This Day in Automotive History: November 14

1914 – Dodge Brothers’ First Production Car Rolls Out of Hamtramck

When the first Dodge Brothers production car eased off the Hamtramck assembly line on November 14, 1914, mechanics and managers were looking at a compact, practical machine built around a four‑cylinder L‑head engine and a 110‑inch wheelbase. Known in company literature as the Model 30‑35 and later nicknamed “Old Betsy,” the initial 1914 run totaled roughly 249 cars and carried a retail price near $785 — modest but well‑engineered for the era. That inaugural rollout at the new Detroit plant signaled the Dodge brothers’ shift from parts suppliers to full automakers, delivering a rugged, competitively priced car that helped establish Dodge’s early reputation for durability and value.

1940 – Alvis Car Works Devastated in the Coventry Blitz

The night air over Coventry turned lethal on November 14, 1940, when Luftwaffe bombing left the Alvis car works on Holyhead Road all but obliterated by blast and fire. While Alvis’s armaments and aero‑engine operations managed to continue in other facilities, the company’s motor‑car assembly buildings sustained catastrophic damage that stopped automobile production virtually overnight. The attack split Alvis’s wartime responsibilities: the car factory lay in ruins even as military work carried on, forcing the firm to reorganize its manufacturing footprint and shifting the emphasis away from private‑car output during and after the war.

1945 – Tony Hulman Buys and Commits to Restore the Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Anton “Tony” Hulman Jr. closed the purchase of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway from Eddie Rickenbacker on November 14, 1945, paying roughly $750,000 and immediately setting about restoring a facility neglected during the war. Hulman tapped three‑time Indy winner Wilbur Shaw to manage operations, launched repairs across stands, garages, and the track surface, and set a fast timetable to return the Indianapolis 500 to the calendar in 1946. That decisive investment rescued the venerable oval from further decay and reestablished the Speedway as the centerpiece of American open‑wheel racing in the postwar era.

1965 – Richard Petty Prevails at the Georgia Cracker 300

Richard Petty drove to victory in the Georgia Cracker 300 at Augusta Speedway on November 14, 1965, adding another triumph to the Petty Enterprises ledger. Competing at the short track in central Georgia, Petty outpaced the field in a race recorded in NASCAR’s results and contemporary race logs; the win is listed among his significant victories of the mid‑1960s. Races like the Georgia Cracker 300 helped build the momentum and national profile that defined Petty’s career, showcasing his consistency and the strength of his team on diverse circuits across the Southeast.

1996 – General Motors Rolls Out the EV1 from Lansing

On November 14, 1996 General Motors rolled the EV1 out of the Lansing Craft Center and began loading vehicles for the first wave of West Coast lessees, signaling the automaker’s most visible production electric‑vehicle effort to date. The cars were assembled in Lansing and destined for select Saturn dealers and lease customers in the weeks that followed; contemporary press noted the vehicles leaving the plant and GM’s plan to field the EV1 in limited markets. The Lansing rollout marked the start of a bold, if short‑lived, factory‑built experiment in factory EV leasing and urban electric transport.