Engineering:Cunningham C2-R

The Cunningham C2-R was a sports car developed in 1951 for the Briggs Cunningham racing team. It famously entered the 1951 24 Hours of Le Mans, but was unfortunately unsuccessful. Two of the three cars ended up retiring on lap 76 and 98 (9 and 11 hours), respectively, after an accident, and the third car was unfortunately not classified, even though John Fitch and Phil Walters managed to complete 223 laps, but did manage to place and finish 18th in its class.

History

Cunningham C-2R

The C2-R was the successor to the C-1, of which three were built, all to racing specifications; so-called the C-2R. The C-2R's front suspension used Ford parts, while the rear suspension had Oldsmobile springs and the brake system used Cadillac components. Unable to secure a supply of the Cadillac engine, Cunningham substituted a version of the Chrysler FirePower V8 in the C-2R.

The C-2R debuted at Le Mans in 1951. All three cars were entered, driven by teams John Fitch and Phil Walters, George Rand and Fred Wacker Jr., and Briggs Cunningham and George Huntoon. The best finish was eighteenth, for the Fitch/Walters car.