18^th September, 2003

Henry's historic racer to tour Australia

ONE of the most celebrated cars in automotive history is coming to Australia.

Built in 1901, Sweepstakes was automotive legend Henry Ford's very first racecar, and it was the car that set him on the path to creating the Ford Motor Company.

That notion was far from the young inventor's mind when he began building Sweepstakes. His aim then was to create publicity and recognition to kickstart a career that looked in danger of stalling.

His first venture in auto manufacturing, the Detroit Automobile Company, was going out of business. The cars had not sold well and Ford wanted to develop a better one, but his stockholders decided to dissolve the company. 

Henry Ford at the wheel of Sweepstakes with Spider Huff posed in his position as riding mechanic

The car that Ford wanted to build would be mass-produced, uncomplicated, reliable, and sold at a price most people could afford. That was a revolutionary idea in 1901, when the automobile was still a novelty, and much too expensive for all but the very wealthy.

Henry Ford was confident somebody would succeed in producing the mass-market car he envisioned, and above all else he wanted to be the one to do it. But that would require significant financial investment. He needed to prove to potential backers that he had good, sound ideas, and that his automobiles could be a commercial success. Racing Sweepstakes, he believed, would provide a high-profile way to promote his name and reputation.

It is part of automotive folklore now that Sweepstakes carried Henry Ford to victory in the first and only race he ever drove – the race against Alexander Winton on October 10, 1901, in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.

Ford was clearly the underdog against an established racer. Indeed, Winton's sales manager persuaded race organisers to pick the cut glass punch bowl trophy because he wanted something that would look good in Winton's home.

Ford’s win changed everything, and ultimately for the history of the auto industry. It was the $1000 in prize money -- and offers of financial support from several people watching the race on the day – that set him on the road to establishing Ford Motor Company in June 1903. Ford went on to prove his belief in low-cost production with the Model T, the car that put the world on wheels.

Sweepstakes was eventually stored at the Henry Ford Museum and, over time, all but forgotten. With no papers to verify it as the original Sweepstakes, museum personnel came to believe it was a replica built by Henry Ford in the ’30s.

It wasn’t until the approach of the 1901 race’s 100th anniversary that steps were taken to verify the car’s authenticity. Restoration of the original Sweepstakes, along with the building of two working replicas, began in preparation for the Ford Racing 100th Anniversary celebrations.

Now Australian automotive fans will have the chance to see 'the racecar that changed everything' when it conducts a whistle stop tour in October.

The car will be on show at the Bathurst 1000 endurance race from October 11-12, the Sydney International Motor Show from October 17-19, and Ford Discovery Centre in Geelong from October 23-27.