Project Brutus: An American LaFrance with a 47.0 L BMW V12

Sinsheim Technical Museum owns the wild Project Brutus race car. The car starts with a 1907-1908 American LaFrance chassis, axles, and twin chain drive. The American LaFrance originally came with a 14.0 L motor but it is now powered by a 46.95 L (2865 ci) BMW VI V12. This motor produces 550 hp at 1530 rpm or 750 hp at 1700 rpm for 1 minute. The Brutus does not have a firewall and only uses a metal mesh cover for the gear drive. So the driver is exposed to the engine’s heat and fallout. Sinsheim Technical Museum’s website says Roger Collings from Wales raced Brutus at 200 km/h (124.2 mph) on the high-speed oval at Bosch test track in Boxberg, Germany.

Source: Italiansupercarvideo, Sinsheim Technical Museum, and Sinsheim Technical Museum FB page