Jay Leno - 1915 Hispano Suiza
Written by Keith Fudge

Tonight Show host and funny man Jay Leno is a true enthusiast who loves almost anything on wheels – and the rarer the better. In this segment of My Classic Car, Jay entertains Dennis and the crew with his rare 1915 Hispano-Suiza powered by a V-8 airplane engine!

As we joined Jay and Dennis, Jay offered us a brief history of the engine that powered this remarkable car. It was designed by a Marc Birkigt, a Swiss engineer and has been dubbed “the engine that won World War I.” Jay went on to tell us that this engine is incredibly powerful, making 330 horsepower and close to 1,000 ft/lbs of torque! The engine is an aluminum block and since it was a V-8 piston engine, it shared many characteristics with auto engines. As Jay explained, in those days when a person wanted to go faster in an automobile, the strategy was to get the biggest engine possible. In this case that would have happened to be an airplane engine!

Jay and Dennis received their share of looks during their cruise and even some of California’s finest got into the act as they flashed their lights at us! Dennis even received the honor of driving this torque-twisting beast and as he depressed the accelerator one could literally see the car “twist” from the incredible amount of torque produced by the engine! Perhaps the only thing that was more torqued and twisted after the ride in this drop-top beauty was Dennis’s mustache! As always, we had a great time with Jay and we never cease to be amazed with what he has to show us! Thanks again Jay and we hope to see you again soon!