A Lot Of Rotating Mass!!
 

Very, Very cool

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That is a fantastic contraption

If you think that is wacky in a car, try it in a plane

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The idea behind rotary engines was that it enhanced cooling, and I believe the oil system used centrifugal force. Downside was the pronounced gyroscopic effects that coupled climbing and yawing making for interesting handling.

By the way, no throttles on WW1 rotaries. Just ignition cuts.

That is a fantastically scary looking thing there. Love it. Wouldn't want to work on it while it's running though. Yikes! :)

That's crazy!!! I luv it!

...and LMAO at the sound coming out of that plane posted by Flieger

The airplane sounds that way because those radial rotary piston engines did not have a throttle. they ran wide open. the stutter you hear is whats called a blip switch, that is the only way to slow the engine down or make the plane lose alt.
The blip switch kills ign to some cylinders to shut it down.

So if the crankshaft stays stationary, what turns the wheels?

What turns the wheels
 

The crankcase is geared to the transmission rather than the crankshaft. I don't know what kind of gearbox this car has, but an engine running at a constant speed would be great with a variable gear/pulley system.

No throttle, just ON and OFF. What a crazy Fokker

To think they did battle in these things. The planes must have killed more than the enemy...

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My thoughts exactly. I'd be afraid to stand next to that thing while on the ground!!

Very cool, dewolf, very cool. Thanks for posting.

I've read that with airplanes set up with motors like this, it was actually faster to go 270 degrees around to the left than to make a 90 degree right hand turn. I've seen several of this configuration run and fly at our local EAA fly-in in Arlington, WA. Amazing stuff.

Major mechanical failure could be a bloody hazard to anyone passing by. Gives new meaning to throwing a rod.

LOl....you'd almost need a scattershield!!

Not even one warning sticker under the hood.

(I will bet that car still uses R12 for the AC)

You think that's crazy? How about a front-wheel-drive radial engine MOTORCYCLE?

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Too true - the aviation guys on the board will point out that any inputs on the joystick/control column end up being 90 degrees removed from the desired effect. (the Sopwith Camel gained some notoriety in this regard). This is to say yaw inputs became pitch control & thusly pitch inputs controlled yaw. Right on the joystick - the aircraft pitches down; left on the stick - aircraft pitches up. It has often been pointed out that pilot induced oscillations arising from these confusing effects killed more pilot trainees than actual combat deaths - although I am sure that one is up for some debate.

Cheers
JB