 The Beaulieu Autojumble has a reputation for being the best place in the world to discover rare prewar parts (although on the other 362 days of the year, our classifieds are worth a look, too). Collectors and restorers tell tall tales about days gone by at the famous English event – boasting about who found the rarest, most important part or car. The 2014 Autojumble shone a light on what might well be the most important object to be offered for sale in the event's 40-year history. On the stand of Dutch motorcycle dealers Yesterdays was a most unusual engine, a single-cylinder unit with single overhead camshaft and four valves. Yesterdays were offering a beer to anyone who could identify the motor, the origins of which were unknown. Now the mystery has been solved by historians Henk Cloosterman and Sébastien Faurès Fustel de Coulanges. The engine is a 1908 Ariès racing unit, long thought lost. A thorough inspection reveals it to be the single most advanced racing engine of the period – in addition to the four valves and overhead camshaft, the engine is supercharged and has desmodromic valvegear – some six years before the previously recognised desmodromic pioneer, the 1914 Delage Type S. It's not often a motoring discovery is made that re-writes the history books, but this is one of those rare occasions. Henk and Sébastien have presented the fruits of their research in the latest issue of The Automobile, which is out now. If you want to learn more about desmodromics, visit Henk's website at www.desmodromology.nl. |
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Rewriting the history of desmodromic valves
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