Still Life with Four Cams, Twelve Cylinders, Twentyfour Valves.

More photos from that finest source of engine pR0n, RPM, the Markowski’s shop in Vermont. Pictured here are the cylinder heads of a Four Cam V-12 engine. Those readers who have turned a wrench in anger will likely have a suspicion why this engine is being rebuilt just by looking at it. Share your armchair diagnosis in the comments.

Cunningham Le Mans Cars

Petit Petaud

Le Monstre

Le Monstre

Briggs Cunningham’s 1950 Le Mans entries came up in a discussion on the Jag-Lovers forums yesterday. Since I have seen them first-hand and have photographs I promised the group there that I’d post them here today. Rather than re-tell the epic tale of the Cunningham/Collier 1950 Le Mans, it is best that I just link over to an excellent write-up on the Radio Le Mans site. It is full of humor, some French snobbery (refusing the “Fordillacs” but allowing all manner of other “mongrels”, and American resourcefulness… such as the brilliant suggestion by driver Miles Collier to make shovels part of the cargo. Go read it.

While we’re on the subject of Cunningham Le Mans cars I can’t NOT post a photo of one of his later C-series machines:

Cunningham C-4RK

Cunningham built and sold his Vignale Coupes (one is visible at the right edge of the photo) at a loss specifically to meet the homologation requirements as an “automobile manufacturer” strictly to be able to race these C-series cars at Le Mans. That is dedication… or at the very least, insanity.