Chrysler had its racing breakthrough at Le Mans
The 24-hour race held in the town of Le Mans, France, each June is recognized as the world’s most prestigious road race. It has run continuously since 1923, with the exception of 1940 to ’48. It has functioned as a true test of speed and endurance and a rich source of publicity for automobile manufacturers. Nothing quite equals victory at Le Mans, and racing dynasties such as Bentley, Jaguar, Ferrari, Porsche, Ford and Audi have been built there.
The automobile was invented in Germany, and in the early years it reached a higher level of mechanical sophistication in Europe than in North America. Also, open-road racing was allowed there and became popular, and since Le Mans was an open-road race through the town, it was natural that most competitors would be European. Although American cars tried, none would win Le Mans until the outstanding Ford GT40s in the 1960s.
But American car technology was quickly catching up, and one of the early manufacturers to demonstrate this was Walter Chrysler, when four Chryslers were entered in the 1928 Le Mans race. In 1925, the ambitious ex-general manager of GM’s Buick division had turned the Maxwell Motor Corp. into the Chrysler Corp. Keen to expand, in 1928 he rounded out Chrysler’s offerings by adding the lowpriced Plymouth and intermediate De Soto, and buying out Dodge Brothers. And if that wasn’t enough for a young company to accomplish in one year, Chrysler decided to contest Le Mans.
Walter Chrysler had a keen interest in the Le Mans race, and knew that a good showing by Chrysler on that world stage would demonstrate its durability. Two Chryslers had run there as early as 1925, with one finishing seventh. It was a worthy effort, but Walter Chrysler thought Chrysler could do better and for 1928 the company decided to make a strong assault. Four Chrysler 72s with 4.1-litre sixcylinder engines were entered. They were driven by European drivers, chosen not because American drivers lacked the skill, but because the Europeans were familiar with the Le Mans track.
This was during the ascendency of the British Bentleys that had already won Le Mans in 1924 and ’27 and were out in force with four cars in 1928. Also entered from the United States was a Stutz Black Hawk with its overhead-cam, 32-valve straighteight engine. Stutz had a greater reputation as a high-performance competition car than Chrysler. The first Stutz built in 1911 had finished 11th in the Indianapolis 500-mile race that year, a creditable showing for a brand-new car. It had gone on to place third at Indy in 1913 and 1915.
Although Chrysler’s ancestor Maxwell had a strong racing reputation, Chrysler had no such competition credentials. The cars that raced at Le Mans were close to production cars with some body modifications allowed. The Chryslers had slim cycle-type front fenders and the headlamps lowered for better aerodynamics.
When the flag dropped at four o’clock in the afternoon, Bentleys led the way with the Stutz hot on their heels. The Chryslers ran steadily, managing to hold respectable positions, not threatening the leaders but not being overtaken by their followers either. By the end of the 24 hours, a Bentley was sitting first with the Stutz second. Two Chryslers had retired but the other two finished a surprising third and fourth.
It was an excellent showing for Chrysler. While not known for its racing prowess, it had proved that moderately priced mass-production American cars could now compete with anyone. They had demonstrated not only excellent durability, but enough performance to hold their own with the best that Europe had to offer.
Chrysler would not challenge Le Mans again, and European cars would continue to dominate until the Ford victory in 1966. But Chrysler would be back in part in 1953. There were no Chrysler cars in the race, but there were Chrysler engines. Wealthy Amer- ican sportsman Briggs Cunningham was mounting a serious Le Mans effort with his Florida-built Cunningham sports racers. They were assembled from a number of American mechanical parts and were powered by hopped-up Chrysler Hemi overhead-valve V-8 engines.
It was a prodigious, even audacious effort for a privateer racing against the factory might of Europe manufacturers. In spite of this, Chrysler-powered Cunninghams came in fourth in 1952, with ironman Briggs himself driving for almost 20 of the 24 hours. Cunningham did even better in 1953 finishing third, their best showing. Cunningham, like Chrysler, never did win Le Mans, but it too had demonstrated that American cars could challenge the world, just as Chrysler did in 1928.