Il Tempo Gigante – Norway’s Most Famous Car

By ThorNews on September 6, 2012 • ( 0 )

All Norwegians have a close relationship with the racing car Il Tempo Gigante from the Norwegian stop motion-animated feature film ‘Flåklypa Grand Prix’ from 1975 (Pinchcliffe Grand Prix). The car was designed by the author and illustrator Kjell Aukrust, but is in the film constructed by bicycle repairman and inventor Reodor Felgen and driven by him in the race ‘Flåklypa Grand Prix’.

The car has lots of extra equipment and homemade features, such as two speedometers, where one stops at 155 mph (250 km/h), and the other takes over and continues to 250 mph (400 km/ h). In the movie, the car is sabotaged by the two main rivals Rudolf Blodstrupmoen and his psychic assistant Mysil Bergsprekken. The little, helpless hedgehog Ludvig discovers the error – a broken, sawn in two electrical distributor – and manages to keep the car together till the race is finished.

The Full-scale Replica

Il Tempo Gigante is also constructed in a full-scale replica by Ivo Caprino. The car measures 6.70 meters, or a trifle over 22 feet, from cranking handle to exhaust pipe, and has a beam of 2.48 meters (8 feet). In the film we get the following description of this awe-inspiring roadster:

Il Tempo Gigante has two engines, one up forward packing twelve cylinders, which at 11 000 revs develops 800 brake horse power. This in turn starts the turbine engine at the rear, with its octagonal carburetor ignition, which gives an extra kick of about 1200 hp at 18000 revs. Jointly these two engines will produce a boost guaranteed to register 5.3 on the Richter scale.

Special equipment includes radar, which provides continuous information on camber and curve radius and unforeseen incidents en route. The TV screen mounted on the dashboard gives the driver a clear picture of rivals disappearing astern. Other extra features a wind-gauge and a trip-counter, compass and barometer, echo-sounder and two speedometers, a peepsight and rotary hydro-valves, as well as a blood bank with Rhesus plus and minus, and a dash of blue blood, should any aristo happen to get in the way.

The car is built in its entirety at the Caprino Filmcenter studios in Norway, a task that took some twelve months, and was carried out under the vigilant eye of the Ministry of Transport inspectors, to ensure that the finished article satisfies all safety regulations. It is licensed as a veteran car, weighs some 6000 pounds, and accelerates from 0 to 100 km an hour in just about 6 seconds.

It did cost a fortune to build.

See the construction of the full-scale replica: