I have never heard that. I always thought the larger pistons were to increase displacement to increase power.

http://www.eaa.org/experimenter/arti...owerplants.asp

LOL, these were thicker x2 at the head but otherwise the same diameter. Picking both up, it was easy to tell which was twice the weight. He was running the VW engine at around 3000 rpm, not much faster. Maybe just paranoia?

On 4 wheels, 3000 rpm was mid-low end revs for my late 60's Type 3's that I ran in the 80's. 3000 rpm was nowhere near the power end of those. It is the rpms where the gears synchronized and it was possible to shift without using the clutch which LOL was the same speed my 750cc and 650cc bikes did the same. That was a good thing to know when my clutch cable snapped on me one day right in rush hour traffic on rte 13 in Dover, DE. I managed to get from the south end clear up to the bike shop well past the NASCAR "Monster Mile" to buy a new cable and get the thing fixed.

Those old VW engines were very light for what they cranked out. I had one with twin carbs and another with fuel injection. My measure of efficiency is gas mileage, the twin carb engine in the Fastback got 36/gal mostly highway but mixed driving when it was in good tune, and I ran well over the speed limit on highway back then though my pedal to the floor on level road would only get me 75-78 mph. The fuel injected engine only ran in the Squareback body, it got about 30-32 to the gallon with top level speed almost the same. No radiator and that magnesium alloy, and they ran like tops. I had a neighbor who worked on "good cars" who told me that the VW 1600 pancake engine is the same design as in a 914 Posche but with cheaper alloy and looser tolerances. Yet I could still get and hold high revs just fine.

Of course, those were 'crude'. I wish I still had either one.

Instead we've to listen to patriotic modern day kids who believe the US/Brits won the war by themselves.
I doubt anyone would've won against Germany alone, maybe Russia but they would've been defeated if it wasn't for Hitlers foolish misstakes & planning.

Nazi Germany without Japan or Italy against Russia xor America alone would have been a pretty certain loss for Nazi Germany. I think the British Empire might have done it, there were a lot of folks in the Empire, but it would have been a closer thing and very expensive if it was doable at all.

However, such "what if"s are very much speculative fantasy, there is no way of making a real assessment, it didn't happen that way.

And what do Patriotic modern day Swedish kids say about WW2? How Sweden stayed neutral and supplied Germany with high grade Iron Ore?

Best Regards,
MB_Avro

Interesting isn't it... how people make conclusions about others and don't know themselves.

What is that old expression...know thyself?

I'd say it would be the better part of wise for anyone on this international forums to keep their disparaging remarks about other countries to themselves. There just aren't any countries that have done things non-politically. Politics, I am convinced is the enemy of all countries. As citizens and just plain folks we get along very well.

Well said nearmiss.

The thing is that we do have people who think that the US 'won WWI and WWII -- for everyone, by itself, etc' but they are either young or morons or both.

From my experience Max, that condition is not exclusive to US citizens.

The moronosphere is ever increasing in size.

Easy to see given the world condition. But I'm not supposed to go on about other country's morons, just the ones in mine. ;^)

I remember times back since the mid-60's when kids would stand out by the sidewalk and decide who had the best army, navy, air force, bombs, etc. That's what a lot of what I've heard since reminds me of, kids on the sidewalk.