Fast and Furious 1900

The car pictured above can be called a great-great-grandmother of all modern racing cars. Already at a time when the automobile was still very young, speed records were a crucial part of the game.

The magic 100 km/h mark was broken in 1899 by an electric-car built by Belgian racing driver and constructor Camille Jenatzy. Jenatzy was also known as the Red Devil because of his red beard and his daring in the race. He mainly designed his cars with the intention of breaking the next speed record. It was one of the first cars whose body was also built according to aerodynamic considerations. Jenatzy named it “La Jamais Contente » – the lady who is never satisfied.

Of course this speed record was viewed as a challenge by Ferdinand Porsche. He didn’t waste time to build a racing car named « La Toujours Contente » – the lady who is always satified. In 1900 he set a new speed record on the Semmering driving this car. Decades later, the engine of the lunar vehicle from 1971 was built with the same principle as that of the « Toujours Contente ».