- 3,710
- Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA
1910-1914 Mercer Type 35 Raceabout nominated by @Volksauto
Body Style: open speedster
Engine: 293 cu in (4,800cc) T-head inline-4
Power: 58hp
Torque: N/A
Weight: 1295kg
Transmission: 3-speed manual, 4-speed manual
Drivetrain: mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Additional Information: Top Speed: 100 mph (160 km/h) est. Being one of the most admired cars of the decade, the Mercer Raceabout is famously regarded as one of the first American sports cars.The first Mercer automobile, the Model 30, used a 30hp L-head Beaver four-cylinder engine, but Mercer soon had engineer Finley Robertson Porter design a T-head four-cylinder engine for a new car for the 1910 model year, the Model 35 Raceabout. Porter stripped the Raceabout of anything considered unnecessary for racing: the windshield, the top, even the body itself aft of the cowl. He designed the fenders, running boards, headlamps and headlamp brackets to be easily removable, leaving just the hood, cowl, seats, a small toolbox and the gas tank behind the seats as the only permanent portions of the body.
In 1911, the Mercer 35R Raceabout carried a list price of $2,250, which could easily buy a home. For that amount of money, what you got was a true production sports/racing car and you got one of the period’s most powerful engines. The Raceabout was able to reach 90 MPH no problem where cars of the same era struggled to reach 40.Raceabouts competed and won many AAA races in it's day and raced at the Indy 500.After Mercer's demise in 1919, the Raceabout still holds a prestigious status of being one of America's most iconic cars of the prewar era and currently holds a value between $1.5 - 3.5 million.
Body Style: open speedster
Engine: 293 cu in (4,800cc) T-head inline-4
Power: 58hp
Torque: N/A
Weight: 1295kg
Transmission: 3-speed manual, 4-speed manual
Drivetrain: mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Additional Information: Top Speed: 100 mph (160 km/h) est. Being one of the most admired cars of the decade, the Mercer Raceabout is famously regarded as one of the first American sports cars.The first Mercer automobile, the Model 30, used a 30hp L-head Beaver four-cylinder engine, but Mercer soon had engineer Finley Robertson Porter design a T-head four-cylinder engine for a new car for the 1910 model year, the Model 35 Raceabout. Porter stripped the Raceabout of anything considered unnecessary for racing: the windshield, the top, even the body itself aft of the cowl. He designed the fenders, running boards, headlamps and headlamp brackets to be easily removable, leaving just the hood, cowl, seats, a small toolbox and the gas tank behind the seats as the only permanent portions of the body.
In 1911, the Mercer 35R Raceabout carried a list price of $2,250, which could easily buy a home. For that amount of money, what you got was a true production sports/racing car and you got one of the period’s most powerful engines. The Raceabout was able to reach 90 MPH no problem where cars of the same era struggled to reach 40.Raceabouts competed and won many AAA races in it's day and raced at the Indy 500.After Mercer's demise in 1919, the Raceabout still holds a prestigious status of being one of America's most iconic cars of the prewar era and currently holds a value between $1.5 - 3.5 million.
