Duesenberg back after 70 years

It’s been a while since we’ve seen a new Duesenberg. Like 70 years. The wait may soon be over. A Minnesota company bought the name in 1996 and are working on bringing the Duesenberg Torpedo Coupe to market.

For my eyes it is a stunning car to look at, but it’s under the hood that this concept will really stand out. The design has a 12 cylinder engine called the Cylindrical Engine Module which is like nothing you have ever seen. It’s based on, of all things, a firefighter pump that designer Paul Eddie patented in 1992. It rotates on an axis which sucks fuel into the inner works. It’s self lubricating, so it needs no air pump. It’s also air-cooled, like the original Duesenbergs were, because it generates a sixth of the heat of a normal engine. To top it all off, it is engineered for both gas and diesel.

No word if a prototype even exists, or if it will be in the car as it is unveiled in Pebble Beach next year. Whenever the car is ready, the makers hope to make 25 to 50 a year. Price? If you can afford a Rolls-Royce Phantom, you can afford one of these.