1916 Hudson Series H Super Six Roadster

In the period prior to World War I, one of the last manufacturers to enter the racing field was the Hudson Motor Car Co. of Detroit, Michigan. Hudson had been building cars since 1909, but in 1916, a revolutionary engine design guaranteed them a prominent place in the record books. That engine was an L-head type with a displacement of 288 cubic-inch, able to produce 77 horsepower at 2,500 RPM. In racing trim, the engine could withstand even higher revs as a result of a new form of balanced crankshaft designed by Hudson engineers.

Although Hudson engineers had no racing aspirations for the car, they were curious about what it was capable of. They hired famous driver, Ralph Mulford, to drive a stock chassis car with a special fish tail body at Daytona speed trials and set a one-mile record of 35.11 seconds at 102.5 mph. With this encouraging result, they next tried for a 24-hour record at Sheepshead Bay N.Y., where the same car set a record of 1819 miles at an average speed of 75.8 mph, which was faster than any human being had traveled in 24 hours in any form of transportation.

This car: Unfortunately, the Ralph Mulford 'Super Six' Hudson race car no longer exists, but this car was painstakingly restored to the exact same specifications as the original car. The original race history of this car is unknown, but it has survived and is now a tribute to the revolutionary Mulford record-breaking 1916 Hudson.

Manufacturer: Hudson Motor Car Company
Engine: 4,719cc, 6-cylinder 'H' head with balanced crankshaft
Transmission: 3 speed non-synchro
Body and Chassis: Steel, aluminum and wood
Wheels and brakes: Rudge wire wheels, rear mechanical brakes