Smithsonian Automobile Collection

This introductory text is pulled from the1957 Smithsonian Publication "Automobiles and Motorcycles in the U.S. National Museum"written by curator Smith Hempstone Oliver.

At present a large number of collections of antique automobiles exist in the United States. Most are small, reflecting the discoveries of private collectors; but more than a few are large, representing considerable effort by either individuals or organizations. None contains so many actual automotive milestones, however, as that housed in the U. S. National Museum, at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D. C.

This collection includes, for example, the Duryea car, built in Springfield, Massachusetts, which is universally considered to be the first American automobile driven by an internal-combustion engine. For those who endorse the claim of Elwood Haynes and the Apperson brothers, it also includes the first vehicle produced as a result of their genius. Neither of these cars would be of much use to the collector who might wish to operate them, but they are the two most important very early gasoline vehicles built in this country.

As most of us know, the internal-combustion-engine vehicle was not the first self-propelled vehicle to travel the public road. Long before the appearance of the first Daimler, Benz, or Duryea gasoline automobiles, steam wagons of various forms were built. Recent acquisitions of the Smithsonian's National Museum that come under this heading are the Roper steam velocipede of the late 1860's and the Long steam tricycle of 1879-1881. While much more recent than the Cugnot three-wheeled gun tractor of 1770, still preserved in Paris, these are very early as far as American development is concerned, and are of unusual interest in themselves. Probably the most elusive of automotive treasures are the early racing cars, which were always few in number. The hazardous nature of their use saw to it that few remained for many years. It is astounding, therefore, that the Winton "Bullets" Nos. 1 and 2 both are to be found in the Smithsonian collection. These machines share with Henry Ford's "999" and the Peerless "Green Dragon" the honor of writing the first chapters in the romance of automobile racing here, a story still being lived on the concrete of Sebring and the bricks of Indianapolis.

Less spectacular, but no less important, are the examples of the first models of such well-known American automobiles as the Oldsmobile, Franklin, Cadillac, and Autocar. These were among the very first cars offered to the buying public by their makers, and on their acceptance the industry was destined to rise or fall. Ask any collector to choose which car in the Smithsonian collection he would like to own, and he would name the Simplex. With the Mercer Raceabout and the Stutz Bearcat, the chain-drive Simplex Speed Car is the most sought after of early automobiles. It represents all that is grand in the cars of the brassbound era a truly mighty engine and beautiful, clean lines. Only a few of these cars remain today, and this is one of the best.

Regardless of the tides of human fortune, the really worthwhile early machines are being preserved. So many important relics from the dawn of the industry have already disappeared that now, more than ever, must those remaining be saved, to be marveled at by future generations.

After earning his reputation as one of American open wheel racing’s best designers and mechanics during the front engine roadster era of Indy cars, Clint Brawner developed his first rear engine racer, the Brawner Hawk, in 1965.
Description
After earning his reputation as one of American open wheel racing’s best designers and mechanics during the front engine roadster era of Indy cars, Clint Brawner developed his first rear engine racer, the Brawner Hawk, in 1965. Several iterations of Brawner’s Hawks competed between 1965 and 1969. These speedsters not only were on the cutting edge of engine design and aerodynamics, but they also launched the career of racing legend Mario Andretti with five years of success behind the wheel of Hawks. Andretti drove a Hawk to a third place finish in the Indianapolis 500 with Rookie of the Year honors and continued to claim the 1965 USAC National Championship. The following year Andretti drove a Brawner Hawk to his second consecutive USAC National Championship. When Brawner’s Hawks were retired from competition at the end of the 1969 season, Andretti had driven a Hawk to his first Indianapolis 500 victory and a third USAC National Championship. At the 1969 Indianapolis 500, the STP Hawk No. 2 was designated as Andretti’s backup car, but when faulty hubs led him to crash his four-wheel-drive Lotus Super Wedge, his crew prepared the car that would be dubbed “The Cinderella Car” to race. Andretti took an early lead but soon fell back because the car was running hot. He drove on to lead 116 out of 200 laps, including the all-important last lap, and took the checkered flag. Andretti finished out the season driving the Hawk No. 2 and claimed the third of his four USAC National Championships. The STP Hawk No. 2 represents Mario Andretti’s only official Indy 500 win, STP CEO Andy Granatelli’s first Indy 500 win, and the mechanical tradition of innovation and excellence of the car’s creator, Clint Brawner. Most of the Indy cars had sleek, cigar-shaped bodies while the Brawner Hawk had a larger body with a flat bottom and the oil tank in front with the oil tubes running down the sides along the bottom, all of which created downforce. The STP Hawk No. 2 is one of the most iconic and significant cars in auto racing history. It represents cutting edge aerodynamics, innovative rear engine design, and the mechanical legacy of Clint Brawner.
Location
Currently on loan
date made
1968
maker
Ford Motor Company
Clint Brawner
Garrett Corp.
ID Number
TR.336463
accession number
1978.0418
catalog number
336463
This Simplex '50' is an early example of a type of car marketed as a touring car that could also be raced.
Description
This Simplex '50' is an early example of a type of car marketed as a touring car that could also be raced. Thus it is an example of what came to be termed, in the 1940s, a "sports car."
American automobile racing is characterized by many widely divergent types of racing, each type having its own distinct history. Many aspects are/have been unique to each racing type: the general design of its participating cars, its sanctioning organization, its funding sources and owner-participants, the types of courses raced on, the different designated classes within an overall design, the official rules governing design details of the cars (rules that usually change every few years), and an enthusiastic base of fans who are often uninterested in the other types of motor racing. A century-long and complex history explains these distinctions and their genesis. A "fascination with speed" is only the seed of the story of each type and explains very little of what was seen in the past, or what is seen today, on race tracks around the United States.
"Sports cars" came to the US as a post-World War II phenomenon. Ex-servicemen who had been based in England began bringing British sports cars to American soil in 1948. Auto dealerships selling such makes as MG, Triumph, and Jaguar - and Porsche from Germany and Ferrari from Italy - opened in the US for the first time. These cars were typical of European engineering for two-door performance cars: light, agile, many with small or medium-sized engines compared to general US custom, and right at home on curving, twisting roads where a driver could test his or her cornering skill.
The provenance of this Simplex is not known in detail, nor whether it has a racing history. In 1922, it was registered to a Dunbar Adams of Bay Shore, Long Island; in 1929 it was given to the Smithsonian by a Mr. and Mrs. John D. Adams of the same town. The car has a stock Simplex '50' chassis with a 'skeleton' body - meaning, a sporting as distinct from a commodious body - by the Holbrook Co. (A customer purchasing a chassis-and-engine from an auto manufacturer and a body separately for fitting-on by a body manufacturer was a common practice in the first decade of the 20th century, though a rapidly declining practice by the mid-1910s.) The car is red (the semi-official color for American cars in international races of the time), with a four-cylinder engine and chain drive.
The car was repainted and reupholstered by a contractor to the Smithsonian in 1950. At that time, Harvey Firestone, Jr., donated the seven 33-inch x 5-inch tires now fitted
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1912
contributed
Firestone, Jr., Harvey S.
through
King, George S.
maker
Simplex Automobile Co.
ID Number
TR.309549
catalog number
309549
accession number
104418
A funny car is a high-powered, computer-controlled dragster with a lightweight, molded body that somewhat resembles a production car. Bruce Larson and his crew designed and assembled this car in Dauphin, Pennsylvania.
Description
A funny car is a high-powered, computer-controlled dragster with a lightweight, molded body that somewhat resembles a production car. Bruce Larson and his crew designed and assembled this car in Dauphin, Pennsylvania. The body, which is made of carbon composite fiber, resembles an Oldsmobile Cutlass but weighs only 165 pounds. The chassis frame is made of chromoly (chromium molybdenum alloy) tubing. The aluminum engine burned a mix of nitro-methane fuel and alcohol and developed almost 4,000 horsepower. Larson won the National Hot Rod Association’s World Championship with this car in 1989. His top speed in the Finals was 278.55 miles per hour.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1988
maker
Oldsmobile Division of General Motors Corporation
ID Number
1989.0755.01
catalog number
1989.0755.01
accession number
1989.0755
This 1953 Glasspar is an example of fiberglass-body sports cars made in small quantities after World War II. Some American motorists, particularly veterans returning from overseas duty, wanted European-style sports cars.
Description
This 1953 Glasspar is an example of fiberglass-body sports cars made in small quantities after World War II. Some American motorists, particularly veterans returning from overseas duty, wanted European-style sports cars. Several American companies began small-scale production of sports cars with molded fiberglass bodies. This type of body could be made in small quantities without the expensive tooling, dies, and presses needed to make steel bodies. William Tritt, a California fiberglass-boat builder, introduced the Jaguar-like Glasspar in 1951 and sold several hundred bodies. The Glasspar body fit on a used automobile chassis that the owner obtained and customized by shortening the wheelbase. A fiberglass body was not only simpler to make; it was lightweight, rustproof, dent-resistant, and easy to repair. And it was inexpensive; a Glasspar body sold for only $950, one-fourth the price of a Jaguar and less than half the price of a Ford convertible. Tritt improved the technique of making fiberglass bodies and made more bodies of this type than his competitors. He understood the importance of casting an automobile body in one piece, and he developed techniques to avoid shrinkage, tearing at metal joints, and mismatched parts. Dale L. Dutton, a Glasspar enthusiast, donated this car to the Smithsonian in 1996.
Major auto manufacturers dismissed plastic bodies following an unsuccessful Ford experiment in the early 1940s, but William Tritt demonstrated that a body made of polyester resin and glass strands was practical, economical to produce, and superior to steel in many ways. Tritt introduced the Glasspar in 1951 and made about 300 sports car bodies by hand over a period of several years. Despite its advantages, the plastic car seemed destined to remain a low-volume vehicle because of slow production and limited capital investment; only one Glasspar body was made per day. But in 1953, General Motors decided to make Corvette bodies of fiberglass and consulted with Tritt
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1953
maker
Glasspar Company
ID Number
1996.0401.01
accession number
1996.0401
catalog number
1996.0401.01
At the 1967 Indianapolis 500, STP CEO Andy Granatelli and his racing team unveiled one of the most innovative and controversial cars ever to race at the Brickyard. The STP Paxton Turbine Car was the first turbine-powered car to qualify for the Indianapolis 500.
Description
At the 1967 Indianapolis 500, STP CEO Andy Granatelli and his racing team unveiled one of the most innovative and controversial cars ever to race at the Brickyard. The STP Paxton Turbine Car was the first turbine-powered car to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. Vince Granatelli and Joseph Granatelli constructed the car in total secrecy but within all racing regulations. The car was propelled by a Pratt and Whitney turbine engine typically used in helicopters. During practice, onlookers dubbed the quiet vehicle Silent Sam while others called it the Whooshmobile, mimicking the whooshing sound it made passing by. The car featured four-wheel drive, a centrally located fuel tank, and a side-by-side design that placed the driver beside the mid-mounted engine. Andy Granatelli promoted his racer as the world’s first truly space age car. Racing legend Parnelli Jones manned the cockpit and dominated the race, starting from the first lap and leading 171 laps. With only three and one-half laps left to victory, a transmission bearing failed, and Jones coasted into the pits while A.J. Foyt took first place. “Silent Sam” lost the race but succeeded in shaking up Indy car racing. The STP Paxton turbine car launched a brief period of turbine Indy cars marked by intense debate and controversy. Many people welcomed turbine cars as innovations while others wanted them banned from competition. The 1968 Champ Car season saw several turbine racers brought by STP, Lotus, and Shelby. By 1969 racing regulations made turbine cars noncompetitive at Indy, and dual overhead cam engines became the sport’s mainstay.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1967
maker
Granatelli Enterprises
Paxton Corp.
ID Number
TR.336464
accession number
1978.0418
catalog number
336464
This Pontiac No. 43 — that number was Richard Petty's hallmark, as No. 42 was for his father's cars — follows the 1984 design rules. Note the tubular space-frame, specially built body, racing wheels and tires, and safety gear in the interior.
Description
This Pontiac No. 43 — that number was Richard Petty's hallmark, as No. 42 was for his father's cars — follows the 1984 design rules. Note the tubular space-frame, specially built body, racing wheels and tires, and safety gear in the interior. Like current NASCAR racers, its engine is not fuel-injected but uses carburetion. The car carried Petty to victory in the "Firecracker 400" race at Daytona, on July 4, 1984. The car ran one more race that year, the Talledega 500 on July 29th, but did not finish, retiring with a broken differential immediately after its first pit stop. The car owner was Curb Motorsports, owned by Mike Curb, of the family owning Canon Mills and president of Curb Records. The car was repainted by the crew of Petty Enterprises, Randleman, before presentation to the Smithsonian in late 1984. The car is configured for the last time it ran, at the 1984 Talledega race, and has that engine installed. The tires, however, are Daytona tires.
A uniquely American type of auto racing is "stock car" racing. Bill France, of Daytona Beach, Florida, had witnessed the popularity of pre-war "beach racing." In the late 1940s, he organized beach races for car-owners who liked the idea of competing against each other with more-or-less "stock" automobiles. To help him set rules for stock-car racing, France created the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, NASCAR, in 1948. In 1953, France opened a new Daytona Speedway. NASCAR came of age in 1959, with the first running of the Daytona 500 - which was won by Lee Petty, Richard Petty's father, a three-time NASCAR national champion in his own right, during the 1950s.
Richard Petty, of Randleman, NC, began his racing in the early 1960s, winning his first Daytona 500 and first of seven NASCAR national championships in 1964. NASCAR racing in the 1960s consisted of many more top-rank (i.e., Grand National, Winston Cup, and now renamed Nextel Cup) races per year than today. The norm in the 1960s was some 50 or more such races a year. In 1967, Richard Petty won 27 of these (out of 48 races, which included winning 10-straight) to set an all-time record for the most victories in a season. Over his 35-year career, his record of 200 Grand National/Winston Cup racing wins is very likely never to be equaled. (In comparison, the driver with the second-highest total of wins in NASCAR races is David Pearson, with 105 over a 26-year career.)
By the 1980s, NASCAR race-car design rules had changed radically since NASCAR's first season in 1949. That year, NASCAR's series ran under "strictly stock" rules. Cars were - or were supposed to be - unaltered from production cars. But that idea ran counter to the decades-long "tradition" among auto racers of cheating under the hood and in the chassis, i.e., adding hidden changes to the engine and suspension to make the car a better performer. Bill France decided to allow certain modifications to both a car's stock engine and its chassis, and to enforce strict discipline against cheating by employing - to look over each car and its engine in detail before each race - a bevy of inspectors answerable to France. The race series was renamed the Grand National series in 1950, and occasional cheating was not, of course, entirely eliminated. Over the years, more and more departures from "stock" components were permitted by the frequently evolving rule changes - the objective of the rule changes, nearly every time, was to let the cars average faster speeds (which brought in more fans), while at the same time trying to eliminate unfair advantages among the cars (close racing, being more exciting, pleased the fans; a race season dominated by just a few drivers that could "run away from the field" in almost every race decreased both fan interest and the interest of other race-car owners to enter their cars).
By the 1980s, NASCAR race cars were no longer "stock" at all, being entirely purpose-built, with non-stock tubular space-frames eliminating the stock frame, specially designed springing, 700-horsepower engines in which only the stripped, basic block was "stock," and — significantly — added safety and fire-suppression equipment.
Only the basic shape of the hand-made body had to follow the lines of the stock model being represented. "Spoilers" - the lateral flap added to the rear of the "trunk" - used wind to keep the rear of the car down at high speed; headlights became decals; doors didn't exist (the driver climbed-in through the left-hand window opening). Today's NASCAR race cars have even dispensed with following a production car's body lines; the smoothly shaped front-ends of the race cars are designed to reduce wind resistance to a practical minimum. The NASCAR race-car design rules rigidly enforced today are, by far, the most complex of any motorsport; these rules are designed to equalize the cars as much as possible, to provide close, competitive racing.
Location
Currently on loan
Date made
1984
user
Petty, Richard
maker
Petty Enterprises
ID Number
1985.0009.01
accession number
1985.0009
catalog number
1985.0009.01
In 1878, a Scottish immigrant named Alexander Winton arrived in New York City. By the turn of the century, he would be one of America’s best known automobile makers and race car drivers. The first Winton car was sold on March 24, 1898.
Description
In 1878, a Scottish immigrant named Alexander Winton arrived in New York City. By the turn of the century, he would be one of America’s best known automobile makers and race car drivers. The first Winton car was sold on March 24, 1898. Winton saw racing not only as a way to attract investors and customers but also as essential to developing and testing technologies for his production automobiles. He built the first of his three Bullet race cars in 1902. On September 16, 1902, on a Cleveland horse track, Winton drove his Bullet ten miles in ten minutes and 50 seconds, averaging 55.38 miles per hour. On March 26, 1903, Alexander Winton in the Bullet and H. T. Thomas in Ransom Olds’s Pirate competed in the first Florida Winter Speed Carnival, though in separate classes. Winton drove his Bullet a mile in 52.2 seconds, averaging 68.96 miles per hour. On the Carnival’s last day, Winton and Thomas faced off in the first Ormond Challenge Cup. It was a close race, but Winton won by a fraction of a second. After the Carnival, many declared the beaches of Ormond and nearby Daytona to be perfect for racing. Ormond Beach soon became known as the “Birthplace of Speed.” On October 25, 1902, Winton and his Bullet suffered defeat to one of Henry Ford’s automobiles and met the man who would become America’s first celebrity race car driver. Barney Oldfield had made a name for himself racing bicycles and setting records across the country. Henry Ford knew of Oldfield’s racing talent and hired him to drive his new racer. Winton and Oldfield raced against two other competitors, Oldfield driving Ford’s 999 and Winton driving the Bullet. Winton fell back in the race when the Bullet started misfiring, and Oldfield lapped everyone to take the victory. Winton recognized Oldfield’s talent and soon hired him to race his cars, paying him $2,500 a year plus travel expenses and winnings. In 1930 the Winton Engine Company donated Bullet No. 1, Bullet No. 2, and the first Winton sold to the Smithsonian Institution.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1902
maker
Winton Engine Company
ID Number
TR.309602
accession number
105119
catalog number
309602
From board tracks to the Indianapolis 500, auto racing in the 1920s attracted national and international attention.
Description
From board tracks to the Indianapolis 500, auto racing in the 1920s attracted national and international attention. Harry Miller's handcrafted race cars were the most sought-after entries because of their exquisite mechanical designs, outstanding performance, speed records, and sleek, aerodynamic beauty.
By 1926, as speeds increased, Indy authorities had reduced engine displacement to 91 cubic inches. Miller compensated by adding a supercharger and perfecting front-wheel drive, eliminating the drive shaft and lowering the car's profile. But a ban on superchargers and the onset of the Depression ended Miller's dominance. This car, one of two in existence, captures Miller's mastery at its peak.
date made
1929
driver
Hepburn, Ralph
Duray, Leon
ID Number
1991.0889.01
catalog number
1991.0889.01
accession number
1991.0889
Dirt oval tracks, speeds of 90 miles per hour or more, and the relatively light weight of sprint cars combined to produce a spectacular racing style. Drivers maintain top speeds on turns, letting the rear wheels slide while balancing throttle and steering.
Description
Dirt oval tracks, speeds of 90 miles per hour or more, and the relatively light weight of sprint cars combined to produce a spectacular racing style. Drivers maintain top speeds on turns, letting the rear wheels slide while balancing throttle and steering. Stapp Enterprises built this car in Brownsburg, Indiana. It has a Chevrolet V-8 engine, spring front, and torsion bar rear suspension. The transmission has only one speed, but the rear axle contains a quick-change section that allowed the mechanic to change the final gear ratio in the pits. This car raced on dirt tracks, primarily in Ohio and Indiana but as far south as Florida and as far east as Pennsylvania. Its most successful driver was Duane “Pancho” Carter, who won the 1974 United States Auto Club (USAC) championship. Other drivers include Johnny Rutherford, Jackie Howerton, and Terry White.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1973
maker
Stapp Enterprises
ID Number
1981.0814.01
accession number
1981.0814
catalog number
1981.0814.01
In 1878, a Scottish immigrant named Alexander Winton arrived in New York City. By the turn of the century, he would be one of America’s best known automobile makers and race car drivers. The first Winton car was sold on March 24, 1898.
Description
In 1878, a Scottish immigrant named Alexander Winton arrived in New York City. By the turn of the century, he would be one of America’s best known automobile makers and race car drivers. The first Winton car was sold on March 24, 1898. Winton saw racing not only as a way to attract investors and customers but also as essential to developing and testing technologies for his production automobiles. He built the first of his three Bullet race cars in 1902. Winton built his second Bullet in 1903 to compete in the Gordon Bennett Road Race in Ireland. Built to withstand the rigors of 327 miles of rough Irish roads, Bullet No. 2 was more powerful and built with a heavier frame than the first Bullet. It had one of the first in-line, eight-cylinder engines, consisting of two in-line, four-cylinder engines bolted together. After a promising start, mechanical difficulties caused Winton to drop out of the race. Upon his return from Ireland, he announced his retirement from racing. Winton continued racing the Bullets with hired drivers behind the wheel. With Winton’s financial support, Barney Oldfield traveled across the United States performing automotive feats with a flamboyant style and his trademark cigar clenched in his teeth. On January 28, 1904, at the second Florida Winter Speed Carnival, Oldfield drove Bullet No. 2 a mile in 43 seconds, which was equivalent to 80 miles per hour and close to the world record at the time. In 1930 the Winton Engine Company donated Bullet No. 1, Bullet No. 2, and the first Winton sold to the Smithsonian Institution.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1903
restored
Stine, John
maker
Winton Engine Company
ID Number
TR.309603
accession number
105119
catalog number
309603
In 1987, General Motors, 16 GM subsidiaries, and an AeroVironment, Inc. engineering team led by company founder and famed aeronautical engineer Paul MacCready designed the GM Sunraycer to compete in the first World Solar Challenge in Australia.
Description
In 1987, General Motors, 16 GM subsidiaries, and an AeroVironment, Inc. engineering team led by company founder and famed aeronautical engineer Paul MacCready designed the GM Sunraycer to compete in the first World Solar Challenge in Australia. The team combined lightweight materials, solar power technology, and cutting edge power management systems to create this energy efficient speedster. Sunraycer’s photovoltaic solar cells converted the sun’s radiation into electricity to power its motor and charge the battery. Gallium arsenide cells make up 80 percent of the solar arrays, and single crystal silicon cells comprise the remaining 20 percent. The chassis was constructed of aluminum tubing, and the lightweight body was made of two Kevlar layers sandwiching a layer of Numex. The race began on November 1, 1987; the route was a 1,950-mile north-to-south transcontinental course starting in Darwin and ending in Adelaide. Sunraycer won the challenge by completing the route in 5 1/4 days with a running time of 44.9 hours and an average speed of 41.6 miles per hour. Ford’s Sunchaser finished second, 2 1/2 days and over 620 miles behind Sunraycer. After the race, Sunraycer went on a national tour of auto shows, museums, and schools to promote interest among students in alternative energy technology and engineering careers. When the tour ended, GM donated Sunraycer to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. Using lessons learned from the World Solar Challenge, GM and AeroVironment collaborated on the development of the GM Impact battery-powered electric car. Sunraycer provided new insights into how driver activity, power consumption, battery life, and range interact. The Impact was the prototype for the EV1, GM's first electric production car. AeroVironment carried the research and development from Sunraycer, Impact, and EV1 into other technologies, including rapid battery charging systems and power processing systems used to test and develop electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, and batteries. Sunraycer laid the theoretical and practical foundation that made modern electric and hybrid vehicles practical for everyday transportation.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1987
maker
General Motors Corporation
GM Hughes
ID Number
1989.0599.01
accession number
1989.0599
catalog number
1989.0599.01
Few private owners, and only extremely wealthy ones, campaigned cars in the top sports car races in Europe.
Description
Few private owners, and only extremely wealthy ones, campaigned cars in the top sports car races in Europe. As a result of the European influences toward more specialized engineering for the best sports cars, the "prototype" racing classes emerged in the US for the fastest, most powerful US and European-built sports cars - none of which were street legal by any stretch.
In this context, professional sports car racing became more popular by the 1970s. Later, organizations such as the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) organized professional races for prototype sports cars and high-powered "GT" sports coupes.
The Corvette ZR-1 No. 92 was built specially by Tommy Morrison Motorsports in 1990 for racing in the IMSA "GTO" class. General Motors provided backing and technical services; the major financial sponsors were Mobil Oil and EDS. The car is one of several built "from the ground up" as race cars. The tubular space frame resembles that of a modern NASCAR racer; the body follows the Corvette ZR-1's lines exactly but was designed to fit the custom-built frame. The modified Chevrolet V-8 engine was developed by the Mercruiser Corp. The all-independent suspension is that of a production ZR-1 Corvette, with special springing and shock absorbers for racing.
No. 92 placed 4th in class in the 1991 Daytona 24-hour endurance race, on Daytona's "road course" that uses multiple corners on the big track's infield combined with part of the high banking used by NASCAR racers. The 92 also placed 6th in class in the 1991 Sebring 12-hour endurance race, held at the historic sports car track in Sebring, FL, that still uses a portion of a World War II-era concrete airfield in its circuitous course. Even finishing these endurance races is an accomplishment, and 4th and 6th places, out of the large fields of competing cars, are regarded as highly successful.
Another of Morrison's ZR-1's set the world speed record for a 24-hour run, averaging some 174 mph.
Sports-car racing was a post-World War II phenomenon in the US. While racing by stock cars, sprint cars, and dragsters attracted fans of generally middle-class and more modest means, sports-car racing attracted young car-owners and fans primarily of wealthier means. This relationship stemmed from the pronounced cachet that went with European automotive engineering from the late 1930s through the 1960s.
Ex-servicemen who had been based in England began bringing British sports cars to American soil in 1948. Auto dealerships selling such makes as MG, Triumph, and Jaguar - and Porsche from Germany and Alfa-Romeo from Italy - opened in the US for the first time. These cars were typical of European engineering for two-door performance cars: light, agile, many with small or medium-sized engines compared to general US custom, and right at home on curving, twisting roads where a driver could test his or her cornering skill. Many sports cars were relatively small (by American passenger-car standards) two-door convertibles, and a few were low-slung, two-door coupes. Organized racing for sports cars sprang up immediately. Since no oval track could bring out the qualities of sports-car agility, local organizers often marked out multi-cornered courses with rubber cones and hay bales on the abundant pavements of abandoned military airfields. Organized races through city streets were sometimes approved by local officials.
Soon enough, paved race tracks—with hilly, twisting layouts emulating courses in continental Europe for "Formula" and sports cars—began appearing in the US. And variations on sports-car racing also quickly took root: endurance races (of two, six, 12, and 24 hours), together with numerous classes (so that less-powerful MGs and Triumphs, for example, could race in different classes than, say, Jaguars, Ferraris, or Maserattis). And "autocrossing" was organized locally in towns all over the US—wherein one car at a time competed for the shortest elapsed time over short, twisting courses often marked off temporarily on large, open macadam parking lots.
Before long, America got its first sports car: the Chevrolet Corvette, introduced tentatively in 1953. By the late 1950s, a re-engineered Corvette took its place as a competitive sports car, both in the showrooms and on sport-car race tracks.
The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) organized sports car races in the US and also licensed amateur drivers, after an on-track skills test with a well-experienced driver. Regional championships were competed-for in many classes, including hand-built sports cars intended only for the track. Through about 1960, a top amateur competitor could file an entry and drive his production sports car to a sports car race, tape-up the headlights (to keep broken glass from flying too far in an incident), remove a few excess parts such as mufflers and bumpers, paint-on an assigned race number to the car temporarily, and go racing. By the early 1960s, such a cavalier approach became passé, and serious sports-car racers prepared their cars as fully as stock-car and sprint-car owners. The SCCA responded to the change by loosening the design rules for its "production" classes to include a variety of engine and other performance modifications - although the car still had to be "street legal," meaning it still had to comply, off the track, with passenger vehicle licensing requirements for use on public roads. The SCCA "modified" classes became more so, including exotic cars intended only for the most serious racing.
Europeans, meanwhile, developed sports car racing after World War II to a level of sophistication in cars and organization of races almost equal to that of Formula 1 "Grand Prix" racing. And in both types of racing, factory teams were by far the majority of participants.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1990
maker
Morrison Motorsports, Inc.
ID Number
1997.0120.01
accession number
1997.0120
catalog number
1997.0120.01
Preston Tucker's automobile was promoted as "the first completely new car in fifty years" because of its novel engineering and safety features and its unique styling.
Description
Preston Tucker's automobile was promoted as "the first completely new car in fifty years" because of its novel engineering and safety features and its unique styling. The rear-mounted engine and rubber suspension were designed to improve performance and reduce noise, fumes, and vibration. Safety features included a center headlight that turned with the front wheels and collision protection provided by a pop-out windshield, padded dashboard, and "safety chamber" for the front passenger. Tucker's styling gave the car a futuristic appearance and an impression of power and speed. Fifty-one cars were built before production was halted due to financial problems.
Date made
1948
ID Number
1993.0484.01
accession number
1993.0484
catalog number
1993.0484.01
Hot rods first appeared in southern California in the late 1930s and became popular in many other places after World War II. Oval track racing combined speed and spectator enjoyment.
Description
Hot rods first appeared in southern California in the late 1930s and became popular in many other places after World War II. Oval track racing combined speed and spectator enjoyment. Dick Fraizer, Floyd Johnson, and Hack Winniger built this competition track roadster in Muncie, Indiana. It has a 1927 Ford Model T body, a 1928 Chevrolet chassis, and a Ford V-8 engine. Fraizer set a one-lap speed record of 84.23 miles per hour with this car at the Winchester Speedway in Indiana. It also ran at Soldiers Field in Chicago with Andy Granatelli’s Hurricane Racing Association and on tracks as far east as Virginia.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1948
maker
Anderson, Donald
ID Number
1992.0028.01
accession number
1992.0028
catalog number
1992.0028.01
In 1952, Leon Hurd extensively modified this 1932 Ford coupe, beefing-up the frame and installing stronger springs, and installing a 1942 Ford "59A"-block "flathead" V-8 engine.
Description
In 1952, Leon Hurd extensively modified this 1932 Ford coupe, beefing-up the frame and installing stronger springs, and installing a 1942 Ford "59A"-block "flathead" V-8 engine. Initially the car ran without fenders, during the short time that was permitted by the Atlantic Racing Association racing rules. (NASCAR was in its infancy.)
Hurd raced in New England from 1952 through 1955, winning more than 100 races in that time. The car carried racing number "00." In 1979, Hurd did some minor restoration on the car.World War II period saw a relative explosion of motor racing on both sides of the Atlantic and a proliferation of distinctly American types of racing with no counterparts in Europe. One such uniquely American type was "stock car" racing. Popular interest was whetted by races run with cars that were entirely like - or mostly looked like - those for sale in the showrooms or on the used-car lots. Fans could cheer for cars that looked like the cars they drove in everyday use.
Most auto racers preferred two-door coupes: a smaller, two-door car was lighter for better acceleration yet could house a powerful engine; and a coupe had a roof, which helped protect the driver in roll-overs, which were not uncommon in the pell-mell anarchy of beach races. To help him set rules for stock-car racing, Bill France created the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, NASCAR, in 1948; NASCAR's first season was 1949. Then France had another idea: too many spectators could enjoy his beach races without paying the admission charges for his viewing areas closer to the course. So why not build a modern oval race track away from the beach, surrounded by bleachers, and thus configured so that any and all spectators had to pay to see the races - and far more spectators at that?
It was an old idea, actually. In the US from about 1910, the dominant money in the early years of auto racing came from entrepreneurial track owners (many of whom had previously owned bicycle tracks or velodromes). Track owners knew that strict control of access to the racing venues was the key to maximum income from spectators. And oval tracks gave by far the best view to the most customers, also a motivating factor for ticket buyers. (In contrast, Europe and Britain never developed such enclosed oval tracks. Very wealthy car-owners and manufacturers have always controlled auto racing there, and such elite car-owners and manufacturers have strongly preferred open-road courses as more sporting - and also more likely to help improve auto design technology. Thus modern European closed tracks still follow the "open road" idea, with lots of turns and curves.)
Bill France saw the success of the paved oval track built at Darlington, SC, in 1950. So, with his business model in hand based on droves of paying race fans, France began raising money in 1953 and, a few years later, opened a new Daytona Speedway. NASCAR came of age in 1959, with the first running of the Daytona 500.
"Stock-car" racing found a home quickly in the South, where "moonshiners" or "rum runners" during Prohibition had been modifying ordinary-looking cars with "souped-up" engines (i.e., modified for greater power) and stiffened suspensions -- and hidden tanks for booze -- to outrun federal marshals on backwoods roads when necessary to elude arrest. But organized stock-car racing on closed courses -- beginning in the late 1940s -- found eager fans as well in the Northeast, Midwest, and Far West; the South had no monopoly. Sponsorship money, particularly from local auto dealers, became more plentiful; "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" soon became a byword among retail car dealers. The cheaper, individually owned stock cars -- coupes that were often referred to as "jalopies" -- raced on local and regional dirt tracks. Well-sponsored cars fielded by wealthier owners with funding and engineering assistance from Detroit manufacturers raced at larger, paved oval tracks with extensive bleachers for the fans.
Track owners set the pattern for organized stock-car racing. Bill France, of Daytona Beach, Florida, had witnessed the popularity of pre-war "beach racing" (see Web entry on the racing automobile, Winton 'Bullet' No. 1). In the late 1940s, he organized beach races for any local car-owners who liked the idea of competing against each other with more-or-less "stock" automobiles.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1952
maker
Hurd, Leon H.
ID Number
1992.0029.01
accession number
1992.0029
catalog number
1992.0029.01
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1984
user
Petty, Richard
maker
Petty Enterprises
ID Number
1985.0009.01.01
Swamp Rat XXX is a drag racing car of the top-fuel class, designed, built and raced by Don Garlits of Ocala, Florida. Garlits, better known as "Big Daddy," is one of the pioneers of drag racing, which is a test of acceleration on quarter-mile tracks.
Description
Swamp Rat XXX is a drag racing car of the top-fuel class, designed, built and raced by Don Garlits of Ocala, Florida. Garlits, better known as "Big Daddy," is one of the pioneers of drag racing, which is a test of acceleration on quarter-mile tracks. He began racing in 1950 in modified stock cars at Zephyr Hills, Fla., not far from his home in Tampa, shifting to drag racing in 1959. Over a 30-year career, he was one of the most innovative builders in the sport.
Swamp Rat XXX won the National Hot Rod Association championship in 1986 with a quarter-mile speed of 272.55 miles an hour. It crashed at a race in Spokane, Washington, and, along with Garlits, retired from active competition.
The vehicle displays the state of drag racing art in the 1980s: a very long wheelbase, small front wheels to minimize aerodynamic drag, engine in the rear, and a wing for added aerodynamic down force. The engine placement puts most of the vehicle's weight on the rear or driving wheels and behind the driver for safety reasons in case of an engine blow-up.
The car is covered with emblems, chiefly of sponsoring corporations. It carries a Christian cross and the words "God is Love," reflecting Garlits' experience in 1959 when, after an accident, his system could not handle pain-killing drugs. In severe pain, he cried out, "Lord help me," and his pain ceased.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1985-1986
user
Garlits, Donald G.
maker
Garlits, Donald G.
ID Number
1987.0889.01
catalog number
1987.0889.01
accession number
1987.0889
A truly "grass roots" sport, organized "go-karting" arose in the late 1950s.
Description
A truly "grass roots" sport, organized "go-karting" arose in the late 1950s. In the 1930s and late 1940s, various types of smaller open-wheeled race cars had been developed for certain classes of organized racing on oval tracks, including the "midget racers" - diminutive but full-fledged, single-seat, high-speed cars. But for would-be racers of limited means in the 1950s, even these midget race cars were out of financial reach. Meanwhile, marketers of leisure-time products had started producing small, motorized "karts" for pre-teens. Such a kart, intended for driving on paved surfaces off the public roadways, had a light frame made of tubular steel, no "body" at all, a rudimentary open seat, and was equipped with a small gasoline engine mounted behind the driver and tiny tires. Adults thought up the idea of installing more-powerful motors, and the racing "go-kart" was born. Racing of such karts by kids was soon organized -- but racing classes for adults were created as well. Such races were sometimes held at regular paved race tracks but were usually run on specialized, short paved courses designed and built expressly for the karts. In the early days, races ran on large parking lots, with courses marked off for the day with stripes and rubber cones.
Many racing drivers who became well known in the 1970s, '80s, and through the present -- such as NASCAR's Jeff Gordon, 'Indy 500' drivers Al Unser, Jr. and Michael Andretti, and European 'Formula-1' drivers -- learned their early skills by becoming champion kart drivers in the classes for pre-teens.
Elwood "Pappy" Hampton (1909-1980), however, was one of thousands who took to the sport as adults. He was a Washington, DC, machinist who became interested in go-kart racing as a hobby. He built several karts, each time refining their design and improving their performance.
This kart is one made about 1960, which Hampton raced frequently from 1960 through 1962 to first-, second-, and third-place finishes, mostly at the Marlboro Speedway in Maryland. In 1962, he won the East Coast Championship. At age 51 in 1960, "Pappy" was one of the oldest successful kart racers in the mid-Atlantic area, hence his nickname.
The kart has a duralumin chassis (duralumin for strength with extreme lightness) made especially for racing karts by Jim Rathmann of Indianapolis (the winning driver in the 1960 Indianapolis 500), and a drive train engineered and made by Hampton. The engine is one made in England, fueled on alcohol.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1960
maker
Hampton, Sr., Elwood N. "Pappy"
Rathmann, James
ID Number
1997.0378.01
accession number
1997.0378
catalog number
1997.0378.01

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