Kurtis Kraft was an American designer and builder of race cars. The company built

midget cars Midget (from '' midge'', a tiny biting insect) is a term for a person of unusually short stature that is considered by some to be pejorative due to its etymology. While not a medical term like " dwarfism", a medical condition with a number of ...

, quartermidgets,

sports car A sports car is a car designed with an emphasis on dynamic performance, such as handling, acceleration, top speed, the thrill of driving and racing capability. Sports cars originated in Europe in the early 1900s and are currently produced by ...

sprint cars Sprint may refer to: Aerospace *Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design *Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile Automotive and motorcycle *Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989 * Chevrolet Sprint ...

, Bonneville cars, and USAC Championship cars. It was founded by

Frank Kurtis Frank Peter Kurtis (born Kuretich; January 25, 1908 – February 17, 1987) was an American racing car designer. He designed and built midget cars, quarter-midgets, sports cars, sprint cars, Indy cars, and Formula One cars. He was the founder of Kurt ...

when he built his own midget car chassis in the late 1930s.Biography
at the

National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame The National Midget Auto Racing Hall of Fame is an American Hall of Fame and museum for midget cars. The Hall of Fame is located at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin Sun Prairie is a city in Dane County in the U.S. state of Wi ...

Kurtis built some very low fiberglass bodied two-seaters sports cars under his own name in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

between 1949 and 1955.

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

(US) running gear was used. About 36

Kurtis Sport Car The Kurtis Sport Car (KSC) is a two-seat, aluminum-body sports car designed by Frank Kurtis and manufactured by Kurtis Kraft in 1949 and 1950. Built with numerous components (including the chassis and V8 engine) from a 1949 Ford, the KSC was bui ...

s had been made when the licence was sold to

Earl "Madman" Muntz Earl William "Madman" Muntz (January 3, 1914 – June 21, 1987) was an American businessman and engineer who sold and promoted cars and consumer electronics in the United States from the 1930s until his death in 1987. He was a pioneer in telev ...

who built the

Muntz Jet The Muntz Jet is a two-door hardtop convertible built by the Muntz Car Company in the United States between approximately 1949 and 1954. It is sometimes credited as the first personal luxury car. Developed from the Kurtis Sport Car (KSC) th ...

. In 1954 and 1955, road versions of their Indianapolis racers were offered. Kurtis Kraft created 387 midget cars, some ready to race and some without engines or otherwise incomplete. Parts for several dozen were sold also, possibly as "kits." The Kurtis Kraft chassis midget car featured a smaller version of the Offenhauser motor. The

describes the combination as "virtually unbeatable for over twenty years." Kurtis Kraft also created 120 Indianapolis 500 cars, including five winners. Kurtis sold the midget car portion of the business to

Johnny Pawl Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Varian ...

in the late 1950s, and the quarter midget business to

Ralph Potter Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

in 1962. Frank Kurtis was the first non-driver inducted in the

(U.S.). Zeke Justice and Ed Justice of the

Justice Brothers Justice brothers (Ed, Gus and Zeke) were figures in motorsports and automotive industry. Founding a company in the oil additive industry. Youth - Paola, Kansas Edward Ray Justice, Sr. was born June 12, 1921 in Paola, Kansas. Lawrence Milton " ...

both worked at Kurtis-Kraft after World War II. Zeke Justice was the first employee at Kurtis-Kraft. The FIA World Drivers' Championship included the Indianapolis 500 between 1950 and 1960, so many Kurtis Kraft cars are credited with competing in that championship. One Kurtis midget car was also entered in the 1959

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

United States Grand Prix The United States Grand Prix is a motor racing event that has been held on and off since 1908, when it was known as the American Grand Prize. The Grand Prix later became part of the Formula One World Championship. , the Grand Prix has been held ...

driven by

Rodger Ward Rodger M. Ward (January 10, 1921 – July 5, 2004) was a World War II P-38 aviator in the United States Army Air Forces, and an American race driver with 26 victories in top echelon open-wheel racing in North America, two Indianapolis 500 v ...

. It was not designed for international-style road racing and with an undersized engine it circulated at the back of the field for 20 laps before retiring with clutch problems.

World Championship results

From 1950 to 1960, the

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

was part of the FIA World Championship. (Note: Race winners in bold)

References

External links

{{Authority control Formula One constructors American racecar constructors Companies based in California Sports car manufacturers