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1921 Frontenac Indy 500 Race Car

The first American-built racing car to win the Indianapolis 500 Memorial Day Classic with an eight-cylinder, in-line engine was the 1921 Frontenac. The car was conceived and built by Louis Chevrolet, the Swiss-born racer-mechanic-builder whose name lives on in the car he created to Will C. Durant, founder of General Motors.

Chevrolet was a short-tempered, star-crossed genius who came to American in 1900 after a successful career building bicycles in France—bicycles he called Frontenacs. Following a succession of jobs as driver as driver and mechanic, Chevrolet was hired by Durant in 1907, and in 1911 the two men formed the Chevrolet Motor Company. During 1912, the first full year of production, their fledgling firm was an immediate success when nearly 3,000 Chevrolet's were sold.

But Chevrolet split with Durant over the future of the company and sold out to the auto magnate—a rash move that cost the unfortunate Chevrolet many millions of dollars.

Chevrolet formed the Frontenac Motor Corporation and completed his first racing car in 1916. On December 2 of that year, a Frontenac won its first race at the Uniontown Board Speedway in Pennsylvania, covering 112.5 miles at an average speed of 102 miles per hour. Chevrolet himself was behind the wheel during this event.

Over the next three years, Frontenac cars won seven more major races—with either Louis or his brother Gaston at the wheel—but not the Indianapolis 500.

In 1920 Louis designed and built seven four-cylinder racers while under contract to the Monroe Motor Company. Four of the identical cars were painted green and entered at Indianapolis as Monroes, while the other three burgundy-red cars were entered as Frontenacs. Remarkably, all seven cars qualified for the 500-mile race, and one of the Monroes—driven by Gaston—won with an average speed of 88.5 miles per hour. It was the first American-built racing car to achieve a victory in the Indianapolis 500 since 1912, the year after the great racing classic was inaugurated.

Then in 1921 Louis, with the help of engineer Cornelius W. van Ranst, built a brand new racer with an eight-cylinder, in-line engine of just under 3,000 cubic centimeter displacement. The double overhead-cam engine was fitted with four valves per cylinder and dual spark plugs, and its crankshaft turned on five man bearings.

Because of its long stroke-to-bore ratio (107 by 67 cubic centimeters) the car’s engine was “redlined” at just over 3,000 rpm. Despite this disadvantage, however, the Frontenac, driven by Tommy Milton, took the checkered victory flag with an average speed of just under 90 miles per hour. It was the first and only time a Frontenac ever won the Indianapolis 500.
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Viewed: Apr 28, 2024
Updated: Apr 19, 2024
Priced: Apr 19, 2024
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