July Social Meeting: Replicating a 1914 Delage Grand Prix Type-S Engine Block

Philip Guilfoyle will join us on Tuesday the 9th of July, to speak about the incredible replication of the block from a 1914 Delage Grand Prix Type-S. The event will be held at Ryde Eastwood Club at 11AM on Tuesday the 9th of July.

Imagine an engine of 4.4 litres, the block and cylinder head cast as one piece, 5-piece crank on ball bearing mains, twin overhead camshafts running 4 valves per cylinder off a Desmodromic system. This allowed for some really deep breathing into Pent-roof combustion chambers! Such was the motor designed for the 1914 Delage Grand Prix Type-S.

Two 1913 Delage racing cars – known as the earlier “Type Y” (non-Desmodromic) were sent over to the USA for the 1914 Indianapolis event. Thomas won the race and Guyot placed third – a real tribute to the Delage design. US Driver Barney Oldfield liked the cars so much he drove a later “S” type model in the 1916 Indy meeting, finishing in 5th place.

Barney Oldfield’s car was subsequently brought over to Australia in the mid-1920s for Melbourne driver George McCarey. He raced it at the Aspendale track in Melbourne and later in Sydney, where in December, 1925, he won the inaugural meeting at the Maroubra banked track. Lex Davison then bought the car. Following his passing on in 1965, his widow Diana had the car refurbished. The car was sold to current owner Stuart Murdoch in 1975 – who has since driven the car at many events.

In 2014 the block developed a crack in one of the cylinders. The damage was so great that a brave decision was made to replicate the block, using state of the art techniques. Serious planning was required, with the CSIRO becoming involved doing 3-D printing of the sand moulds, as well as calling in various Australian companies that specialise in CAD drawings, foundry casting, laser measuring and more. The meticulous planning and the clever way each of the processes came together have resulted in a perfect copy of the motor block. The end result is a real success story – the motor ran perfectly and is now back in the car.

The good news for HSRCA members is that Philip Guilfoyle, of Sydney based company “Vintage Restoration Management”, will provide us with his own excellent presentation to show just how this 1914 motor was cleverly recreated by using space age technology. It will be a really interesting presentation, so we would like to see you at 11:00 am on Tuesday the 9th of July, at the Ryde Eastwood Leagues Club,117 Ryedale Rd, West Ryde. The talk will be followed by lunch at the venue, should you wish to eat as well! Not need to book – just front up.