Fred H. Offenhauser, Jr. (November 11, 1888 – August 17, 1973), was a machinist and self taught automotive engineer who developed the Offenhauser racing engine, nicknamed the "Offy", which dominated competition in 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 ...

race for decades. He also built the

Novi engine The Novi engine is an American dual overhead cam supercharged V8 engine used in racing cars in the Indianapolis 500 from 1941 to 1966. Designed by Bud Winfield and Leo Goossen, it was built by Fred Offenhauser. Early years The Novi was first use ...

, which was designed by Bud Winfield and

Leo Goossen Leo William Goossen (7 June 1892 – 4 December 1974) was a draftsman, mechanical engineer and automobile designer. He is known for his work with Harry Miller and his long involvement in the design and ongoing development of the four-cylinder Of ...

Biography

Frederick Offenhauser, Jr., was born November 11, 1888 in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, the oldest child of Martha and Frederick Offenhauser. Both his parents were natives of Germany who had emigrated as young adults. His father worked as a barber. Offenhauser, Jr. married Ethel C. Lowery. In 1913, when he was 25, Offenhauser began working in the shop of

Harry Arminius Miller Harold Arminius Miller (December 9, 1875 – May 3, 1943), commonly called Harry, was an American race car designer and builder who was most active in the 1920s and 1930s. Griffith Borgeson called him "the greatest creative figure in the hist ...

, having learned his trade as a machinist working for a railroad. That year a

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

car won the Indianapolis 500. It was equipped with a state-of-the-art

double overhead cam An overhead camshaft (OHC) engine is a piston engine where the camshaft is located in the cylinder head above the combustion chamber. This contrasts with earlier overhead valve engines (OHV), where the camshaft is located below the combustion cha ...

, four valve per cylinder engine. Miller named Offenhauser as the head of his engine department in 1914.

Bob Burman Robert R. Burman (April 23, 1884 – April 8, 1916) was an American race car driver, he was an open-wheel pioneer, setting numerous speed records in the early 1900s. He participated in many historic races and was one of the drivers to compe ...

was campaigning the Peugeot engine that year, but when

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

made it impossible to get parts, Miller's shop got the job of maintaining it. The design so impressed Miller and Offenhauser that they designed an engine on largely similar principles. In 1917, Offenhauser designed and built

Barney Oldfield Berna Eli "Barney" Oldfield (January 29, 1878 – October 4, 1946) was an American pioneer automobile racer; his "name was synonymous with speed in the first two decades of the 20th century". After success in bicycle racing, he began auto ...

's famous "

Golden Submarine The Golden Submarine was an early twentieth century streamlined race car designed and built in 1917 by Fred Offenhauser and Harry A. Miller for Barney Oldfield. AutoWeek said that the vehicle brought Miller "nationwide prominence as a race-car bu ...

". In 1919,

joined Miller's shop, and Offenhauser became plant manager. Miller's company went bankrupt in 1933 during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Offenhauser bought the patterns and equipment from Miller, and began developing a new engine with Goossen.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 ...

What became known as the Offenhauser engine was driven to great success in roadsters at the

, with 24 victories in 27 years. Offenhauser did not frequently attend the races at Indianapolis. In 1934, Offenhauser built his first 97-cubic inch-engine for

midget car racing Midget cars, also speedcars in Australia, is a class of racing cars. The cars are very small with a very high power-to-weight ratio and typically use four cylinder engines. They originated in the United States in the 1930s and are raced on mos ...

. Curly Mills was the first to win with this engine in his car. By 1941 Offenhauser's shop had developed the

, designed by Goossen and Bud Winfield. It was first promoted under the Winfield name. With additional development, it was used on racing cars in the

from 1941 to 1966. In 1946 Offenhauser sold his business to

Louis Meyer Louis Meyer (July 21, 1904 – October 7, 1995) was an American Hall of Fame race car driver who was the first three-time winner of the Indianapolis 500. Biography Born in lower Manhattan, New York on July 21, 1904, he was the son of French imm ...

and Dale Drake. Meyer and Drake continued producing the motor using the Offenhauser name. Offenhauser died August 17, 1973, in

. He was buried at Inglewood Park Cemetery in

Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

Legacy and posthumous awards

*In 1982 Offenhauser was inducted into the

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum is an automotive museum on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, which houses the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame. It is intrinsically linked to the Indi ...

. *In 1994 he was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame. *In 1999 he was inducted into the

. *In 2001, he inducted into the

International Motorsports Hall of Fame The International Motorsports Hall of Fame (IMHOF) is a hall of fame located adjacent to the Talladega Superspeedway (formerly Alabama International Motor Speedway) located in Talladega County, east central Alabama. It enshrines those who have co ...

. *In 2002, he was inducted into the

Motorsports Hall of Fame of America The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHFA) is hall of fame that honors motorsports competitors and contributors from the United States from all disciplines, with categories for Open Wheel, Stock Cars, Powerboats, Drag Racing, Motorcycles, ...

.Fred Offenhauser
at the

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Offenhauser, Fred 1888 births 1973 deaths International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductees National Sprint Car Hall of Fame inductees Burials at Inglewood Park Cemetery American people of German descent American founders of automobile manufacturers