|
Where I live, it is possible to get the German news (DW-TV = Deutsche Welle) in English, on broadcast TV. Tonight there was a short piece about two guys in Sweden who had built a wood burning gas generator and were using it to fuel a 142. Described as "a 40 year old Volvo" using " a device similar to those which powered cars in Sweden during WWII" the car itself was a faded red early 142, pulling a single axle trailer that held the apparatus, which consisted of a firebox, with a chamber above it filled with chunks of wood. The heat of the fire (also wood) roasts the contents of the chamber, causing it to release volatile gases, which are conveyed by a hose to a length of what looked like exhaust pipe that ran along the roof of the car (left side) down the windshield post and eventually to some kind of carburetor. For some reason, the aluminum window frame appeared to have been removed from the driver's door. The video then went to an underhood shot, with the unmistakeable sound of a tired carbureted B20 chugging to life, though it may have sounded that way due to the low compression required to run on the wood gas. Next, a shot of the car and trailer in motion, while it said that the builders of the car were doing a tour of Sweden in it. They also said how much wood was needed (miles per cord?) but in some unfamiliar measurement, which I don't recall the details of.
Anyway, it was very cool, and a great surprise to see a 140 on the TV news. I suspect it might be possible for someone with a faster internet connection than mine to track the video down on line.
|
