R.M. Owen was my great grandfather. I've known about the Owen Magnetic since I was a child. I'd only have seen pictures of it. Thanks Jay. I've never seen it in motion. So cool to see one running. Electric transmission...
@@pinkiesue849 The genius is Justus Enz, though, he made the actual designs and Jay said that multiple times. R.M Owen would be the owner that hired the genius.
Ya that’s what I was thinking too. But he probably thought it was good just to keep it there because he might loss it some other way so it stays with him in the car
First time Jay dropped that envelope in the seat was when Bonaparte said "Du haut de ces pyramides quarante siècles nous contemplent !" on Gyzeh plateau... and I guess he doesn't remember either...
@@Cadadadry C'est vrais. I sympathize. I used to have a lousy memory, but since I banged my head on the driver's side glass (didn't break it, thank le bon Dieu!), when a young blockhead T-boned me in the middle of an intersection, plus Old Age, now I have _none._ Stay safe.
Mr. Leno, I look forward to your RU-vid videos every week, they are an education and a true description of what a car enthusiast is all about. Thank you for your time!
Every machine you own is a treasure of mechanical history. But Jay I gotta say this ( to me) is the most amazing reincarnation that could have ever been done. You must have a literal fortune in it. I'm nearly 80 yrs old and been a gear head all my life. This a master piece and the most impressive accomplishment I could ever dream of seeing. I am in awe and feel so blessed n lucky to see this before I pass. There's no way I could truly tell you the sense of beauty and gratitude I have for your sharing this. You are the only one like you. Sincerely -- thank you for doing this and sharing it. Dan Seals
I kinda wonder how he copes driving so many different types of vehicles which each require different unrelated operating techniques for gear shifting , engine throttle, braking , clutch operation if applicable, starting procedure......
@@michaelcorbidge7914 He understands mechanics pretty well, I don`t have a problem of operating/assembling-reassembling different computers, phones and other electrical devices as a repair technician. But mechanics is my weakest side. On the other hand, I`m not so much interested in it. If you are really into it, you will know.
He can be pretty critical towards people who do come off as "better". Famously, he was interviewing somebody who said he wouldn't get a Ferarri because "everyone has one". Jay said, no not everyone has a Ferarri or can afford one. My parents can't afford a Ferarri." Leno doesn't even like Ferarris apparently, he doesn't own one but does own 8 or 10 Lamborghinis.
Jay, my birthday was April 3rd. I turned 58. I'm an Electronic Engineer. You did a great job explaining the Owen Magnetic. I had never heard of them. I have traveled all over Norway and spent a good bit of time there and loved it. And I am a SERIOUS car guy having spent the first 30 years of my life building and racing car and motorcycles. That is a super cool ride and you did a great restoration on it! Thanks for the Birthday Gift!! Again, great explanation!!
Feels like that to me too! Amazing car! And Jay - I use an Optima 6 volt AGM in my Packard 243 Touring (built May 1926). And it did require a charger upgrade.
@Stev Raznick So what? Made a living, collected great cars, teaches others about these cars. I grew up among antique cars and appreciate what he does and what I learn from him.
Jay Leno is truly a gem. He's preserving parts of history that few could or want to do. His finances assure things are done correctly and as true to original design as humanly possible. Some may see this as wasteful, but any piece of history that is saved is worth the effort, and I hope he understands how appreciative we are
11:15 Willy C. M. Gilbert was a Norwegian sailor who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics. He was a crew member of the Norwegian boat Mosk II which won the gold medal in the 10 metre class. per Wiki
I like how handy those grease cups were for the back leaf springs. There was also a couple of those under the hood too. So much easier and cleaner than climbing under and trying to plug onto a grease nipple.
@@JohnCline Didn't know there was someone on the internet who understood the workings of an over 100-year-old state-of-the-art vehicle of which only a handful were made but I guess you never know.
He often makes note of the notion, that he has zero knowledge of the 105 yr.old automobiles first 75 years! How many men drove this vehicle, before it was parked, and sold to Jay. He's being sincerly ignorant.....
@@marioreali5925 He's done videos about it before and is well aware that it's a coolant passage cover, which is why it got corroded, which is why they had to scan it with laser beams etc etc. But it goes on top of the engine and has a cork gasket just like a valve cover and it's very easy for one's brain (esp. for gentlement of a certain age) to just slip into calling it a valve cover. Of course, the big coolant hose on the front of it is a clue, too.
That $9,000 in 1913 (as far back as the BLS CPI calculator goes) equates to over $240,000 in today’s dollars, amazing that they produced any of these at all, so glad Jay saved it.
My mind is blown with the technology so long ago, the insane price tag, and how any of these ever left a concept stage. Then to watch Mr. Leno drive something that should just be an article in a classic car book.
Agree 100•\° ...at the speeds it could go, it must have been something of a supercar for the day. Now there is the hybrid Königsegg, seems like full circle today
"It's fun to look at this period of history when everything wasn't set in stone..." It's the same with firearms. I love the older ones because they hadn't figured out what works best so there was a lot of different experimentation of designs and some of them are just really interesting and unique.
Sure they did, it was from the Old World, they let us have a few of these magneto cars because they actual ran on fuel... in between demolishing buildings and patenting everything in sight!!
@@Jimmy_Watt they are letting Jay Leno have the tip of the ice berg of what they got. You really think some dad and his kid built what amounts to a fuel cell vehicle, that drives better than any gasoline car, in 1890? It was already here for a thousand years.
Jay Leno is a national treasure I don’t know to many people that would have found a rusted vintage vehicle in Norway and bring it back to life, absolutely amazing craftsmanship
This is not just a car review, it's a glimpse of history. I mean, to think that 100 years ago you'd have such an innovative concept wayyy ahead of its time. Its also a piece of art, gorgeous. Thanks Jay.
Good to see that I'm not the only one to think that in terms of design, innovation and sheer beauty we may not have moved as far ahead as we may like to think!
Im so happy that you spend your money to preserve these amazing pieces of history. I hope that someday your collection can be in a museum for everyone to see.
I love how Jay acrually drives his cars no matter how rare or how much they are worth. Some people have all these amazing cars and never drive them. They were made to drive and can be fixed.
He says on another video "buy a 100 point Concours car, drive it until it's a 10 point car, then restore it again!" I agree. If you can afford half a million dollars for what is essentially a toy, you can certainly afford to drop a couple hundred thousand on another restoration every 10 or 15 years.
Some folks even race them. They don't treat them with kid gloves; they're driven to their true potential. Check out the 'Goodwood Festival of Speed' videos on RU-vid, for some examples of cars dating back as far as 1905 are raced every year.
Yeah. While you can't do all with it, metal deposition 3D printers are now a thing and affordable enough for collectors to replace cast components and putting and maintaining those oldies in proper state.
@@cdgonepotatoes4219 interesting tid-bit... some years ago, the Marmon owners club got together to discuss the problems they were having with their V-16 engines. The aluminum heads were becoming so badly corroded the cars were becoming undrivable. Now, there's only about 75 Marmon Sixteens extant, so they approached Edelbrock about custom casting and machining new replacement cylinder heads. Edelbrock quoted them a price of $15,000 EACH. The owner's club said, "GREAT! We'll take 100 sets!" Like I said, these people have very deep pockets. They're not looking to save money just because 3D printing is less costly than pouring a sand casting. They'll pay however much it costs to keep their shiny pretties running, and they can afford it. $85,000 for a rebuilt engine, plus another $30,000 to buy new heads? It's pocket change to them.
Jay Leno, Automotive Historian, Restoration Expert, & Driving Enthusiast. A true connoisseur, & laid back curator of his lifetime collection efforts. THANKS FOR SHARING.
I used to shun him for his political views. But since I started watching these episodes I have found new respect for Jay. So knowledgeable that it’s easy to listen to passively.
I love these pandemic versions. The part when Jay brings out the photo album and baby book to show us his grown son lol. Thank you Jay for this content.
Jay, thank you for solid stewardship of classic cars. I haven't seen such a large collection of well cared for classics since attending the grand opening of AUTOWORLD in my hometown, Flint Mi. Keep up the good work Sir 😀
The previous owner is my friend, Izzy. He is 95 years old. He bought the car from Norway in the late 60s, and it was shipped to Los Angeles. It started up as soon as he put a battery on it. No effort there. His brother was a former pupil of Frank Lloyd Wright and was teaching architecture in Norway, who told his students to keep their eyes open for any unusual cars. The Owen had become folklore in Norway at the time and that's how Izzy got it! It had 9,000 miles on it at the time Izzy brought it to Los Angeles.
@@steph_tsf - Don't think EVs will become practical until they standardize on 3 or 4 universal battery sizes/shapes! You stop at a station, drop out the discharged battery, have a charged battery shoved up and in, and drive onward... computer will keep track of what your old and new battery are worth each time you swap batteries...
@@BuzzLOLOL Right. On long weekends, I drive 250 miles to a property with no electricity. I might get there on batteries, but if I do, I'm stuck at the end of a dirt road.
I didn't know who Mr. Bill was when everyone knew who Mr. Bill was, at my level you had to have been confiscated by Mormons to blip. Still, it's been a reasonably enjoyable derivative haul.
They had a lot of them. Electric and hybrids. It's a forgotten part of history it seems. You can read snippets if you find old magazines from the 1900's. Almanac compilations are the biggest source, some places on the web you can find them. Funny thing, not just the concepts of the cars are "novel" but also the magazines. Some pages, i swear, they could've been made in the 1990's or 2000's. You can find some on Archive(dot)org.
When I worked at NBC, Jay would come to work driving a different car. He always took the time to tell me what that strange three wheeled car was, or how much more he had to do to finish the restore on the Shelby Cobra. A great guy, always willing to educate a guy that was clueless about cars.
Does HE Hate People Looking AT him ??? Does HE Fire People for looking at him that he doesn't want looking at him ??? Does he want people to avert their eyes from him if he feels he is a superior person ?>? [ I think I noticed that in his videos, people averting their eyes and not looking at him ! ] man some people are weird af ! deep seeded psych issues much ?
@@robertrickett7816 idk if your playing dumb or not. this is a question type specifically tailored for someone who personally knows Leno and would have the knowledge. i.e *YOU* However, I do understand if you are reluctant to speak on such things.
@@renwoxing8287 okay, Jay is exactly what you see, friendly, open, highly intelligent, and as I said willing to educate folks about his favorite subject, old cars. When I worked at NBC as security, he was subbing for Carson. He'd stop at the gate were folks stood to see stars passing through to the studios, just to talk. The first time we actually met, he saw me getting ready to leave work, on my candy apple red Harley-Davidson. He stopped to talk about my bike, and asked if I was going to Sturges Bike Week. No I work at NBC, can't afford it, and added unless you hire me as a body guard. The next day I went to an agency, got bonded, and rode to Sturges as his body guard. It was funny, cause he's a good 4" taller than me. It was a good two half week.
Jays love of these cars is stellar, he will always have my respect for how much he might spend to restore one. I have always been like him when it comes to any car I have owned. Just respect it and take good care of it!
I'm quite impressed with your restoration and this vehicles drive systems! I'm a retired autobody repairman,and I tried to send you a message yrs ago don't use wD40,it's acid based,use liquid wrench,or mix deisel fuel with iodine too loosen stuck parts! Thank you! David Russell
@@Markver1 Ah, one of my favorite French sayings, "Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose." At 80, I often think how it's true. (It applies to old codgers, too, n'est-ce pas?)
I find it fascinating that Jay has such a great memory for each vehicle for all of the cars and motorcycles that he owns and drives. Some of them are quite eccentric to remember all the details about with starting and operating them, I don't know if I could do it.
It has to do with your interests. Jay has a burning interest in anything car related, so for him it's relatively easy to remember odd details about odd cars. I bet there are other things that he doesn't find as easy to remember the details about. My father was a gardener. He could tell you the Latin name of just about any plant you showed him and remembered an astonishing number of details about things like growing conditions, growing zones and anything related to the care and feeding of said plants. At the same time he had absolutely no interest in computers, and no matter how many times I showed him how to do something simple we would forget it as soon as the screen was turned off, and often sooner than that. But he also had a great interest for sailing and owned several sail yachts over the years. Once GPS started to come down in price he wanted a GPS Chartplotter, which at the time was still very expensive. But he managed to find out about GPS receivers you could connect to a PC using RS232 and chartplotter programs that was developed for the airplane industry. Got hold of a pretty crappy portable and the hard ware and software needed. Then he asked me to install everything. After a lot of swearing and grumbling about lack of standards and software licensing from H I managed to get things to talk to each other. The nautical charts were a night mare to get working as it seemed every provider had their own standard, and the chart program on the PC didn't natively read any of them. I had worked as an IT technician for 20 years, and I was barely able to get it all working. And once I had it at least start and loading the nautical charts that was about as far as I got using the system. But my father managed to learn how to use it. He probably used less than 10% of all the functions and features, but it got him from A to B without visiting rocks C, D, E or F and that was about what he wanted. I still don't understand how he managed to learn how to use that program as he never managed to really get the hang of things like using the mouse and selecting text input fields or clicking on graphical buttons. Point is he had an interest in navigation, and so he learned how to use the very complex and very user unfriendly program, even though it ran on a computer which was the same as saying it was all black magic to him.
I agree about his vast knowledge of cars, but this is the first video of his where it _seemed_ like he was reading a fact sheet. You get a feel for this starting at 22:29. He's using words and phrases that he doesn't seem totally familiar with. The rest of the video seemed like usual Jay, but under the car, it felt like he was reading something. And who could blame him? Before I saw this vid, I didn't even know this car existed, much less how a magnetic power system works.
I wish I was Jay Leno...He resides in car heaven and is the caretaker of heavens cars...Imagine...If you were retired from actual work, work you loved and kept you going enthusiastically through life and needed something beyond your work to keep your mind and Spirit alive...Well...Jay has that something...One of the finest and most eclectic collection of cars in the world...You could never get bored and your mind rendered stale...Getting up in the morning would be a joy to behold...Thanks for sharing your collection with us Jay...The next best thing we can have, from actually owning or looking after the collection ourselves...
Man, you were born for this. You keep it thorough and steady in detail and never dull. This proves the real value that video education can offer. Fascinating stuff. Thanks
If only cars like this were more affordable at the time ! Maybe engineers of today will appreciate the advanced technology from 100 years ago and incorporate it into today's technology. Thanks Jay for bringing this magnificent car back to life !
True. I think, though, this technology is too inefficient compared to, say, the Volt. Wonder why they stopped making the Volt. A friend still has two (one leased for his wife) and loves them.
People need to start questioning more. The idea they came up with this at the level of tech we are told they were at, is laughable. This car is the tip of the icerberg, the rest was destroyed, melted down, blown up. OLD WORLD TECH like FIREPLACES WITHOUT CHIMNEYS
That's the coolest thing I've seen in a long time.. I'm going to share this with my older brother. he's got a 1970 dodge charger Black on blue, numbers matching. hemi, and for his wife, she's got a show room ready 1969 red and cream Ford pickup truck.one owner, and has all of the paperwork,even the cancelled check. Thanks for the cool car, and the back story too..
Willy C. M. Gilbert (September 10, 1881 - June 20, 1956) was a Norwegian sailor who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics. He was a crew member of the Norwegian boat Mosk II which won the gold medal in the 10 metre class (1919 rating).
Amazing- the knowledge, diligence, great routine in telling stories and Jay’s care for preserving automotive history. What a talented, hard working individual.
Jay: I believe that large cylindrical part under the car that you weren't sure about is a "Power Resistor" which is engaged during electric braking. The electric motor sees this huge resistance when the brakes are engaged causing it to slow down.
More specifically the drive motor operates as a generator when slowing down/braking. But that power has to go somewhere and before regenerative braking was possible it was fed in to the resistor where the energy is dissipated as heat.
It's actually a very low resistance, to let more current through to dissipate more power. Just like the dynamic braking resistors on a diesel locomotive, which are usually under half an Ohm.
@@fyrrydr4g0n 0.5ohms only?? wow!! thats like the secondary of a step down 12 volt transformer, basically a short circuit!! you can burn your hands by simply shorting a new aa battery with such low ohms
I just love that Jay not only runs this as a museum, but a state of the art vehicle restoration enterprise. That valve cover probably wouldnt have turned out as nice if someone copied it in a shed somewhere.
The Volt was slept on. They were really fun cars and I miss the one I used to drive. Almost *too* fun to drive because I couldn't keep my foot out of it. Cool to get to see its ancestor.
I'll never give up my 2015 Volt! The Owen Magnetic is the perfect prototype for the Volt, right down to the ICE driving a generator and the regenerative braking! Great show, Jay!✌️
This car was in my neighbors garage for several years and he worked on it from time to time. When I saw the photo of it in the driveway, I recognized my neighbors driveway in chatsworth, California. His name was Jim Kutch. He worked on many many cars and he was very skilled and produced beautiful work. He never finished this, and sold it to his friend Izzy, which was mentioned in the video,That Jay Leno bought the car from. I remember him at one point getting it running and it was just a shell with a seat and driving around the neighborhood.
Just about what I said. It took a hundred years to figure out if you took this car and stuffed in a giant high density battery you could run it, part time on electric power, now thats progress, LOL. This Owens guy should have got together with Tesla, with a few Tesla coils to send it some power it really could have been a true EV 101 years ago.
Wished that Jay actually answered comments on his RU-vid channel. Pretty sure he just has someone else in control of the channel. Never gives any likes or hearts people’s comments.
Oh no Mr. Bill!!!!! Thanks for that one Jay!!! As a young boy I would be allowed to stay up with my older sister to watch SNL. I wasn't even ten years old yet.. Great memories!!!
What a great car and a fine example of the fact that an awful lot of what we do today is often not ground breaking stuff but refinements of previous engineering brilliance. Thank you Mr Leno for sharing your wonderful collection in this way.
@@briankirby6714 If Tesla were smart they'd embrace hydrogen technology with everything they got, but I heard Elon say that hydrogen is the worst possible solution. It's a shame he doesn't understand.
love ur passion for old stuff , when i go to antique truck shows i try to think what it must have been like when the truck was brand new like 1947 peterbuilt with 1000 +cubic inch gas engine , how a driver would be like wow this is nice all this power “185 hp.” two transmissions a 5 speed an a 4 speed aux. nothing more no a/c no radio one wiper blade an still in 1947 this was top of tha line
I know what it is. I'm 48 years old. My grandparents were born 1903 and 1908, and passed at the end of the 90's. My grandfather was an inventor, and auto mechanic , also worked for AV. Roe. He had a few garages running from the mid 1920's up to 1975, when his last garage closed down. He was still welding, under cars, creating gizmos for his cars right up to his passing. All his garages were located on the eastern side of Toronto, Ontario. I was lucky to have him around. His creative engineering and inventive perceptions molded themselves into me. I have known of this car since a wee little brat, though I certainly wouldn't have if it wasn't for him.
Me too. I actually knew about the Owens Magnetic before I heard of Jay Leno but I'm a nut for unusual cars and the history of technology. Plus I'm 51 and live near the original home of the Anderson Motor Car company.
Bless their generation, they had to go through 2 wars, depression and inequalities. And they didn't hold that against the society..Wish we had more of them today..
@Santiago Oehler Toca If masks work, then why do we need to stand 6 feet apart rom one another?, if social distancing works, then why do we need the masks? If the masks and social distancing work, then why do we need a vaccine?...
This is a beautiful car and incredible restoration! Excellent presentation (you should consider going into show business)! This is how our Chevy Volt works (in essence) in gas backup (non battery) phase. It means the drive is responsive, smooth, and quiet. No transmission (other than reverse park etc.). The power is completely variable.
This Owen's Magnetic Car, was ahead of its time!!! I had never heard of this car until today. Thanks Jay for saving another amazing car and sharing the story of this car. Very interesting vehicle, over 120 years old and the engine is still going strong!!! This is an awesome engineering feat!!!
actually the first diesel/electric train locomotive was demod in 1909. This car operates on the same concept. The electric part is simply the transmission of the car.
Jay, I'm 72.. When I leave this world (i.e. dimension), there might be 18 people who will know about it- (six of which might miss me) -- But when you leave, it will be a sad day for the world. We love you, man.
Jay, you and your team really did a great justice to the creator of this awesome vehicle! Could you imagine taking him for a ride in it today? How cool.... Great Job!
I enjoy the "cool" car as much as most, but this is really what gets me. Stuff that I never heard about, with technology that isn't commonly known was available way back then.
Seems like they had `90%' of the knowhow allready back in 1900-1920 about cars, machines, engines, electrics, but less fancy materials and tools avaiable that we have today.
ian cormie - Just imagine a $9000 car in 1916; mind boggling! Hell in my neighborhood of Mountain View California in the Bay Area I know there were nice quality good sized homes that sold for $5000- $8000 in 1916!
No surprise to me, because modern cars try to make you wonder with multimedia systems. When old cars tried to make a more comfortable driving and easier maintenance
When you start learning what was in cars in 1900-1960's, every new car leaves you dissapointed... So many things that you'll never use and no useful features like tire compressor, oil pressure and level gage, a handle under the hood for a comfortable oil change, adjustable shock absorbers (from your dash), auto-starting if your engine stalled, air-cooled engines, etc... The most things I like is old air and oil filters which you can wash in the gas and put back again. And when they are under the hood and can be easily removed any time. I like foldable seats that make a big comfortable bed for you and your girl also)) Modern cars are less about driving and more just toys with screens and useless buttons
@@valeriyreiter4199 Multimedia systems in cars are there because of and designed to appeal to mindless millennials who think that unless they are ‘fed’ everything they don’t feel the satisfaction they’re addicted to in their entitled minds. Modern cars should be as fascinating as the old; they’re not. They should cost 1/4 to 1/3 of what they do now; they don’t. They should cost less than oldies to annually to maintain; they won’t. Modern cars are designed to sell and be a revenue producer for the dealers. Mindless things to impress the mindless purchaser, serviceable things designed to impress the dealership owners. “no owner serviceable parts inside”
Wow, Jay. You sure have a lot of confidence in 1897 engineering to drive a very rare car in modern day city traffic when u have to anticipate stopping 50 yards in advance with very unusual brake system. Very well done.
I love that you got to use 3d printing to repair/improve the design of the valve cover. Metal printing has come a long way from when you had your valve cover made. Now you can get a desktop metal FDM printer... I'm sure your crew that restores and maintains cars for you would love to have one.
