1912 National Speed Car

The early history of the National Motor Vehicle Company involved electric runabouts. When Arthur C. Newby took control a few years later, the destiny of the company changed. He was an enthusiastic bicyclist, loved racing, and was one of the four founders of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1909.

After 1906, the National Company concentrated on powering their vehicles with four- and six-cylinder gasoline engines. As early as 1905, Nationals had been raced using gasoline engines and a National won a 100-mile endurance race at Indiana Fairgrounds during that year. Many more historic accomplishments soon followed, such as becoming the first car to cover more than 1,000 miles in 24 hours. The vehicle covered 1,094 miles at an average speed of 51.9 mph.

When the new Indianapolis Speedway opened in 1909, Nationals were there. In May of 1910, amateur driver Arthur Greiner drove a National Model 40 in a series of events ranging from 5 to 200 miles. The Model 40 was void of any unnecessary items and its engine was tuned for optimal performance. The car and driver proved their potential by earning the 'Best Amateur' trophy award.

The inaugural 500-mile race at the Brickyard was held in 1911. Three team cars were entered for National. Each was a 40-horsepower racer and each qualified for the race by averaging 75 mph or more over a quarter-mile distance. The car driven by Charlie Merz placed in seventh position, the highest for the National team. The race was very competitive, with the top 12 cars all finishing the full 200 laps. After 500 miles, the pack was still a tight bunch.

A Speedway Roadster was added to National's line-up in 1911, in part to celebrate their accomplishments at Indianapolis.

In 1912, Joe Dawson won the Indy race with his 491 cubic-inch National and earned the purse of $20,000. The car had averaged 78.22 mph.

After this historic accomplishment, the National Company's goal had been ascertained and their focus switched back to improving their road-going cars. Around the same time as Packard was introducing their Twin Six, National introduced their Highway Twelve. Both were very impressive vehicles, but at a base price of $1,990, the Nationals cost around $1000 less than the Packard. The Twelve continued until 1919 and by 1922 the National Company merged with Dixie Flyer and Jackson to form Associated Motor Industries. Part of the company's demise was the retirement of Arthur Newby in 1916.

What was once the National Motor Vehicle Company was completely gone by 1924 as the company was in receivership.

by Dan Vaughan

Speedway Roadster

A 7-liter engine propelled these racing machines to numerous wins, one of the three most successful cars of the pre-World War I racing era. A car identical to this, stripped down, was the only stock car model ever to win the Indianapolis 500 race in 1912. That car was driven by Joe Dawson of the US. Its four-cylinder engine displaced 491 cubic inches and carried Dawson to a 7th place starting position, with a qualifying speed of 86.13 mph. It ran a total of 200 laps and led only two, but one of those laps was the most important - the finish. For his accomplishment, he won $20,000 in prize money and propelled the National Motor Vehicle Company into the history books.

He had run in second for most of the race and was finally able to pass the race leader, DePalam, on the main stretch. DePalma had led for 196 laps, the most ever in a race by a non-winner. DePalma and Jeffkins officially scored only 198 laps, but they did push their car to the finish line. Speedway rules stated that all entries must move under their own power. Second place, a full ten minutes behind the first place finisher, was Tetzlaff driving a 9.65-liter Fiat. Third went to Hughie Hughes in a Mercer followed by Charlie Merz in a Stutz.

Speedway Roadster

This famous No. 8 National Race Car was the outright winner of the 1912 Indianapolis 500 (the second edition of the race) driven by Joe Dawson (who was on loan to National from Nordyke & Marmon - winners with Ray Harroun in 1911). His average speed was a remarkable 78.72 mph. This victory is particularly interesting as this National holds the Indianapolis 500 record for the largest engine to ever win, it is powered by a National four-cylinder with a bore of 5.0-inches and a stroke of 6.25-inches, giving it an overall displacement of 490.8 cubic inches of just over 8 liters. Dawson started in 7th place on the grid. During the race, Ralph DePalma and riding mechanic Rupert Jeffkins took the lead on lap three in their Mercedes and held it continuously until a connecting rod tragically broke on the 199th lap. Many fans had left the grounds by that time, believing DePalma to be a certain winner since he then had a twelve-mile lead over Dawson. But it was Dawson who made it to the finish line. This highly original National is usually on display in the city of its manufacture, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum.

Speedway Roadster

This 1912 National Speed Car was one of the five cars entered by the National Motor Company at Indy in 1912. The race was won by another National entrant. Unfortunately, the driver of this car was killed during the race. The car was repaired and won the Santa Monica Grand Prix later that year, as well as the Visalia Festival of Speed in Savanna, Georgia. This car was restored in 1995 to the original left-hand drive configuration by the current owner.