A Brief History of Ford Racing

Fords are notorious for their speed and smooth ride -- and also for their history as the first mass produced vehicles available to the public. But Fords have a rich racing history, too. Ford racing began before Ford Motors even existed. Here you can explore the rich history of Ford racing:

• In 1896, Henry Ford reached a record speed of 20 mph in his very first car -- the Quadricycle.



• Five years later, in 1901, Henry Ford bested Alexander Winton, an accomplished racer and automobile builder of the time, in a 10-lap race at the Detroit Driving Club in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. By 1902, the Ford 999, driven by Barney Oldfield beat Winton again. The Ford Motor Company was then launched, thanks to the race publicity and its resulting financial backing.



• In 1903, the Ford 999 lapped the Indiana Fairgrounds track at a record speed of 60 mph. A year later, Henry Ford set the one-mile record in the 999 on a frozen lake near Detroit.



• In 1909, a Ford Model T won a transcontinental cross-country race of about 3,600 km from New York to Seattle.



• The 1930s brought some important developments for Ford racing. Ford introduced its V-8 Flathead engine into mass production, two mechanics driving a Ford Special win the Swedish Grand Prix, and Ionel Zamfirescu and P.G. Cristea won the Monte Carlo Rally driving a Ford V8 Flathead.



• In 1967, Ford won its first grand prix victory, when Jim Clark took the Dutch Grand Prix driving a Lotus-Ford. By 2003, Ford had won 175 Grand Prix Victories.



• In 2011, Trevor Bayne won the Daytona 500, marking Ford's 600th NASCAR victory. Only two years later, in 2013, Ford celebrated its 1000th NASCAR win when Greg Biffle won the Quicken Loans 400.



• In 2014, Ford debuted the Ford EcoBoost twin turbo engine for the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. Chip Ganassi Racing, with Felix Sabates, won the Mobil 1-12 Hours of Sebring using that engine.

You can improve your own Ford vehicle, especially the Mustang, with Mustang performance mods, to make your own fast Fords for races. A cold air intake, which only takes 30 minutes to install, can bring you around +15HP and an increase of one to two MPG, and an aluminum driveshaft reduces power loss by 2-4%.


Ford's are fast -- and they've been getting steadily faster for more than 100 years. Upgrade your Ford engine with Ford performance parts for increasing horsepower and maximizing racing capabilities.