Engine Punk

As part of this Le Mans event, Morgan were the featured marque at the British Sports Car Welcome at St Saturnin. Among the British Mogs was this French one.( Photo by Alan Mansell) I love the little aerofoil below the sump! It looks like it's highly polished aluminium. According to the accompanying blurb, it had a 1233cc Harley Davidson fitted and "carosserie unique". Some people would decry the use of a modern powerplant but I really like what's been achieved here. And H-D's are not that modern. I'm no expert on Harley valve cover design but this one doesn't look like a Knucklehead, Panhead or Shovelhead to me. Maybe those are aftermarket items that make this engine more special. I've always had a weakness for polished aluminium. Unpainted panels like these leave bodges nowhere to hide. This Darmot must be a devil to keep clean but the effect under artifical lighting is fantastic. The best contract for such shiny panels is a dark colour and t...

On the Thursday, Al and I had a run out in the Morgan to Blois. Al always reckons that you have to pace yourself when spectating the Le Mans 24 Hours. You can get over excited and then race will eat you up. Many people never leave the campsite, sleeping off hangovers by day and raising hell all night. Some are wired into the excellent Le Man FM radio station and wander around in a world of their own with combination radio hats and enormous ear phones/ear defenders that blot out all other noise around them. Blois is about an hour and a half away, to the south east on the River Loire – Blois on the Loire via Amboise, where they eat framboise (raspberries to me and you). King Stephen of England (famous for fighting Queen Matilda) was born here around 1097 but the town’s other notable feature is a magic museum – La Maison de la Magie - dedicated to Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin. I’d never heard of him but he’s the guy Harry Houdini named himself after (although he made a mistake and actually...