103 year old Stanley Steamer speed record broken

Steam power!



This is really fascinating stuff.Really.
Until yesterday a car similar to the one above ( #4 ) held the speed record for a steam power car .It was set it in 1906 at what was then called Ormand Beach(now more familiar as Daytona Beach ).Driving a Stanley Steamer Fred Marriot drove 127.659 mph and that record has held for 103 years .British Steam Car News webpage explains that this was in the days when gasoline and steam powered cars competed neck and neck for such honors .The Stanley Steamer was manufactured by twin brothers F.E. and F.O. Stanley .In the 1900’s they constructed several thousand passenger cars until internal combustion gasoline powered engine vehicles gained commercial prominence .

The 7.7-metre (25.25 feet) British Steam Car, nicknamed the "fastest kettle in the world", reached an average speed of 139.843mph on two runs over a measured mile at the Edwards air force base in California.
Charles Burnett III piloted the car for both runs, reaching a peak speed of 136mph on the first run and 151mph on the second, a team spokesman said. Record officials recognize a land speed record as the average speed of two passes made across the same measured distance in opposing directions within 60 minutes of each other. The time of the two runs is averaged to obtain the official recorded speed.
The British Steam Car team are based in Lymington, New Forest in Hampshire and, with minimum funds by maximum British ingenuity and pluck, they have constructed the car in farm outbuildings belonging to Mr. Burnett.
The engineering team worked for the last ten years to overcome the technical obstacles. One main engineering obstacle was to develop a compact boiler system which every minute could turn 40 litres (8.8 gallons) of water into superheated steam at 400C (752F), at 40 times atmospheric pressure.

British Steam Car News