> Rotary Engine wrote:
    >> The Speed channel commentators are now complaining that the RX8
    >> frontal area is less
    >> than the Porsche and that is why the RX8 is ten MPH faster on the
    >> straight away.
    >
    > But you don't get it.
    >
    > Rotary engines DON'T WIN RACES -- that's GOSPEL to the reciprosaur
    > crowd.  Therefore, when the RX-8 is faster than the Porsche, it's
    > because of the shape of the CAR, and has nothing to do with the
   engine.
    >
    > I want to see someone build a 6-rotor engine and take it to
   Bonneville.
    >   Then, after the first set of runs, pull the engine, ADD 4 MORE
    > ROTORS, reinstall then get back on the salt the next day.
    >
    > Then do it again the NEXT day, then the day after that if necessary,
    > until you have a new speed record for non-turbine cars.
    >
    > But the real thing that we would see is where the power/weight
   curves
    > go.  Is there a point where adding rotors becomes less effective?  Or
    > MORE effective?
    >
    > The perfect car for this would probably look like a Tootsie Roll on
    > wheels!  I wonder if you could get them to sponsor . . ?
    >
    > Keith

    > The problem is the e-shaft gets torque overloaded near the back end.
    > Two four rotors back to back with the power taken out of the center
    > would work.
    > Paul Lamar

   Okay, so what you do is make a PTO (gear driven) that takes the place of
   an intermediate housing, and feeds a straight shaft drive.  When you
   have just the 4 rotors, this housing is at the front, then you stack
   more rotors in front of it.  When you get to 12 rotors, you put on
   another PTO (with shaft stacked on the end of the other shaft), and then
   you can go all the way to 16, if you can get the thing started.

   The thing is that you are adding a lot of HP per additional pound of
   engine.  Since a speed run is a straight line 10 miles long, with a
   wide, slow turnaround at the end, you don't need to worry too much about
   side loads on your long engine assembly.

   Keith



Two separate n-rotor engines.  4 wheel drive.  Cuts the problem in half.


Matt-

High power to weight ratio is only one of the problems.
You need four wheel drive at Bonneville as the coef. of friction  can be as low as
0.3. Bonneville is a drag race as you have limited distance to accelerate
to over 400 MPH. When you are doing 350 MPH you are using up real estate
at a prodigies rate. The combination of high acceleration required and low coef. of friction
requires aerodynamic downforce that can be controlled. The car becomes extremely
unstable at speeds over 200 MPH due to the traction required to overcome aerodynamic
drag subtracting from the cornering stiffness of the tires. In other words you need
to be able to change the angle of attack of your wings as a function of
speed. This is why it is so hard to set the wheel driven land speed record
currently at about 409 MPH. Been there done that with Craig Breedlove.

See what happens when these problems rear their ugly heads.
http://www.rotaryeng.net/
Scroll down to the bottom and download:
.... I told him there was too much downforce on the nose! Bonneville RX7 crash.

Paul Lamar ...No rotor no motor.

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