At the moment’s race vehicles are staggeringly advanced, however simplicity was the rule within the early days of motorsports. Barely greater than two seats and an engine mounted on a body, the 1911 EMF Mannequin 30 not too long ago featured on “Jay Leno’s Storage” exemplifies the state-of-the-art for race vehicles on the flip of the twentieth century.

Named after the initials of its founders, EMF is just about unknown as we speak however was briefly the fourth hottest automotive model within the U.S. Its different declare to fame was an unflattering nickname—Each Mechanic’s Pal.

Proprietor Dale Critz Jr. has researched this particular automobile’s historical past, and might verify that it was taken straight off the meeting line for races in Savannah, Georgia. Whereas the bodywork was stripped down and an additional oil tank was added, the flathead engine remained inventory.

This automobile is a two-seater, and never simply to keep up a connection to the highway vehicles prospects have been capable of purchase. The passenger’s seat was occupied by a using mechanic whose job was, amongst different issues, to manually pump engine oil by means of a total-loss system that merely sprayed oil out onto the highway as soon as it had circulated by means of the engine. 

Security was not a priority—each for drivers and spectators. The Mannequin 30 lacks seatbelts, and many of the races it was constructed to compete in have been held on public roads with no boundaries to maintain spectators from wandering into the trail of oncoming vehicles, or cease crashing autos and particles from hitting bystanders.

The EMF Mannequin 30 remains to be commonly pushed as we speak, offering a glimpse on the earliest days of motorsports—and a reminder of how a lot security has improved in latest many years.

This text was initially printed by Motor Authority, an editorial companion of ClassicCars.com