Henry J. Kaiser's personal racing boat, the
Hornet II. It started out as a 1-of-10 1930 Gar Wood single-step hydroplane, powered by a 600HP Packard 1A-1237 V12 aircraft engine (the "1237" is the displacement in cubic inches; it was 450HP in aero form). Kaiser raced it on Lake Tahoe, NV. After losing the championship on Lake Tahoe in 1949, Kaiser had Howard Hughes redesign and build a new deck and upper works in aircraft aluminum for the 1950 season, replacing the original mahogany. It regained the title and remained unbeaten until its retirement several years later. It was later sold and renamed "Fleur de Lac" and restarted its racing career.
At the time of restoration (approximately 2008) there were only four complete 1A-1237s known left of the 25 originally assembled including the one in the boat. It retained the 1A-1237 in it for several years after the restoration but despite the engine having minimal hours on it (83, if I recall), significant damage and the difficulty in finding repair parts had the boat being repowered with a Packard V1650 (Merlin) V12 in the mid 2010s.
Yeah, it's polished. I'm glad I don't have to maintain it.
The original Packard while still in the boat, shortly prior to removal:
The original engine did not sell at auction a few years ago, despite a high bid over $30,000. They should've taken that; its crankcase shows significant cracking.
Pre-restoration, as it was found in a boat house. Photo was taken in 2005:
