Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

WP6980 · Joined: 20 Sep 2016 Posts: 21 Location: Brighton

I can remember reading that back in the day drivers used the heat from their engine to cook food!

Doing a bit of googling, quite a bit came up of very recent origin, so it does not seem to be an activity that has died with the passage of time.

I can see that there would be trial & error over the cooking times and a suitable location near the exhaust manifold.

Has anyone done it, if you have, what did you cook and was it successful? What vehicle did you do this with?
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Gary Edwards

Ray White · Joined: 02 Dec 2014 Posts: 6318 Location: Derby

Years ago we always took a Primus stove with us. Later on it would have been a Camping gas stove. I don't ever recall cooking on the engine.

Rick · Site Admin Joined: 27 Apr 2005 Posts: 22447 Location: UK

I remember Stan in "On the Buses" warming up his chips under the bonnet of his bus, I think lorry drivers used to do that quite regularly but probably not so often today (!)

RJ
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Miken · Joined: 24 Dec 2012 Posts: 544

I used to have a half scale, road legal steam tractor which I built.
I've warned up a few pasties in the smoke box (this is the bit at the front of the boiler).
Wrap in tin foil, open the door and bung it in for 15 minutes.
I'm sure everyone knows about cooking bacon on a shovel in the firebox of a steam engine. I've not personally done that.

BigJohn · Joined: 01 Jan 2011 Posts: 954 Location: Wem, Shropshire

My Old Man told me the tale of a breakdown late one winters night, he got called out because the recovery guy was sick. He decided to pick up the apprentice on the way to get the Diamond T.
The routine was to wire a tin of London Grill for each of them, tins pierced, for when they got back to the depot (We know where this is going to end don’t we children! Laughing

).
On the way back with a tanker hooked on the rear there was an almighty double bang, the bonnet sides flew up and hit each other, fortunately the Old Man had spent from 39-46 in the RAF as a Flight Engineer on bombers so nothing phased him. The apprentice screamed.
The apprentice was not a happy kid the next day, outside in February cleaning burnt London Grill out of a Diamond T engine bay. He never forgot to pierce them again.
When I was an apprentice we had a large bearing oven and tins were put in to heat for lunch, an apprentice made the same mistake and it blew the heavy door a good 10 ft into the works, fortunately no was hit by it.
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1974 Mk1 Escort.

Ray White · Joined: 02 Dec 2014 Posts: 6318 Location: Derby

I have led a sheltered life Embarassed

Penman · Joined: 23 Nov 2007 Posts: 4759 Location: Swindon, Wilts.

Not cooking on the exhaust but, but trying to prank newly weds. Wiring a kipper or some such under the exhaust manifold to get odd smells into the car.
They diod it to me but failed to think it through properly because i was driving an Imp so the smell followed us down the road but never came into the car.
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Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

petelang · Joined: 21 May 2009 Posts: 444 Location: Nottingham

I once cracked an egg into the radiator of a Hilman Minx to stop an alarming radiator leak as a "get us home" emergency, but of course it wasn't retrievable to eat. However it did stop the coolant loss enough to get home.
I have often wondered though if the upturned lid off the air cleaners on my Daimler V8 250 would make a good emergency frying pan. Suitably rested between the Vee after a good hot run, it might fry an egg?
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Daimler Fifteen 1934
Armstrong Siddeley 15 Long 1933
Daimler V8 250 1969

Bitumen Boy · Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2023 3:22 pm Post subject:

I warmed a parcel of fish and chips on an engine once. Not sure why now, maybe there was nowhere to park and eat near the chippy.

lowdrag · Joined: 10 Apr 2009 Posts: 1585 Location: Le Mans

I had a Chevrolet cook book once, but it disappeared. With your steak wrapped in tinfoil, the book gave the number of miles required depending on the weight. I've looked for another for years, but never found one.

WP6980 · Joined: 20 Sep 2016 Posts: 21 Location: Brighton

MikeEdwards · Joined: 25 May 2011 Posts: 2471 Location: South Cheshire

I recall a piece on CHM-era Top Gear where they did this as part of a challenge, or maybe as the whole point of one. I don't recall it being all that successful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9vhGiSL904
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1976 Vauxhall HP Firenza, 1976 Vauxhall Sportshatch (x2), 1986 Audi coupe quattro, 2000 Audi TT

WP6980 · Joined: 20 Sep 2016 Posts: 21 Location: Brighton

I just watched that clip, sadly, that era (or maybe it is still current) of Top Gear is just over-grown lads mucking about, nothing serious, yet could have been an interesting experiment. I have not watched it for years, not worthy of my attention!
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Gary Edwards

Brent29 · Joined: 07 Jun 2018 Posts: 57

Same reason why I watch Top Gear less.

roverdriver · Posted: Thu Mar 02, 2023 6:55 am Post subject:

In the era of the Model T Ford, there were accessory after-market 'cookers' readily available. It seems that they fell out of favour in the later years. However I do remember when I was a member of the Veteran car club in Oz. that a fellow with a Stanley often lifting the bonnet to reveal lunch for himself and his passengers in the form of pies, heated on the boiler casing.
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Dane- roverdriver but not a Viking.