Since we’re on a bit of a diesel-fueled jag here, how about we take a listen (and look, although that’s secondary) to the two extreme ends of the 71 family. As you probably know, all of them have 71 cubic inches per cylinder, and they were made in 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, V6, V8, and V12 formats. There was also a V16, but it’s really mostly two V8s joined together.
The 1-71 is the rarest member, made only for a few years, as from 1938 until sometime in 1940. They came in three configurations: a genset, power take off (as in this video) and a marine version. They were rated at 15 hp @1200 rpm continuous. They could make more, as up to 25 hp @ 1600 rpm, but apparently these early versions were not happy at those higher speeds for long.
Speaking of, all DD “Jimmys” sound like they’re revving a lot higher than they actually are. Since they’re two-stroke engines, there’s twice as many exhaust cycles than a four stroke, so they sound just like they’re going twice as fast, as all two-strokes do.
I had a hard time finding a really good 12V-71 video, but this one is pretty good, of a Kenworth hauling 140k lbs crusher out of a quarry, with a little assist at the rear from a loader. It’s running at full speed, which is 2100rpm, at that speed it made 456 hp, unless it’s a turbocharged 12V-71T, in which case it was making 525 hp. Detroit Diesels did not have a huge jump in power when turbocharged, since they already had a mechanical blower out of necessity. In the turbo versions, the blower would cut out and the turbo took over at higher speeds.
I love the streamlined radiator on a stationary single cylinder engine.
Wow, that is a lot of noise for 15 horsepower. 🙂
It really is disconcerting trying to reconcile the low rpms with the 2x exhaust pulses. But that’s alright, because it is so much fun watching small stationary engines run.
I agree it is fun to watch small engines run. I was able to score from work, a brand new, still in the box 10hp Kipor air cooled diesel engine.Also got a new spare head and 3 new injection pumps. That was 2 years ago and I haven’t even looked at it. Might have to pull it out this summer and fire it up!
Wonderful sounds, both of them. Oliver and Massey-Ferguson used Detroit Diesel engines in their bigger tractors in the 50’s. You can find any number of videos of them doing quite well at vintage tractor pulls. The real odd duck was the John Deere 435 utility, which had a 2-53 Detroit Diesel motor (apparently there was a 53 cubic inch cylinder size). It was the last of the “two-cylinder” tractors, and it just sounds wierd compared to all the others-everybody looks up when a 435 shows up at the two-cylinder club. I know they were quite loud, but I miss hearing them pulling a load down the road.
The two stroke Detroit Diesels are an amazing engineering accomplishment that brought affordable, reliable, and economical diesel power worldwide. The incredibly simple design was incredibly efficient, robust, and powerful plus the modular design made it relatively easy to build larger motors by plugging existing pieces together like Lego blocks. The engineers even made the effort to make the engines aesthetically appealing with external design symmetry, something you rarely see any more.
The simple design was a big benefit in WWII not only for it’s efficiency but because it was easy to train young GI’s to repair them in the field using basic mechanical skills. Mechanics with minimal training can still tear down and rebuild an old school Detroit Diesel quickly and cheaply.
The very distinct roar of a Screaming Jimmy was a common sound until the end of the last century, and I loved the sound of the 8V92 Silver Series in my former motor home. These motor might still be in wide use today but for (needed) modern emission requirements, and are still in common use in older commercial gensets, marine applications, and construction equipment.
YouTube has many great videos of Detroit Diesels in actions, it is a great wormhole for petrolheads…
Miss hearing those ROADWAY cabovers with the screaming Detroit diesels! Even as a small child I knew that sound.
I was one of the lucky ones that helped repower some Roadway rigs with series 60 engines. Roadway chassis were driven for millions and millions of miles
in Europe they made tractors with single cylinder Diesel engines. Like the one below. AfaIk some were powered by Detroit Diesel. Pretty sure it was John Deere tractors . John Deere used different brand names in Europe, for whatever reason.
There were a number of single cylinder diesel engine tractors made in Europe, but none used the DD. The 1-71 was only made for a couple of years, and for stationary use only.
Lanz from Germany (taken over by John Deere) was very famous for its single-cylinder 2-stroke engines.
Below another one I caught in 2016, an HSCS tractor with a 7 liter single-cylinder 2-stroke.
BTW, I doubt if there were Euro-farm tractors with a DD 2-stroke.
When I worked as a design engineer for a truck company in the late seventies and early eighties, the Detroits (we sometimes called them “Dee-dads”, DDAD was Detroit Diesel Allison Division) were always a pain to fit in the frame or under the cab of a COE,with dual exhaust, large radiator, twin turbo’s and aftercoolers on the TTA versions. Plumbing the intake and exhaust was a litmus test of spatial and geometric visualization for a new engineer in those pre-CAD days. The inline six Cummins and Cat engines were much friendlier. But the sound of an 8V92 TT was nice. I am not sure if I ever saw a new 12V, perhaps one or two for off-highway use or export to the Philippines. Definitely not turbocharged.
Hehe, telling the girls to “Shh” when this earwax-remover is firing seems rather like asking someone not to fart at sewerage farm – not much point, really. I admire their bravery.
I wonder if Deutz ever made a two-stroke diesel for the road, as their air-cooled 4-stroke jobs made an almighty racket in use as it was. Adding 2-pulses and a shrieking supercharger might just split heads open.
The Detroits did make great sounds, especially on big old locomotives, but having stayed at a flat near the start of freeway years ago, the big rigs accelerating off interstate all night did wear a little thin. 12 gears and all them a-screamin’.
I had the pleasure of hearing plenty of V6 and V8 Detroit Diesels in the seventies, eighties and nineties. The heavy FTF trucks and tractors, built nearby, had them and several hauling companies in my region drove them.
One of them blasted through our street almost every evening, coming home from its working day. I remember it vividly, a blue and yellow 6×2 flatbed truck with a canopy, towing a matching full trailer.
The V12 was rare, only used in our battle tank haulers and some heavy haulage tractors. Here’s an example of the mighty tank hauler:
…it took a whole lot of scrolling down on https://nl-nl.facebook.com/fransderks88/
But this was it, the combination dates back to the eighties.
OMG a 6 wheeler pulling a 4 wheel trailer, quaint now days but big gear back in its day.
That was a typical set-up for international Euro-transport. Either that or a 4×2 truck towing a 6-wheeler, like below. In the end, they can haul the same cargo/volume.
Only skilled and experienced drivers were the masters of backing up such combinations fluently, both in a straight line and through a corner.
For international transport, these have all been replaced by 4×2 tractors with a tridem-axle semi-trailer. Easier to back up too.
That 1-71 has got the have the cutest little blower on it…
The best screaming jimmy noise was a 6V-53 getting its top speed governed RPM check with the air cleaner removed. Some vehicles had to have to air cleaner removed to access the governor. The blower on a 6V-53 uses a two lobe rotor that is straight. It really screams when you are at full RPM. If you had to adjust the top RPM on a 53 series it was a real pain because you had to add or remove shims, reinstall the spring pack and then crank it up and see what you had. We always referred to the 53 series as the Briggs&Stratton. It had a lot of steel shafts running directly on aluminum housings, no bearings or bushings. This worked OK if you kept the engine full of oil and did timely oil changes. Unfortunately these engines were usually in trucks that were not operated by well trained drivers.
Worked on many of these machines, turbochargers really improved the performance, helped especially at low RPM’s and quelled some of the smoke. Cooling the intake charge was one of the issues that restricted horsepower in the trucks. The 71 series dry cylinder liner was an additional handicap limiting horsepower. The wet liners in the 53 and 92 series were better at dissipating the heat. I believe top horsepower on the 6V-92 in trucks was 350 hp. Marine application 6V-92’s could be had with 440 hp.
Then you had the flip side problem in the winter. These engines pushed so much air thru them that keeping them warm in the winter was tough, especially the engines with out turbos. Full shutters on the radiator if they truck manufacturer offered them was the best solution or the winter front covering the grill was a necessary.
Ultimately emissions finished them off. Last time I was at the Detroit plant in Michigan was probably 2006, still building small quantities of 6V-92 and 8V-92 engines, military and construction equipment. 60 series was rolling off the main line and the new DD13-15 engines were in development.
Cool on Kwoppa pulling the crusher but I’m not a fan of the noise now I my prefer a big six pulling its guts out @1000rpm lugging up a steep climb, make mine caterpillar or Cummins,
Never heard of a 1-71 but theres plenty of single banger diesel stationary engines so why not a friend has a couple amongst his collection.
I worked at a gold mine in Nevada years ago that had a fleet of WABCO dump trucks with 16V-71s.
They did, indeed, appear to be two 8v-71s bolted together.
I am a serious Detroit fan, I love the sound and the total lack of electronics. The Japanese had a very similar motor but with an inline injection pump. The Rootes TS3 is a great sounding diesel too.
Having spent many days with a 6-71, after driving one all day, you will still hear it as you lay on your pillow and that sound will lull you off to dreamland.
My Dad had a V-12 Brockway in 1971 and it was rated at 600 hp. The reason for the “noise” is the roots blower turns twice as fast as the engine R.P.M.
The 53 series included 2-53, 3-53, and 4-53 (the first two of which were used primarily in refrigerated box cars and gen sets, although the M561 Gama Goat tactical vehicle used a 3-53). The 4-53 was a stationary gen set engine although the Canadian military used them in 2 1/2 ton tactical trucks. The 6V-53 is still in use today in the M113 Armored Personnel Carrier and the USMC Light Armored Vehicle. New 6V-53 engines are made at a Detroit reman facility in Kansas with support from another facility in Ohio.
Interesting. I’m guessing that’s from a government purchases perspective? Of course 53s saw all sorts of other civilian applications.
Don’t skip the 8, they were built, I’ve seen ’em. The 12? I’m not sure, that may be legend.
Never saw or heard a 1-71 run. Worked on many 6-71’s and 6-110’s in Euc scrapers. Also had a 66 GMC road tractor with a 6-71 pulling a flatbed to haul Cat 955 highlights from job to job. I believe they cleaned them up plenty for emissions when they upgraded to DDEC electronics. Whether 2 stroke or the series 60 4 stroke Detroit Diesel should still be building engines daily. All manufacturers have made a very good attempt at cleaning up there emission output, to no avail, nothing is ever good enough.
Detroit Diesel (now only called Detroit) is still making engines. Owned by Daimler, they are basically a captive supplier for Freightliner (also owned by Daimler). The old 71, 92, and 53 series engines never got DDEC afaik.