The Cunningham C-1 is a
sports car that was designed and built by the
B. S. Cunningham Company in 1950.
Background
American sportsman
Briggs Cunningham entered two cars based on the
Cadillac Series 61 in the
1950 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 1950 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 18th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on 24 and 25 June 1950. It was won by the French father-and-son pairing of Louis and Jean-Louis Rosier driving a privately entered Talbot-Lago.
Regulations
The revi ...
. Brothers
Cowles "Miles" Collier Cowles may refer to:
Surname
* Alfred Cowles Sr. (1832–1889), publisher Chicago, spouse Sarah Hutchinson
* Alfred Cowles Jr. (1865–1929) publisher, businessman and lawyer
*Alfred Cowles (III) (1891–1984) businessman and economist
*Anna Roosev ...
and
Sam Collier partnered to drive a lightly modified car nicknamed "Petit Pataud", and finished in tenth place. Cunningham and co-driver
Phil Walters
Philip F. Walters (April 20, 1916 – February 6, 2000) was an American racing driver, who won both the 12 Hours of Sebring and Watkins Glen Grand Prix twice.
Early career
Walters was born in New York City and grew up in Manhasset, New York ...
were in another car with fully custom bodywork, dubbed "Le Monstre", and finished one place behind the other Cadillac in eleventh place.
In preparation for his next attempt at Le Mans, Cunningham bought the Frick-Tappett Motors company. The operation was moved from Long Island, New York to West Palm Beach, Florida, and renamed the "B. S. Cunningham Company".
The Cunningham C-1 roadster was the first product of the new company. On the design team were Cunningham, Walters,
G. Briggs Weaver
G is the seventh letter of the Latin alphabet.
G may also refer to:
Places
* Gabon, international license plate code G
* Glasgow, UK postal code G
* Eastern Quebec, Canadian postal prefix G
* Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia, ...
and Bob Blake.
Only one C-1 was built, with serial number 5101.
The car was completed in late 1950, and is generally listed as from the 1951
model year.
Features
The chassis was made of steel tubing with a central X-brace.
The rear suspension was a custom-made
De Dion tube. The tires were mounted on
knock-off wire wheels. Wheelbase was , and the track front and rear was . The engine was a
Cadillac V8.
Motorsports
The C-1 was used in practice at Le Mans, but did not race.
In 1951 it appeared at the
Mount Equinox hillclimb, where it finished fourth driven by
John Fitch.
References
{{Reflist, refs=
[{{cite web , url=https://revsinstitute.org/the-collection/1951-cunningham-c-1/ , title=1951 Cunningham — Type: C-1 Prototype , author= , website=Revs Institute ]
[{{cite web , url=https://www.conceptcarz.com/z25237/cunningham-c-1.aspx , title=1951 Cunningham C-1 , last=Vaughan , first=Daniel , date=March 2020 , website=conceptcarz , publisher= , access-date= ]
[{{cite web , last=Lyons , first=Pete , url=https://www.briggscunningham.com/sportscars/c1/ , title=1951 C-1 , website=www.briggscunningham.com ]
[{{cite magazine , author= , title=THE LESSONS OF LE MANS , url=https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/august-1950/27/the-lessons-of-le-mans , magazine=Motor Sport , page=389 , date=August 1950 ]
[{{cite magazine , last=Dorrington , first=Leigh , date=1 October 2010 , title=Cunningham C-3 Continental — Luxury in a High-performance Package , url=http://www.briggscunningham.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/AQ-50-4-Cunningham.pdf , magazine=Automobile Quarterly , pages=16–29 ]
[{{cite magazine , last=Conwill , first=David , date=November 2016 , title=B.S. Cunningham Company , url=https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/b-s-cunningham-company , magazine=Hemmings Classic Car ]
[{{cite web , author= , url=https://www.racingsportscars.com/make/archive/Cunningham.html , title=Complete Archive of Cunningham , website=Racing Sports Cars ]
1950s cars
Cars of the United States
Roadsters