A number of years ago a guy brought out his Duesenberg V-16 to a swap meet to make us all drool. As I walked up towards it, I had no idea the engine was running until I was about five feet away. No kidding, I had to get that close. A bunch of guys were looking at something on top of the engine. A coffee mug was sitting on the engine as it ran. When you looked at the coffee, there were just a few rings of ripples on the surface. Putting a hand on the fender (Which the owner encouraged) you could not feel any vibration. It was really amazing. That was at least 15 years ago, and to this day I'm still thrilled. He wasn't giving rides, everyone was asking. He did rev it up a bunch of times so we could hear that distinct 16 cylinder sound. I can't recall the carb setup.
Someone above noted that Jay Leno does not have a Model A. That's true. But you may find it interesting that he knows quite a bit about them. We had our Phaeton at a local concours show a few years back. He rolls up in his huge "Tank Car," the aluminum bodied mega-speedster with a GM tank engine. Long story short, when he drives into a show, a crowd gathers. There were problems with people disrespecting surrounding cars. Jay came over and spoke with me a while about that (No big deal, really). Anyway, we walked around the Phaeton a couple times and he was rattling off all kinds of Model A details, engine specs, general production numbers, etc. I was impressed. He didn't want to trade, I asked. I, and many other people have had the pleasure of speaking with Jay Leno at Southern California car events over the years. He's a genuine car nut, and if people will forget the celebrity element and just talk with him about cars, he loves it and will talk your ear off! Should have seen his face when I ribbed him hard over running a red light in his freshly restored Packard (About a 1907) on a Holiday Tour in Pasadena/San Marino area. What a jokester.
OK, I'm long winded and off on a tangent. Just wanted to share.
Thanks to Jim Parker for starting this thread! Cool photos.
Dave Lopes