Category Science

In the film Goldfinger, James Bond drove an Aston Martin DB5 with a passenger ejector seat. Bond used it to get rid of one of his enemies. The Aston Martin also had machine guns, armour and spikes which came out of the wheels to slash the tyres of other cars.

Amazing! When the Pope travels away from the Vatican, he takes a special car, nicknamed the ‘Popemobile’. The car has a bullet-proof glass dome. When the Pope goes on tours he stands under the dome holding on to a hand rail. His followers can easily see him, and he can see them, without the risk of attack.

Which supercar had six wheels?

The wedge-shaped Panther Six was designed by Bob Jankel in 1977. It was five metres long and over two metres wide. Both pairs of front wheels steered the car, which was never sold to the public.

Who had his Rolls Royce painted in amazing flowery patterns?

The Beatles were the world’s biggest pop group in the 1960s. Singer John Lennon painted his Rolls Royce Phantom VI with trendy colourful patterns.

Is it true? There really was a car called a Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Yes. In the 1920s, Count Louis Zborowski commissioned three incredibly fast Brooklands racing cars. The Count, a keen racer, competed in all three cars, but was killed in his Mercedes racing car in 1924.

Factory robots weld and paint cars on production lines. They are taught what to do by an engineer and then do it again and again very accurately. They work 24 hours a day and never get tired!

Who crash-tests cars?

Crash-test dummies are artificial humans which sit inside cars as they’re made to crash. The electronic dummies measure what happens to them, and if the cars’ safety features work properly. Cars which fail the tests have to be re-designed.

How are cars designed?

Every part of a car is designed using computers. Engineers draw what the parts and the car will look like, and the computer helps to control the machines which make the parts.

Amazing! When cars wear out they’re crushed into tiny cubes by a huge machine. It squashes the car first one way and then the other. The metal in the cube is recycled to make new cars.

Is it true? Cars are tested in wind tunnels.

Yes. A wind tunnel is a tube with a huge fan at one end. Engineers check how air flows around the cars. The easier it flows, the faster the car can go and the less fuel it uses.

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An internal combustion engine is the sort of engine that most cars have. ‘Internal combustion’ means that a fuel and air mixture burns inside can-shaped cylinders inside the engine.

Why do cars have gears?

Cars have gears so that they can start off and move at different speeds. First gear is for starting off. First and second gears are for going slowly. Fourth and fifth gears are for going quickly.

Is it true? The tread of a tyre grips the road.

No. The rubber of the tyres grips the road. Tread is the pattern of grooves around the outside of a tyre. The grooves let water escape from between a tyre and a wet road so that the rubber can touch the road surface for grip.

What are springs and dampers?

Springs and dampers make up a car’s suspension, which gives the people inside a smooth ride. Springs let the car’s wheels move up and down as it goes over bumps. Dampers stop the car from bouncing after it’s passed over the bumps.

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Until the middle of World War Two, Willys-Overland Company made ordinary cars. But they became famous for producing one of the best known cars of all time. The Willys jeep was a four-wheel drive general purpose (G.P) vehicle, used by the American army.

What is four-wheel drive?

When a car has four-wheel drive, it means that the engine makes all four wheels turn. In most cars, the engine only turns two of the wheels. Four-wheel drive is excellent for travelling off-road on muddy tracks and up steep hills.

Amazing! King George V of England owned a six-wheeled limousine. It was built by Crossley in 1929, and had a 3.8 litre, six cylinder engine. The king used it for cross country expeditions, but it never went into production.

Is it true? A car has been driven on the moon.

Yes. The missions Apollo 15, 16 and 17 that travelled to Moon in the 1970s carried Lunar Roving Vehicles (LRVs) or Moon buggies. The astronauts drove the electric buggies around the Moon’s surface, looking for interesting rocks. All three buggies are still on the Moon.

Which car can swim?

The 1962 Amphicar was part car, part boat. It had two propellers at the back, and the front wheels steered it, like a rudder. The large tail fins stopped water from flooding the engine.

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In 1949, American inventor Molt Taylor built a car which could be turned into an aeroplane. By 1953, the car had flown over 40,250 kilometres. On the ground, the Aerocar towed its tail and wings in a trailer.

Is it true? American cars had the biggest fins of all.

Yes. In the 1950s, American car designers began adding pointy bits such as tail fins to their cars. Some features were copied from the jet fighters of the time! Tail fins often had rows of lights up the back. These huge and thirsty cars also had plenty of chrome bodywork.

Amazing! The driver of a Cadillac Coupe de Ville did not have to worry about blinding other drivers with his or her headlights. The car had an electronic eye which detected headlights coming in the opposite direction and automatically dipped its headlights.

Which car had gull wings?

The doors on the 1952 Mercedes 300SL opened upwards like a seagull’s wings. The idea was given up because they couldn’t be opened if the car turned over in an accident.

What was a T-bird?

T-bird was the nickname given to the Ford Thunderbird. The first model appeared in 1953. It was a huge two-seater convertible. In the 1950s, American manufacturers built many huge gas guzzlers like the Thunderbird.

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‘Tin Goose’ was the nickname of a short-lived rear-engined car called the Tucker ’48. It had many original features, such as a strong passenger safety compartment and a third headlight which swivelled as the driver turned the steering wheel.

Why was the Citroen 7CV so special?

The Citroen 7CV of 1934 was the first popular car driven by its front wheels. It was known as the Traction Avant. It was also one of the first cars to have a one-piece body shell instead of a chassis with a body built on top.

Amazing! Even as late as 1931, some cars ran on steam power. Abner Doble built his first steam car in 1905, and went on to make several luxurious examples. They had plenty of power, and ran almost silently, but at prices between $8,000 and $11,000, they were beyond the reach of the average motorist.

What was the people’s car?

The people’s car was the first Volkswagen (which means ‘people’s car’ in German). It was designed in the 1930s by Doctor Ferdinand Porsche to be a small family car which was cheap to run. It was soon nicknamed the Beetle or Bug. 40 million have been made.

Is it true? Some cars have armour.

Yes. An armoured car is a military vehicle with steel plates on its body to make it bullet-proof. It usually has a small gun, too. Security companies often use vans with armour to transport valuable items or cash. Some limousines also have armour plating to make them bullet proof.

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