Video: Check out a 12-rotor engine in action

It’s been a couple of years since Rob Dahm began working on a 12-rotor Wankel engine reportedly capable of 10,000 RPM and 1,400 horsepower. Here are the first results.

The insane powertrain was envisioned and brought to life by Tyson Garvin, who wanted to keep it naturally aspirated. After spending several years trying to improve the design, Garvin eventually handed it over to Dahm, who had a bit of experience with rotary engines himself. The first thing Dahm did was outfit it with three massive turbochargers. He also temporarily hard-capped the torque at 4,000 RPM to avoid costly malfunctions.

Fast-forward two years, and the giant rotary mill has finally seen some action. The tuner put it on a dyno stand and managed to get it to 750 lb-ft (552 Nm) of torque at 3,500 RPM. He didn’t have the opportunity to make more measurements because of all the safeguards in place, and also because of how hard the engine internals were to get moving. To solve the latter issue, Dahm actually plans to use a dedicated diesel engine as a starter.

Although the build may be far from complete, you can already enjoy the unique soundtrack it makes.