The First Race Cars

Almost as soon as automobiles were invented, drivers had the urge to race them. Early builders were eager to prove that their designs were reliable, safe and fast, and the best way to prove which design was best was to race them head to head. Only as designers began to understand the optimal way to build cars, did the design of pure race cars begin in earnest.

  1. Early Races

    • The earliest auto races were more exhibitions than competitions, with manufacturers and amateur builders showing off their designs, sponsors drumming up publicity and everyone involved trying to convince the public the automobile was a revolutionary invention. In 1894, a race widely acknowledged to be the first auto race ever ran between Paris and Rouen in France. The winner of that race, a steam-powered car manufactured by De Dion, was disqualified because it was ruled to be an impractical design, and the runner-up, a gasoline-powered car made by Peugeot, was declared the winner. The next June, another high profile race, this time a round trip between Paris and Bourdeaux was staged, and once again a second-place Peugeot vehicle took the prize after the first-place car, this time a four-horsepower gas-powered Panhard-Levassor, was ruled ineligible.

    First Race in America

    • On Thanksgiving Day in 1895, the publisher of the "Chicago Times-Herald" followed the example of French publications sponsoring auto races and promoted the first automobile race in the United States. Originally planned to be a round trip between Chicago and Milwaukee, the race was shortened to a course between Chicago and Evanston. Only six cars started the race on the snowy November day, and only two finished. Oscar Mueller drove his modified Benz to a second-place finish with the race won by J. Frank Duryea in a car of his own design. Duryea covered the 54.36-mile course in just short of eight hours, with an average speed of seven mph.

    Early Grand Prix

    • While the earliest auto races were between cars designed ultimately used by the public, it was not long before manufacturers began designing cars specifically for racing. By the time, the first Grand Prix event was held in France in 1906, 12 manufacturers were ready to enter 32 cars in the race near Le Mans. Among those manufacturers were several names still familiar today, including Fiat, Mercedes and Renault. The winner of the race was a 90-horsepower Renault driven by Ferenc Szisz of Hungary.

    Early Stock Cars

    • In America, the evolution of race cars had come full circle by the middle of the twentieth century. When he founded the NASCAR racing circuit in 1948, Bill France had the vision of drivers racing modified versions of typical passenger cars. NASCAR's Strictly Stock division featured street-legal cars with only minor tuning changes, and the very first races were run between cars manufactured by makers such as Buick, Cadillac, Chrysler, Ford, Hudson and Oldsmobile.