I think you do not go far enough in your assessment. From what I understand, Harry was convinced that his invention would work. Not because he had had so much success before but because that is how things worked (right?). He put the company together not to make a winged prototype but to make a 777 or a spaceship (to use your wright brothers reference). Although the science was not there his gut told him that it must work. So with all the millions spent and man hours worked, they never got a chance to deviate from the original design. Had they followed the science the engine would be vastly different. Harry considered himself a genius, God's gift to boating and (obviously) God's gift to engine design. Because that is what geniuses do right? I will have to remember to ask Yo-Yo Ma about Universal Dark Matter. Harry was/is so convinced that he did not care that he patented a set of full, yet ridiculous assembly drawings. But you are right, we got duped by a con man into investing; into helping to sell the useless brick of a machine. We were convinced because of his audacity.
On a side note though, I am now not convinced that any amount of money or tweaking could make that concept work. I have a thought: I think that the engine really just runs off of those massive batteries. It runs until it breaks or until the battery power runs out. I do not think that it makes any real power at all. Especially not enough to keep the batteries charged for very long. Either that, or it produces just enough to keep the batteries charged. But at least it is noisy, ugly, dangerous, dirty and unreliable. A steal at any price.
-Chuck
