“The Beast” is a custom-made, one-of-a-kind car with a 27-liter V-12 engine for sale at Cars & Vintage in the United Kingdom. Yes, twenty-seven. Everything is clear. John Dodd, who once owned the Beast, was known for going to court with Rolls-Royce. At a maximum speed of 183 miles per hour, this vehicle formerly held the title of “fastest production car ever” in the Guinness Book of World Records. The Ford Cortina was the most widely purchased vehicle in the United Kingdom in 1972. If Mister or Madam wanted something more sporty, they could get the similar Capri, which had a coupe shape like the Mustang and a 2.0-liter engine with 86 horsepower. Imagine driving down the M1 in your new Capri and thinking you were getting ahead of yourself. Then, this substantial 19-foot-long object with a V-12 sound hit you. That would be the same as reliving the Battle of Britain all over again. Because the Rolls-Royce engine located in the nose of a Spitfire is also used in the 1972 Beast, the engine’s sound would be identical to the music played during the Battle of Britain. John Dodd, who made it, died last year at 90. On the Car & Vintage website in the UK, his car is currently up for auction. The Spitfire is still one of the most beautiful fighter planes with a piston engine. The Beast is a little cozier and has a hood long enough to let a Spitfire or a 747 land on it. This thing has a nose that is much bigger than Cyrano de Bergerac’s. The engine of the Spitfire is a naturally aspirated Rolls-Merlin Royce V-12 hidden under that tall hood. The first engine in this vehicle came from a Centurion tank, and the second came from a training plane. Its displacement is 27 liters, making 700 to 800 horsepower at just 2500 rpm. If you think that’s crazy, you’d better hold on. The first version of the Beast, a box frame, was made by a British man with a shed. This made it the most dangerous creature that has ever lived. Paul Jameson made a lot of one-of-a-kind cars, like a convertible with six wheels powered by another Merlin engine. He also made the Beast, based on an engine from a war surplus that he got for almost nothing. Dodd, an expert on transmissions, gave Jaguar parts for a three-speed car. He was surprised when Jameson called him later and asked if he wanted to buy the rolling chassis. Dodd agreed, so he started to get it made out of fiberglass. The Beast was said to be 55:45 in terms of how its weight was spread between the front and back. This is false because the car is as long as an aircraft carrier, and a naked Merlin V-12 weighs more than two Chevrolet LS V-8s. There are many inaccuracies in what we believe to know about the Beast. Still, it got a Guinness World Record, and in 1973, the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) said it was a 183 mph car. At the time, a Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona could only go ten mph faster. Yes, Enzo, you are right. The Beast was made up of a bunch of different parts, and one made a lot of noise and looked like a Capri in a bad Willy Wonka taffy-puller accident. It was because Dodd didn’t want to use the Interceptor windscreen or the Reliant Scimitar rear window. Instead, he chose a Rolls-Royce grille with the Spirit of Ecstasy on top. He thought this because Rolls-Royce made the Merlin V-12. The people in charge at Rolls-Royce were not amused. The Spirit of Ecstasy? Spirit of Bad Acid Trip is a better way to put it. The situation got worse because of what Dodd did. When he called Rolls Headquarters, he pretended to be a rich person who wanted to buy a long-nosed coupe that had just gone by very quickly. Rolls-Royce sent the lawyers. Dodd drove the Beast to the trial every day except when he arrived with his whole family on horseback. Since he didn’t win, the court asked for punitive damages. Dodd got on the Beast and ran away to Malaga, Spain, where he rebuilt his automatic-transmission company and seemed to be having a good time in the sun. Even though it still says Rolls-Royce on the front, the Beast’s grille now has the initials of John Dodd (doubtless, this would please Dodd immensely). It has a little over 10,000 miles, which is unsurprising for a car that can barely get two mpg. One lucky bidder thinks that The Beast is the craziest car that the British have ever made. It’s just a very stupid, huge, and very thirsty car. Still, it is hilarious and was created by a man who ignored the law and lived to be significantly older. John Dodd might have been able to buy a Capri. Lucky for us, he didn’t.
