ideas from his former work at Hispano-Suiza and that legal action was taken for breach of patent. The Peugeot engine became the template for race-engines for many years. In the United States, the first cars built specifically for racing appeared from Mercer, Stutz and the Mason of the Duesenberg brothers, to take on the stock chassis. Season review The season started in Italy with the Targa Florio. After damage to the Madonie circuit in the previous year, the race instead became a tour on the coastal roads around Sicily, as the Giro di Sicilia. A good field of 16 cars arrived in Palermo for the clockwise course around the island. This allayed organiser Vincenzo Florio’s fears that his race was fading to obscurity. Englishman Cyril Snipe, racing for the SCAT team, built up a considerable lead. Learning in Trapani, the second to last checkpoint, that he had an eighty-minute lead he told his co-driver Pedrini that “twenty minutes will be enough” and stopped to have a meal and a sleep at a hotel for an hour. Pedrini managed to rouse his teammate in time and they reached Palermo again to win with a half-hour margin over the Lancia of Giordano, after a 24-hour journey. The organisers of the Indianapolis 500 doubled the prizemoney on offer from $27550 in 1911 up to $52225 including $20000 for the winner. The race was run to the same specifications, however after Harroun’s effort the previous year, riding mechanics were now mandatory. Although the Mason did not qualify, both the Mercer and Stutz did. David Bruce-Brown in a FIAT had the fastest lap in practice, while Gil Andersen drew pole position. A number of American factory entries were present as well as three privateer entries in European cars: Spencer Wishart and Italian-American Ralph DePalma in Mercedes and Teddy Tetzlaff in a FIAT. Tetzlaff took the lead initially, until DePalma passed him on the third lap. He continued to lead right up until the engine failed with only two laps to go. With over a three-lap lead, DePalma and his mechanic got out and pushed the car down the front straight to the cheers of the 80000 spectators, but to no avail. Joe Dawson overtook him to take the victory in a National. Race rules stipulated that drivers had to complete all 200 laps to be classified and receive prizemoney. Tetzlaff, helped by Caleb Bragg, came