Manufacturer | Glenn Curtiss |
---|---|
Assembly | 1906 |
Class | Speed record challenger |
Engine | Curtiss B-8: 269 cu in (4,410 cc), dual carburetor, 90° F-head V-8 [1] [2] |
Bore / stroke | 3.625 in × 3.25 in (92.1 mm × 82.6 mm) [1] |
Top speed | 136 mph (219 km/h) [2] |
Power | 40 hp (30 kW) @ 1,800 RPM [2] [3] |
Ignition type | Battery ignition, jump-spark |
Transmission |
Direct drive Shaft and rear hub bevel |
Frame type | Steel tubing |
Brakes | Rear v brake [4] |
Tires | 26 in (660 mm) [5] |
Wheelbase | 64 in (1.6 m) |
Dimensions |
L: 7 ft 10 in (2.4 m)
[3] W: 2 ft 3 in (0.7 m) [3] H: 3 ft (0.9 m) [3] |
Weight | 275 lb (125 kg) [3] ( wet) |
Fuel capacity | 2.5 US gal (9.5 L) [4] |
The Curtiss V-8 motorcycle was a 269 cu in (4,410 cc) V8 engine-powered motorcycle designed and built by aviation and motorcycling pioneer Glenn Curtiss that set an unofficial land speed record of 136.36 miles per hour (219.45 km/h) on January 24, 1907. [6] [7] The air-cooled F-head engine was developed for use in dirigibles. [8] [9] [10]
The forty horsepower engine was the two carburetor version of the Curtiss Model B-8 aircraft powerplant, one of thirteen engines listed in the May 1908 "Aerial and Cycle Motors" catalog. [1] The engine weighed 150 lb (68 kg) and was offered for US$1,200 but it did not sell, in spite of the engine's notoriety from the speed record. [1] An eight carburetor version of the Model B-8 was used in the experimental AEA Red Wing and White Wing airplanes that flew in 1908. [1]
Curtiss remained "the fastest man in the world," the title the newspapers gave him for going faster than any vehicle, on land, sea or air, until 1911, [11] when his absolute record was broken by the 141.7 mph (228.0 km/h) Blitzen Benz automobile. [12] No motorcycle surpassed the record until 1930. [13] [14] Curtiss's success at racing strengthened his reputation as a leading maker of high-performance motorcycles and engines. [15]
It has been suggested that the literary character Tom Swift was based on Curtiss. [12] [16] Tom Swift and His Motor Cycle, the first of over 100 books in the Tom Swift series, was published shortly after the V-8 record setting run.
The record setting V-8 motorcycle is now in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. [17] The Air and Space museum lent it to the Guggenheim for the 1998 The Art of the Motorcycle exhibition in New York. [9] [18]
The Curtiss OX-5 aero engine, a successor of the V-8 motorcycle engine, powered several United States civilian and military aircraft. More than 10,000 were manufactured. [19]