1915 Duesenberg Indianapolis Racer

1915 Duesenberg Indianapolis Racer

This is one of five team racing cars built between 1913 and 1916 by brothers Fred and Augie Duesenberg; this machine is the second oldest Duesenberg in existence. It was made primarily for championship races on high-banked board speedways, usually over a mile in length, constructed in numerous major cities around the country, including Chicago, New York, Cincinnati, Tacoma and Uniontown, PA. Wilbur D'Alene drove this car to a second place finish in the 1916 Indy 500.

This car is powered by a very unusual 300 cubic-inch 'Walking Beam' style engine, which the overhead valves are directly activated by two-foot long rocker arms. This innovative design became the standard for the Duesenbergs' competition cars before WWI and was later adopted for passenger car use. It develops about 100 horsepower at 2,500 RPM.

This racer was sold by the Duesenbergs to a young driver, Jimmy Benedict, who entered it in many 100-mile races in the summers of 1916 and 1917. It finished 5th at the Sheephead Bay AAA 1,000 miles in October 1916. It was raced throughout the Northeast between 1916 and 1921. After the hiatus in racing during WWI, Jimmy became a regular in numerous tracks in the Northeast. In 1921, Benedict sold the car to an ex-circus performer, Lou Hoyt, who used the car for performing stunts. After Hoyt's death in 1933, the car was stored away in a barn. In 1941, the car was found and restored to operating condition.

The car changed hands a few more times before the current owner purchased it in 1994 and he has given it a full engine rebuild, including a new cast iron block.

Descriptions & pictures by conceptcarz & dgrin & theoldmotor & other