On this day in…
1805
219 years ago
Isaac de Rivaz applied for a French patent on his ‘explosion motor’, an important ancestor of the modern internal combustion engine Read more…
1901
123 years ago
The first formal automobile race in Great Britain was staged at the Crystal Palace in London and won by Charles Jarrott driving an 8-hp Panhard et Levassor Read more…
1908
116 years ago
A White steam racer driven by Walter C White won the Fort George Hill Climb in New York City, defeating over 80 other cars Read more…
1910
114 years ago
The Los Angeles “The Boards” Motordome, the first speedway with a board track, opened near Playa Del Rey, California, with a nine day series of races and exhibitions Read more…
1916
108 years ago
Racer Bob Burman crashed through a barrier into the crowd at the last Boulevard Race in Corona, California Read more…
1928
96 years ago
The first Dodge Standard Six export model (with RHD) was produced Read more…
1930
94 years ago
The 1,000th Cadillac V16 was producd Read more…
1940
84 years ago
The 28 millionth Ford was produced, a Deluxe Fordor Sedan with a body by Ford built at the Edgewater, New Jersey plant Read more…
1948
76 years ago
The first 1949 Ford was produced Read more…
1951
73 years ago
Marshall Teague won the first NASCAR Grand National event on the US West Coast Read more…
1958
66 years ago
Oldsmobile produced its 4 millionth car with Hydra-Matic transmission Read more…
1971
53 years ago
Fritz von Opel (72), automobile manufacturer and rocketry enthusiast died Read more…
1971
53 years ago
Richard Petty won the Columbia 200 at Columbia Speedway after passing Benny Parsons in the closing laps of the race Read more…
1973
51 years ago
The 25th BRDC International Trophy, a non-championship Formula One race held at Silverstone, over 40 laps, was won by Jackie Stewart in a Tyrrell-Cosworth 006 Read more…
1973
51 years ago
It was a Sunday afternoon of pure domination at North Wilkesboro Speedway as Richard Petty won the Gwyn Staley 400 by leading 387 of 400 laps and crossed the line four laps ahead of the field Read more…
1977
47 years ago
The International Gold Cup at Oulton Park was won by Derek Bell driving a Penske-Cosworth PC3 Read more…
1979
45 years ago
Canadian Gilles Villeneuve captured pole, fastest lap and the win for Ferrari at the United States West Grand Prix at Long Beach, California, followed by teammate Jody Scheckter, as the Prancing Horses took a big step toward reclaiming the Constructor’s and Driver’s Championships from Lotus Read more…
1979
45 years ago
In the Rebel 500 event at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina, drivers Darrell Waltrip and Richard Petty swapped the lead four times in a last-lap battle before Waltrip finally won the race Read more…
1984
40 years ago
During the spring race at North Wilkesboro Speedway it seemed like a day for Ricky Rudd to take home the win after leading 290 laps Read more…
1989
35 years ago
(8th-9th): Jim, June and Tony Laird covered all 62 mainland counties of Great Britain by car during a 1444.4 mile route in a time of 24 hours 56 minutes. Read more…
1990
34 years ago
Davey Allison edged Mark Martin by eight inches in a thrilling last lap to win the Valleydale 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, Tennessee, US Read more…
1998
26 years ago
Ford announced intent to introduce side-impact air bags throughout its North American car lineup Read more…
2000
24 years ago
Randy LaJoie scored his only win of the NASCAR Xfinity (Busch Grand National) season in the BellSouth Mobility 320 Read more…
2001
23 years ago
Dale Jarrett took the lead from teammate Ricky Rudd with seven laps remaining to win the Virginia 500 at Martinsville Speedway Read more…
2002
22 years ago
Alistair Weaver performed the most 360-degree spins, ‘doughnuts’, in a production car in one minute – 22 – in a 1.8 litre Caterham Superlight at Elvington Airfield, North Yorkshire. Read more…
2002
22 years ago
After starting at the back due to an engine change, Matt Kenseth put on a strong performance in the final 100 laps and then held off Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin to win the rain-delayed Samsung/Radio Shack 500 at Texas Motor Speedway Read more…
2002
22 years ago
The British TV show Fifth Gear was first broadcast as 5th Gear on Channel 5, as a continuation of the original incarnation of the BBC show Top Gear, which was cancelled in 2001 Read more…
2004
20 years ago
The 1 millionth Skoda Fabia was driven off the production line at the Skoda Auto plant in the Czech Republic and was handed over to a customer from the UK Read more…
2006
18 years ago
The new Alfa Brera, a sports coupe in the classic Alfa Romeo tradition went on sale in the UK Read more…
2006
18 years ago
Kurt Busch held off Greg Biffle on a green-white-checkered finish to win the O’Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway in his first career NASCAR Xfinity (Busch) Series start Read more…
2007
17 years ago
The Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang was won by Fernando Alonso in a McLaren-Mercedes MP4-22 Read more…
2011
13 years ago
Carl Edwards gave Ford its first NASCAR Xfinity (Nationwide) Series victory for the Mustang when he took the checkered flag in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 at Texas Motor Speedway Read more…
2016
8 years ago
Kyle Busch dominated the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 at Texas Motor Speedway for his fourth win in five Xfinity Series starts to begin the season Read more…
2017
7 years ago
Erik Jones won the NASCAR Xfinity Series My Bariatric Solutions 300 at Texas Motor Speedway Read more…
2018
6 years ago
Kyle Busch held off Kevin Harvick to win the NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway Read more…
2019
5 years ago
London introduced one of the world’s toughest vehicle emissions standards, placing a tax on older, more polluting cars that drive into the center of the British capital Read more…
