Albert Widmann with the car engine running. He had nearly died of carbon monoxide poisoning from the exhaust fumes. This engine exhaust testing inspired the development of gas vans. Back in Berlin, Reinhard Heydrich immediately set to work within the RSHA for the development of, in the words of Heydrich's subordinate Walter Rauff, a "more humane method of execution" than the "Einsatzgruppen" firing squads which had been used. When a prototype gas van was driven to KTI, Widmann explained to his young chemists that by adjusting the timing of the ignition, one could maximize the amount of poisonous carbon monoxide in the
1965 24 Hours of Le Mans the previous year’s race when Mike Rothschild had been overcome by exhaust fumes. After seeing off the Fords, the Ferraris also started having problems. First to fall was the Maranello car. An exhaust broke and Bonnier, choking from the fumes, bought the car in from third to retire as night fell. The gearbox of Parkes/Guichet got jammed in fifth gear. During the night, all of the P2s got delayed by cracks in their brake discs, which in turn gave problems in suspension, each losing 30-60 minutes or more in getting the issues fixed. The Cobras had been running very well