298.2ci L-Head Side-Valve Inline Four-Cylinder Engine Single Updraft Carburetor 70bhp at 2,800rpm 4-Speed Transmission Solid Front and Live Rear Axle with 4-Wheel Leaf Springs Rear-Wheel Mechanically Drum Brakes *Highly original example *4-cylinder Mercer *Iconic American brand The Series 5 Sporting If ever there was object, irrefutable proof that the concept of the sports car originated in the United States it is the Mercer Raceabout.

First built in 1911, Mercer's Raceabout, with its thundering T-head four-cylinder engine, standard exhaust cutout, round bolster tank, monocle windshield and rudimentary seating for only a driver and a brave passenger, was the first automobile successfully built in series for the sole purpose of going fast and winning races.

Between 1911 and 1915 the Roebling brothers (whose father had designed and built the Brooklyn Bridge) and their engineer Finley Robertson Porter built some 800 Raceabouts which their customers could take straight from the factory t...