American auto racing builder
Eddie Kuzma
Born Edward Leo Kuzma
(1911-09-18 ) September 18, 1911Died October 12, 1996(1996-10-12) (aged 85) Occupation Auto racing builder
Edward Leo Kuzma (September 18, 1911 – October 12, 1996) was an American race car builder.[ 1] [ 2] [ 3] Troy Ruttman's winning car for the 1952 Indianapolis 500 .
Biography
Kuzma was born in Portland, Oregon , where he was raised on a farm.[ 4] Vancouver, Washington , where he established an automobile repair shop .[ 5] midget race cars at the Jantzen Beach Amusement Park , and had built and raced his own car.[ 4] Offenhauser engine, making it faster than other local competitors.[ 4] United States Navy during World War II .[ 5] Los Angeles, California . [ 4]
Ruttman's winning Kuzma from the 1952 Indianapolis 500 In California he continued to build midget race cars.[ 4] J. C. Agajanian to build the Agajanian Special,[ 4] Indianapolis 500 , driven by Troy Ruttman .[ 6] A. J. Foyt won the Indianapolis 500 twice driving Kuzma's cars,[ 4] Mario Andretti won in one of his cars in 1969.[ 4] [ 5] [ 7] [ 8] farm along with his wife Edna.[ 4]
A Kuzma-Offenhauser driven by Jimmy Bryan , which won the 1957 Race of Two Worlds Kuzma died in October 1996 of kidney failure in Tigard, Oregon , at the age of 85.[ 5] Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum .[ 9]
Select Indianapolis 500 results
Kuzma cars competed in the FIA World Championship (Indianapolis 500 only) from 1951 to 1960. They won the 1952 Indianapolis 500 with Troy Ruttman .[ 10]
Note: all cars were fitted with Offenhauser engines.
References
^ "Automobile Quarterly: Volume 36, Issue 2", University of Virginia ^ Newman, Claude (May 25, 1957). "Car Builder Works A Miracle" . Valley Times . North Hollywood, California . p. 14. Retrieved July 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Don Brown Builds, Drives IMCA Cars" . The Tennessean Nashville, Tennessee . September 25, 1964. p. 41. Retrieved July 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .^ a b c d e f g h i Easterling, Jerry (October 26, 1986). "Builder on track with cars" . Statesman Journal Salem, Oregon . p. 59. Retrieved July 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com . ^ a b c d Associated Press (October 17, 1996). "Edward Kuzma, 85, Builder of Race Cars" . The New York Times . Retrieved July 11, 2022 .^ Curnow, Jack (May 26, 1953). "Indianapolis Drivers Hit 136.435 Average" . Los Angeles Times Los Angeles, California . p. 63. Retrieved July 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com . ^ Simmons, Bill (November 9, 1969). "Andretti Reaches Crossroad" . The Philadelphia Inquirer Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . p. 85. Retrieved July 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Eddie Kuzma Builds Racers" . The Kokomo Tribune Kokomo, Indiana . May 26, 1964. p. 47. Retrieved July 11, 2022 – via Newspapers.com .^ "Eddie Kuzma" . Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum . Retrieved July 11, 2022 .^ "Driver Troy Ruttman 1952 Formula One Results" . www.racing-reference.info . Retrieved 15 August 2018 .
