Saturday 30th May 1914
France took its second consecutive Indianapolis 500 victory, this time with René Thomas. Also, in a technological breakthrough, inaugural race winner Ray Harroun, in charge of the United States Motor Company team, developed a fuel-sipping carburetor that ran on kerosene. Driver Willie Carlson’s Maxwell chassis proceeded to run the race to an eventual ninth-place finish on a mere 30 gallons; with the price at $0.06 a gallon, Carlson’s total $1.80 fuel bill stands as the most economical performance in motor racing history.
