Finding the right engine - for a hovercraft!

[ghosthunter]

Pssst.... when in doubt... use old tech.

Anyone has the specifications for the 1.3L / 1.5L / 1.6L engines for the old VW Beetle? It's pretty compact and aircooled meaning it would save weight because there is no water based cooling system.

Ironically, these engines are easier to find replacement parts for than some of the newer vintage cars we have in the city.

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Personally I would recommend an ultralight aircraft engine which is made from aluminum and aircooled. Downside I don't know where you can buy one and the last one I had access to was used in the Micro-Car 1 project back in college, about 15 years ago.

[fourtheboys96]

Thanks for the replies. I am looking into both kinds of engines now, the Nissan sounds interesting from a low maintenance point of view - but do you know how much it weighs? I notice it has a cast iron block, which often tends to make the engines too heavy to be useful.
Any more suggestions gratefully received - I'll keep you updated on the project progress.
Thanks
Rick

a lot of engines here are made from iron block and aluminum heads.

you might want to consider a small engine and add some modifications to increase power.

[niky]

The old 1600 makes maybe 75-85 hp... but yeah, the simplicity and lack of extra weight from having no liquid coolant will make it ideal for marine use. Good one, GH!

[drey]

+1 on the Old VW Beetle engine. It's flat similar to Boxer's Subaru and it's light.

[rickhartland]

Thanks for the info. I think the old VW engine may have been used in hovercraft before - so I will pass that suggestion on to my team of expert advisors (having never built a hovercraft before I have involved several people who know what they are doing from all around the world.) I'll let you know what they think.
Rick

[tebs]

the suzuki g13 engine is available here. and there are available parts for it. they used this engine for the suzuki samurai (being used by large companies for their fleet cars).

running price is at around 20-25k.

[rickhartland]

Thanks for all the help. As an update on the plans, we have now decided it might be better to build 2 smaller hovercraft, instead of one big one. The reason for this is that if one breaks down - out of reach somewhere on the river, we want another craft to be able to rescue it! So instead of using car engines, we will probably now use a 35hp engine from Briggs & Stratton. See here for details... http://www.commercialpower.com/displ...sp?DocID=76948
An industrial engine will probably be more reliable than an old car engine too - although a lot more expensive...
Anyway, thanks again, I'll post some pics later in the year when we start to build.
Rick

[empy]

Rick...i don't have anything to contribute to your question (it does look like you've got it all sorted out anyway), but i wanted to thank you for moving to a different country and devoting your time to help other people improve their quality of life.

God bless you! :2thumbsup:

[Horsepower]

Indeed.

Thank you Dr. Rick. Please let us know in what way we can help.