1899 La Jamais Contente (The Never Satisfied)
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Seemed kinda slow here in the gallery lately so I thought I'd throw in another
of my one-off models.This is the 1899 La Jamais Contente (The Never Satisfied). This electric car
was the first road vehicle to reach the speed of 100 km/h (62 mph). This land
speed record was set on April 29, 1899 by Camille Jenatzy, a Belgian race car
driver, at Achères, Yvelines near Paris, France.Camille Jénatzy was the son of Constant Jénatzy who was a manufacturer of
rubber tires, which at the time was still a novelty. Camille studied as an
engineer and he was always interested in electric traction automobiles, an
interest he utilized around 1898.Jénatzy had a passion for the Parisian electric carriage market, so he began
a manufacturing plant which would eventually produce numerous electric carriages
and trucks. His biggest competitor was carriage maker Jeantaud who he fiercely
competed against in publicity stunts to see who made the fastest vehicles.Refusing to lose in the competition, Jenatzy built a bullet shaped prototype,
conceived by the carriage maker Rothschild in parinium; an alloy of laminated
aluminum, magnesium and tungsten that was very expensive and lightweight.
The car was powered by two direct drive Postel-Vinay 25 kW motors, running at 200 V
drawing 124 Amperes for about 68 hp. The vehicle is capable of a top speed of
105.9 km/h (65.8 mph) with 100 x 2V cells. It was equipped with Michelin tires.
I cheated a bit here - in the orginal car the motors were enclosed so it would
just be a big red box. So to make it a bit more interesting I decided to model
the motors exposed like in one of the replicas.
Attached to a wood and steel undercarriage, Jenatzy's fuselage was tapered at both ends. Although that provided an excellent means of shrouding the 100 two-volt batteries carried onboard, a driver protruding out the top and the chassis slung below offset any streamlining benefits afforded by the torpedo body. Because of the strange steering tiller configuration, the driver couldn't even lean forward to cut down on the wind resistance.
a couple of chassis shots
Because the front axle was angled, they used this unusual spring arrangement for the steering
Photos of the vehicle in it's day are few and far between.
Here's one showing Camille Jenatzy, with his wife, driving La Jamais Contente in a victory parade (and doesn't she look thrilled}
and one of the car being prepped before a race
There are a number of replicas around. Here is one of the sillier ones
other than having four wheels, it bears little resemblance to the original. Note the little electric motor in the rear. Can't imagine what that was for, it certainly couldn't have been used to power the wheels.Couldn't close this without mentioning Jenatzy's downfall -
While on a hunting trip with friends in the Ardennes in 1913, Jenatzy believed it would be humorous to hide behind a stand of bushes and mimic the grunts of a wild boar. So convincing was his act that a friend, Alfred Madoux, responded with a shotgun blast in the direction of the sounds.
Despite the best effort of those in his party, Jenatzy succumbed to his injuries en route to the nearest hospital.What a really dumb way to go.
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Steve, Grrrr
Brilliant. It's great to view a series of models with a theme (one off/only one), I would love to see all these compiled into a book.When you take the plunge into rendering, I'm retiring.
John
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Excellent
And what a tragedy! 
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@tadema said:
Steve, Grrrr
Brilliant. It's great to view a series of models with a theme (one off/only one), I would love to see all these compiled into a book.When you take the plunge into rendering, I'm retiring.
John
Thanks, John
Got a bunch of them to post yet. Just need to find the time.
Don't worry about me taking the rendering plunge, it just ain't gonna happen. Ever. (and even if it did happen, nothing I could do could come close to your work)
Steve
@pilou said:
Excellent
And what a tragedy! Thanks, and yes, it was a really tragic way to go. What was he thinking, "hey, we're all out here with guns looking for something to kill, I'll hide and see if I can trick them into thinking I'm something they would like to shoot"
Wow
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Mate, these are so good. Absolutely love what you do. Every time I see them I'm inspired.
I know zero about cars but really enjoy reading your write ups, too.
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Just a quick question, do you model 'from eye' or do you have plans to work from?
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Great modeling and great read, thanks
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Fantastic model well up to your usual standards.
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@leedeetee said:
Mate, these are so good. Absolutely love what you do. Every time I see them I'm inspired.
I know zero about cars but really enjoy reading your write ups, too.
Just a quick question, do you model 'from eye' or do you have plans to work from?Thanks, Lee
I very rarely find useable plans or blueprints to work from. And when I think I have found one it usually turns out that they are not all that accurate. I really prefer to work by just eyeballing everything.
@mike lucey said:
Great modeling and great read, thanks
I appreciate the kind words, Mike. I tried to keep the narrative short, I sometimes get carried away with my enthusiasm and it turns into a novella
@mike amos said:
Fantastic model well up to your usual standards.
Many thanks, Mike.
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Very nicely done. I guess I ought to try that kind of modeling some day. Of course if I were modeling it. . it would called la "Jamais Capable" or La "Jamais Fonctionelle"
Tres Bien Fait Monsieur.
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@david_h said:
Very nicely done. I guess I ought to try that kind of modeling some day. Of course if I were modeling it. . it would called la "Jamais Capable" or La "Jamais Fonctionelle"
Tres Bien Fait Monsieur.
Ummm...I didn't understand a lot of that, but, yes, please do give it a try. We need more vehicle modelers here!!!!!
I'm so lonely
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Translation. . .the Never Capable or the Never Works.
I still struggle with getting window holes punched in walls.Well done, Monsieur. That's french for Senor!
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Beautiful! Well done! The undercarriage detail is incredible.
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