Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com - View Single Post - Wheel base history (something to fall asleep with)

California98Civic · 06-30-2021, 09:31 AM

I found an 1872 book called the Coachmaker's Handbook. It's purpose is to teach coachmaking and offer professionally scaled draftsman instructions and other craft details. Images of coaches are pretty carefully scaled. Free on the ever-fabulous archive.org: https://archive.org/details/coachmak...0ware/mode/2up

This "diagram 8" below is for a "Six Seat Rockaway." The rockaway was a common type in the period. Those eye-shaped springs over the wheels are exactly 12" high, suggesting a wheel base of possibly nine feet, maybe closer to ten. Diagram 7 is a "Six Seat Sociable" of between 7.5 and 8' wheelbase. And diagram 3 is a "Covered Buggy" with a wheelbase of exaclty 51.5"--the only time the book offers an actual measurement you can easily translate into "wheelbase."

Still, the book and my effort to find wheel base standards for these, kinda demonstrates there was no "standard" other than general proportions of the human body and how many one wanted to fit into a carriage. That's still true today, of course. The wheel base of "compact" cars does not have a strict standard.

06-30-2021, 09:31 AM	#8 (permalink)
California98Civic Cyborg ECU Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Coastal Southern California Posts: 6,299 Black and Green - '98 Honda Civic DX Coupe Team Honda 90 day: 66.42 mpg (US) Black and Red - '00 Nashbar Custom built eBike 90 day: 3671.43 mpg (US) Thanks: 2,373 Thanked 2,172 Times in 1,469 Posts	I found an 1872 book called the Coachmaker's Handbook. It's purpose is to teach coachmaking and offer professionally scaled draftsman instructions and other craft details. Images of coaches are pretty carefully scaled. Free on the ever-fabulous archive.org: https://archive.org/details/coachmak...0ware/mode/2up This "diagram 8" below is for a "Six Seat Rockaway." The rockaway was a common type in the period. Those eye-shaped springs over the wheels are exactly 12" high, suggesting a wheel base of possibly nine feet, maybe closer to ten. Diagram 7 is a "Six Seat Sociable" of between 7.5 and 8' wheelbase. And diagram 3 is a "Covered Buggy" with a wheelbase of exaclty 51.5"--the only time the book offers an actual measurement you can easily translate into "wheelbase." Still, the book and my effort to find wheel base standards for these, kinda demonstrates there was no "standard" other than general proportions of the human body and how many one wanted to fit into a carriage. That's still true today, of course. The wheel base of "compact" cars does not have a strict standard. Attached Thumbnails __________________ See my car's mod & maintenance thread and my electric bicycle's thread for ongoing projects. I will rebuild Black and Green over decades as parts die, until it becomes a different car of roughly the same shape and color. My minimum fuel economy goal is 55 mpg while averaging posted speed limits. I generally top 60 mpg. See also my Honda manual transmission specs thread. Last edited by California98Civic; 06-30-2021 at 11:49 AM.. Reason: add two more photod with better estimates of wheelbase