On this day in…
1895
128 years ago
Adam Opel, the founder of the German automobile company Adam Opel AG, died of typhus aged 58 Read more…
1912
111 years ago
American motorcycle rider Eddie Hasha (19) was killed whilst racing at the New Jersey Motordome near Atlantic City Read more…
1912
111 years ago
At Valisburg Park in Newark, New Jersey (US), Motordrome racing has it’s darkest day Read more…
1921
102 years ago
In a race at Brescia, Italy, Bugatti sensationally routed all opposition and finished in the first four places in their class Read more…
1923
100 years ago
Ugo Sivocci (38), winner of the 1923 Targa Florio, died during practice for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, when his Alfa Romeo left the track and crashed into a tree Read more…
1923
100 years ago
The Daniels Motor Car Company was declared bankrupt Read more…
1925
98 years ago
The 2,000,000th Chevrolet was produced, a Superior Series K2-door Coach Read more…
1944
79 years ago
Les Graham, who would later win the first post-WWII 500cc motorcycle Grand Prix World Championship, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by the Royal Air Force Read more…
1945
78 years ago
A bus equipped with a two-way radio was put into service for the first time — in Washington, DC Read more…
1945
78 years ago
The first post-wart racing meeting in Europe was held in Bois de Boulogne, Paris, France Read more…
1950
73 years ago
Victor Hémery (73), the French champion driver of early Grand Prix motor racing, died Read more…
1953
70 years ago
Continental Trailways offered the first transcontinental express bus service in the US Read more…
1954
69 years ago
The 3000,000 vehicle was produced by the Ford Motor Company of Canada, Ltd Read more…
1955
68 years ago
Zora Arkus-Duntov raced a disguised 1956 model Corvette with a V-8 engine at the Pike’s Peak Hill climb in Colorado, setting the stock car record, with a time of 17 hours 24 minutes 05 seconds Read more…
1957
66 years ago
Stirling Moss won the Italian Grand Prix at Monza driving a Vanwall Read more…
1960
63 years ago
Mickey Thompson, driving the “Challenger” averaged 406 Read more…
1963
60 years ago
Maurice Wilks (59), the automotive engineer responsible for the inspiration and concept work that led to the development of the Land Rover off-road utility vehicle, died Read more…
1963
60 years ago
Jim Clark secured his fifth grand prix win of the season at Monza for Lotus, and with it the world championship Read more…
1966
57 years ago
Racer John Taylor (33) died in Koblenz, West Germany from injuries sustained earlier in the year when his Brabham-BRM crashed during the German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring Read more…
1966
57 years ago
The Severn Bridge, spanning the River Severn and River Wye between Aust, South Gloucestershire (just north of Bristol) in England, and Chepstow, Monmouthshire in South Wales, via Beachley, Gloucestershire, a peninsula between the two rivers, was opened by the Queen Read more…
1966
57 years ago
The first four level motorway interchange opened, the M4/M5 Almondsbury Interchange on the fringes of Bristol Read more…
1968
55 years ago
There was to be no fairytale ending for Graham Hill (Lotus-Ford) starting his hundredth grand prix in Monza (Italy) as Denny Hulme (McLaren-Ford)went on to take victory from Johnny Servoz-Gavin (Matra-Ford) and Jacky Ickx (Ferrari) Read more…
1974
49 years ago
Richard Petty rolled from the pole position to a dominant win in the Capital City 500 at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, Virginia, US Read more…
1974
49 years ago
Ronnie Peterson in a Lotus-Ford won the Italian Grand Prix, narrowly beating Emerson Fittipaldi into second place, to leave the championship on a knife-edge Read more…
1982
41 years ago
Norrie Galbraith, three time winner of the Scottish Hillclimb Championship, died at Doune hillclimb, during a television promotional event before the race Read more…
1984
39 years ago
Johnnie Parsons (66), American race car driver from Los Angeles, California who won the Indianapolis 500 in 1950, died Read more…
1984
39 years ago
Ten years later, Russia’s first Formula One driver, Vitaly Petrov, was born Read more…
1985
38 years ago
The Italian Grand Prix was won by Frenchman Alain Prost driving a McLaren MP4/2B Read more…
1986
37 years ago
Continuing its enormous expansion of the 1970s and early ’80s, the Nissan Motor Company Ltd Read more…
1996
27 years ago
Michael Schumacher sent the Tifosi delirious by winning the Italian Grand Prix and ending a seven-year wait for Ferrari on its home patch Read more…
1998
25 years ago
Baseball team St Read more…
2000
23 years ago
The fuel protests which had crippled France the previous week reached Britain with a series of actions across the country Read more…
2001
22 years ago
Ricky Rudd prevailed in a game of bumper-tag with Kevin Harvick and won the Chevrolet 400 at Richmond International Speedway, Virginia, US Read more…
2004
19 years ago
The one thousandth Rolls-Royce Phantom was built to customer order at the company’s manufacturing plant in Goodwood, England Read more…
2004
19 years ago
A German truck driver smashed his lorry into a parked car after wrongly thinking it looked like a getaway vehicle Read more…
2007
16 years ago
Porsche released its the latest 911 Turbo Cabriolet in the UK Read more…
2009
14 years ago
Samoa became the first country since the 1970s to change the side of the road on which cars are driven Read more…
2016
7 years ago
China’s Ministry of Finance punished at least five car makers, accusing them of cheating its program to subsidize electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, receiving roughly 1 billion yuan ($150 million) in illegal subsidies Read more…
2017
6 years ago
The TVR Griffith was revealed at the Goodwood Revival, featuring designwork by Gordon Murray, a 5 Read more…