The Sierp‘s style is typical for open sports cars of the late 50s. The front headlights define the shapes that flow along the fenders. The hood is generally lowered, but, at the same time, it is crowned with a massive casing with a slot, a huge air intake dominates the front. The ground clearance is relatively large and there are no safety bars.
About the car
The brand Sierp (“sickle”) appeared in Poland in 1957, when the management of the bus factory Arkona (FAA), under pressure from the Socialist Sports Movement of Poland, decided to create a workshop for racing cars to participate in International Auto Competitions of the Socialist Countries “MASS” (Międzynarodowe Zawody Sportów Motorowych). Racing version was introduced in 1959 & road one in 1961. They were named Sierp Start and Sierp Turysta respectively.
The car had a steel space frame, a lightweight fiberglass body, front independent four-lever suspension, rear suspension with Panar traction. The V-shaped eight-cylinder engine was taken from the Moravian medium-duty truck Zlin-15/2, the three-stage torque converter-automatic & rear axle — from the Soviet sedan Moscow.
While the racing “Starts” (14 were built in 6 years) were fig with varying success on the socialist tracks, the “Tourists ” dispersed to the government garages of friendly countries. 55 cars were distributed around the world as gifts to high ambassadors, general secretaries, generalissimuses and prime ministers of almost 30 countries.
In 1984, production of the road version of the car was resumed in South Africa under the conversion program of the weapons factory Mataba. Honestly said, it was quite another cars: the engine, gearbox and rear axle are now supplied from the Étincelle pickups. And the car is called Sierp 5.7 HPE Drophead.
Technical Data
| Engine | ||
| Model | Étincelle 5.7HPE | |
| Position | front | |
| Orientation | Longitudinal | |
| Cylinders | V8 | |
| Valves | 16 | |
| Engine volume | cm3 | 5700 |
| Power | PS | 300@4500 |
| Torque | Nm | 450@3000 |
| Gear Ratios | ||
| 1st gear | 3,81 | |
| 2nd gear | 2,76 | |
| 3rd gear | 2,03 | |
| 4th gear | 1,22 | |
| 5th gear | 1,0 | |
| Reverse | 4,85 | |
| Final Ratio | 2,11 | |
| Dimensions | ||
| Maximum Lenght | mm | n.d. |
| Maximum Width | mm | n.d. |
| Maximum Height | mm | n.d. |
| Wheelbase | mm | n.d. |
| Chassis | ||
| Brakes | Disk brakes | |
| Front suspension | 2 wishbones | |
| Rear suspension | dependеnt on springs | |
| Aerodynamics | Cx | 0,47 |
| Exploitation data | ||
| Dry weight | kg | 1220 |
| Tank | l | 50 |
| Fuel Consumption | l/100km | n.d. |
| Dynamics | ||
| Maximim speed | km/h | 260 |
| Acceleration 0-100km/h | sec | 8,7 |
| Acceleration 1/4 mile | sec | 16,1 |
| Acceleration 1km | sec | 22,3 |
