I never knew Ford made an "X-8" engine?!

[King T]

I didn't know this existed until a few days ago! Very interesting concept. I wonder what a modern version would be like?


The X-8 engine built by Henry Ford in 1924

It was air cooled and was actually tested in the Model T but was too heavy. It was then fitted into an Oldsmobile but because of ground clearance problems the motor had to be mounted very high in the frame. Interesting what went on in R&D of the time.

This engine is documented as the second of two air-cooled prototype radial X-8 engines designed and built by Henry Ford. The first X-8 was built in 1919 and tested in a specially built X-Car. The second X-8 was built in 1924 and secretly tested in an Oldsmobile. It was driven around the Detroit area for over one year. This engine had the greatest appeal to Mr. Ford of his various designs, both air-cooled and water-cooled, that he first considered in 1919 to eventually replace the Model T four cylinder engine used through 1927. After test driving this exact X-8 engine in an Oldsmobile for over one year, Henry Ford decided the engine lacked power and later developed the flathead V-8 design which was introduced in 1932 and lasted through 1953, with design changes along the way.

Mr. Ford eventually placed this experimental X-8 engine (having been driven and road tested) in his museum at Greenfield Village where it was to remain forever to be shared with the general public. However, this engine was apparently miscataloged and later showed up in the museum inventory as a 1946 company project that was abandoned along the way. As a result, this X-8 was removed from its display in the museum and relegated to a spot on the concrete floor in the Sorghum Mill, an old building within Greenfield Village where several dozen other experimental and test engines were stored. Many years later, it was among numerous engines designated for house cleaning and was put up for sale at the 1982 Greenfield Village Fundraiser Auction along with numerous old radial airplane engines. The Wright Brothers infamous Kitty Hawk engine was also mistakenly sold at this auction.

[Angrybird 12]

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

[King T]

A one-off car that was made utilizing the X-8 engine

1935 Hoffman X-8










Roscoe C. (Rod) Hoffman graduated from Purdue University in 1911 with a degree in mechanical engineering. In 1934, he started a company called Hoffman Motor Developments based in Detroit, Michigan. He was an independent engineering who was well connected in the automobile industry. His resume may have included work for GM, Studebaker and Packard. At around the age of 47, he began work on a special project - a car now called the Hoffman X-8.

Among the Packards, Ferraris, and Cobras on the lawn at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours, there were some wonderful oddballs. One such car was the 1935 Hoffman X-8 that Myron Vernis of Akron, Ohio, brought with him to the Pebble Beach lawn. During the concours dozens of people could be seen reaching for their programs to search for information on the Hoffman X-8.

From the front, its shield-shaped grill and headlights give the little car a striking, art-deco appeal. In profile and from behind, it looks a bit like a two-thirds scale Tatra. Like the Czech car it was a novel approach to car-building for its time. It's a steel unibody car, and its engine is mounted behind the passenger compartment, just like a Tatra. Unlike the Hans Ledwinka's creation, however, the X-8's engine is mounted in front of the rear axle, making it a mid-engine car.

The Hoffman X-8 was given a 115 inch wheelbase, 181.35 overall length, and weighed around 3100 lbs. It had an all-steel unitized body and frame with honeycomb floor perimeter strengthening members. Up front is a tubular front axle, front transverse leaf springs, front trailing arms and tube shocks. In the back was a fully independent half shafts with Cardan joints at each end, plus longitudinal leaf springs and trailing arms. However the car came about, it is an absolute marvel of futuristic automotive engineering ca 1932-5. Built with an all-steel unit body construction, independent suspension, this car is powered by an X8 engine that had eight cylinders arranged in an X configuration. The X-8 engine is the true marvel of the car. Water cooled with overhead valves and twin cams, it is almost assuredly the only car ever built around an X configuration engine. The engine cylinder powerplant is approximately 170 cubic-inches, and puts out 75 hp. The entire car is a true one-off.

The X-8 is powered by—you guessed it--an X-8 engine with eight cylinders, arranged in an X configuration. Henry Ford experimented with X-8 engines but the one in this car is a unique design. While Ford's X-8's were air-cooled flatheads, this car's engine has overhead cams and it's water-cooled.

The X-8 was built as a prototype by an inventor named Roscoe C. Hoffman of Detroit. It's unclear which carmaker it was intended for, but Vernis believes that either the Fisher brothers or Henry Ford funded the project.

In 1961, Hoffman gave the car to Brooks Stevens as a gift and it remained in the famed designer's museum even after his death in 1995. Stevens' son, David Stevens was on hand with Vernis, eagerly assisting him in explaining just exactly what the X-8 was and what it was doing on the lawn at the most prestigious car show in the world.

[derklug]

Lot's of odd designs came out of the early years, I would have thought it was designed more for Ford's Flitters(cars that convert to airplanes).

[Kyle2k]

Wish there was an exhaust clip

[drummer5679]

thats the new gt500 engine

[King T]

Originally Posted by Kyle2k

Wish there was an exhaust clip

Here's a clip from Jay Leno's Garage on youtube where he talks to the owner of the Hoffman X-8. Unfortunately, we can't hear the car too much