The 1952 Cummins diesel was a dead duck.

[jnormanh]

I didn't know this -

A planned 50 year celebration in 1969 led to the car being torn down for a complete rebuild. Then an ugly truth was revealed! The crankshaft had cracked starting at the 2nd journal, and ran the entire length to the 6th journal. Had the turbo not clogged, the engine itself would not have lasted much over 5 laps more.

Original is at Clessie Lyle Cummins and Cummins Diesel Engines http://www.allpar.com/corporate/bios...#ixzz2nCsOjtr4
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[Indyote]

I wonder how many knew....

Indyote

[jnormanh]

I wonder how many knew....

Indyote

Part of Cummins Indy runs was to demonstrate reliability, so they had reason to keep it quiet.

The link above is the only mention I've seen about a failing crank. No source for that info given. True? Maybe.

[ZOOOM]

I have also read that. Alas, I too cannot remember where...
ZOOOM

[rrrr]

I have a hard time believing a crankshaft could have a continuous crack along its length. If this were true, the crack would have had to make several 90 degree turns to travel through the main bearing and rod journals.



This is not the way a forging behaves. It seems quite impossible.

[jnormanh]

I have a hard time believing a crankshaft could have a continuous crack along its length. If this were true, the crack would have had to make several 90 degree turns to travel through the main bearing and rod journals.



This is not the way a forging behaves. It seems quite impossible.

I understand what you say. Maybe what is meant is that there were crack(S) at multiple journals.


And, maybe, the story is baloney.

[rrrr]

And, maybe, the story is baloney.

I'll buy that. This anecdote in the story is an almost verbatim lift from a Gene Tracy monologue. Tracy was well known comic in the 70's who told trucking jokes.

A life changing experience occurred near Cajon Pass near Barstow, California. Coming down the grade, with Clessie at the wheel, the weak brakes failed. Frantically downshifting to slow down, Clessie was horrified when he observed a train crossing at the bottom. The caboose cleared the crossing seconds before the truck ran over the tracks at 30 mph.

While trying to slow the truck, Clessie woke up his “swamper” or loader, who was riding in the passenger seat. When asked why the driver would wake him up just before hitting the railroad crossing, the swamper replied, “because he didn’t want me to miss the biggest damned accident we ever was gonna have.”

Tracy's version has a swamper named Leroy.

Reading some of author Curtis Redgap's other works finds similar anecdotal nonsense.

[jandj]

Ah, Gene Tracy's "Truck Stop" 8 tracks......"Hurricane Gussie"....."Smells like someone **** a Christmas tree!"....high school all over again! IIRC, Gene's folks were Carney's. I think I heard Gene's buried in Fla. amongst carnies.

[rrrr]

"Wall, it's true oy ain't nevah made lave to a woman..."

[jandj]

"But if it's anything like....."

[rrrr]

We must be the only two people on TF that even know what this is about....LOL

[MVPhere]

What makes you think I wanna fight a man that can eat that much ice cream??!!

[flatlander_48]

We must be the only two people on TF that even know what this is about....LOL

Yes, rest assured in that knowledge...

[Stick500]

what made that car so fast?

it did win the pole

[flatlander_48]

Owing to the usual diesel characteristics, I would have to say mountain-moving torque coming off of Turns 2 and 4...

However, I just checked the information for 1952. Chet Miller and Bill Vukovich both ran faster qualifying laps, so I assume they did not run on Pole Day.