‘67 Aston Martin converted to run on multiple fuels for 2008

Dr. Rich McKone of Peoria, Illinois will convert his 1967 Aston Martin DB6 to run on multiple alternative fuels for the around-the-world Great Race in 2008.   “The Great Race 2008: New York to Paris”  will be a re-run of a similar event created a century ago to showcase the newly invented automobile before the advent of today’s modern highways and refueling systems.

Instead of running the historical British sports car in the Schuster Class for automobiles that are at least 25 years old and older, McKone and Price intend to participate in the Innovation Class to showcase the viability of renewable fuels.

“Just as our predecessors set out to prove the automobile was able to travel long distance a century ago, the McKone-Price Racing team will prove that renewable fuels can provide a viable alternative a century later,” said Price.

“Even today, we have the technology to convert a car as exotic as the DB6 to run on 5 different alternate fuels. We encourage the auto industry to following our lead and begin producing vehicles that can burn up to 2 or 3 different fuels, so we are not captive to any one energy provider.”

McKone will serve as the navigator in the 22,000-mile trek from New York to Paris. Lead driver and mechanic will be Jerry Price from Plymouth, Wisconsin. Price has more than 30 years experience in alternative fuel vehicles and has raced them in a variety of contests.

Dr. McKone’s idea to convert the Aston’s aluminum straight 6 motor to burn multiple alternative fuels came after meeting Jerry Price at the Vintage car race in Elkhart Lake, WI. Price’s family has been in the alternate fuel business since 1953.

“I chose to convert an Aston Martin because it is a sexy car that draws a crowd,” explained McKone. “I felt that if I had an interesting car that was converted to run on alt fuels, it would get more publicity and the public would by more willing to hear the results.”

Once the idea received EPA approval, McKone contacted Bradley University, also located in Peoria, to see if they were interested in making the conversion a senior class project for the Mechanical Engineering Program.

Renewable fuel interests from all over the world have pledged support for the McKone Price racing team. Many of these organizations will provide practical and logistical support in their quest to circumnavigate the globe, much like in 1908, when car dealerships worldwide sponsored the racers in their mission to make sure the automobiles finished.

McKone, a 17-year Great Race veteran, recently ran the Aston Martin, powered by gasoline in the 2007 Great American Race, from Concord, North Carolina to Anaheim, California, finishing 9th overall with Jack Christensen, from Hawthorn Woods, Illinois, doing the navigating.

Early in the race, McKone and Christensen earned the best one-day score in Great Race history, scoring less then one-second off perfect time for the 300-mile drive from Spartanburg, South Carolina to Chattanooga, Tenn.

The Aston gave the team minimal problems during the 4,000-mile race. In order to prepare for next year, the car will need a few modifications to be race ready, including installing ethanol friendly carburetors, which are made with more stainless steel than rubber fittings and different jets for ethanol than for gasoline. Skid plates will be added to the bottom of the car to protect the engine during the drives on dirt roads between China and Paris.

“Being a part of the 2008 race Innovative Class is the opportunity of a lifetime, especially since it’s the first time in 100 years that it’s been done” said McKone. “After the 2008 race, I figure there will only be about 125 people in the history of the world that have done an an around the world car race, but none with five different renewable fuels.”

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 21st, 2007 at 3:17 pm and is filed under New York to Paris. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.