07-2016, 02:33 AM | #1 | |
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Plymouth Belvedere turbine car
The Plymouth Belvedere turbine car was first shown to the public at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City on this day (7 April) in 1955. Measuring 32 inches long, 33 inches wide, and 28 inches high, the turbine, rated at 100 hp, fit snugly into the Belvedere's engine compartment. Mated to a standard Plymouth transmission with only reverse and high gears, the turbine weighed some 200 lb less than a conventional Plymouth 6-cylinder engine. Built essentially as a laboratory development tool, the first turbine, identified as the CR1, was considered by Chrysler engineers as a "milestone in automotive power engineering" because it embodied solutions to two of the major problems long associated with gas turbines: high fuel consumption and scorching exhaust gas. The key feature that contributed to removing these technical barriers was the heat exchanger or regenerator. Heat exchangers extracted heat from the hot exhaust gasses and transferred that energy back to the compressed air, thus easing the burners' job of raising gas temperature, conserving fuel, and lowering the exhaust temperature. At idle, the turbine's exhaust temperature fell to 170 degrees Fahrenheit, ranging up to 500 degrees under normal operating conditions. Almost a year later the same basic turbine engine was installed in a 1955 Plymouth Belvedere four-door sedan. Painted red and white, the 1955 Turbine Special carried a unique hood ornament and medallion, special body name plates and trunk medallion in addition to having an oval exhaust port built into the center of the rear bumper. The 1955 was never shown publicly but was driven on Detroit streets http://goo.gl/oS0CC0
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05-22-2016, 04:08 PM | #2 | |
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Re: Plymouth Belvedere turbine car
Chrysler made another turbine car, about 6 of them; in 1962 or 63. They were all convertibles I believe, were driven around to places like university campuses, to encourage new engineering graduates to think about a career working for Chrysler. The car we saw was gorgeous, with a notable exhaust outlet built into the rear bumper. While it was driven around the campus one day, none of us who saw it got a ride in it.
None of them were sold to the public as far as I know. About a year later they were all destroyed, as was the case with lots of the promo specials made by the Detroit automakers. |
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