Forsgrini Engineering is a former American racecar constructor based in

Issaquah, Washington Issaquah ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 40,051 at the 2020 census. Located in a valley and bisected by Interstate 90, the city is bordered by the Sammamish Plateau to the north and the " Issaquah ...

. The company produced various racing cars for Formula C,

Tasman Series The Tasman Series (formally the Tasman Championship for Drivers)Tasman Championship for Drivers, CAMS Manual of Motor Sport with National Competition Rules 1974, pages 80 to 83 was a motor racing competition held annually from 1964 to 1975 ove ...

and other classes.

History

After racing karts in the 1950s brothers Lyle and Dale Forsgren started building and racing cars called Forsgrini. The first car, Mk. I, was built to

Sports Car Club of America The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting road racing, rallying, and autocross in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs many programs for both amateur and professional ...

H Modified specifications. The car featured a

Crosley Crosley was a small, independent American manufacturer of subcompact cars, bordering on microcars. At first called the Crosley Corporation and later Crosley Motors Incorporated, the Cincinnati, Ohio, firm was active from 1939 to 1952, in ...

engine and fiberglass body. The Monte Carlo was the brothers second car. Based on

Fiat Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary ...

parts the car proved successful. Lyle finished second in the

SCCA National Championship Runoffs The SCCA National Championship Runoffs is the end-of-year championship race meeting for Sports Car Club of America Club Racing competitors. Divisional champions and other top drivers from the SCCA's 116 regions are invited to participate at the ...

in the H Sports Racer class in 1966. Lyle finished second to Dan Parkinson in a

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America. In 1968 Lyle quit

Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and ...

to build race cars full-time. Forsgrini built it first single seater, the Forsgrini Mk. 10. Mike Campbell competed the 1.100cc

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

powered Mk. 10 in Formula C. Campbell won the Runoffs at

Riverside International Raceway Riverside International Raceway (sometimes known as Riverside, RIR, or Riverside Raceway) was a motorsports race track and road course established in the Edgemont area of Riverside County, California, just east of the city limits of Rivers ...

. Campbell beat Bill Rutan in a

Saab Saab or SAAB may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Saab Group, a Swedish aerospace and defence company, formerly known as SAAB, and later as Saab AB ** Datasaab, a former computer company, started as spin off from Saab AB * Saab Automobile, a fo ...

powered Quantum by only six tenths of a second. The constructors debut in

Formula 5000 Formula 5000 (or F5000) was an open wheel, single seater auto-racing formula that ran in different series in various regions around the world from 1968 to 1982. It was originally intended as a low-cost series aimed at open-wheel racing cars tha ...

also came in 1968. At the season finale of the 1968 SCCA Grand Prix Championship at

Laguna Seca Laguna Seca may refer to: * Laguna Seca Formation, a geologic formation in California * Laguna Seca (Mexico), see Convention of London * Laguna Seca (Santa Clara County), a seasonal lake in California * Laguna Seca, Texas, United States * Rancho L ...

Lyle Forsgren finished in twelfth place. Forsgren ran a factory entered Chevrolet powered Mk. 10 D. For 1969 the Mk. 11 Formula 5000 car was introduced. The car was entered in two pro championship races. Harry Swanson finished thirteenth at Seattle International Raceway. Lyle Forsgren suffered overheating issues and a fuel leak which prevented a finish at Riverside Speedway. Forsgren scored his first (and only) championship points in 1970. At

Sears Point Raceway Sonoma Raceway (originally known as Sears Point Raceway from 1967 to 1980 and 1982 to 2002, Golden State International Raceway in 1981 and Infineon Raceway from 2002 to 2012) is a road course and dragstrip located at Sears Point in the southe ...

Forsgren finished seventh, scoring four points. Forsgren ran the newest introduction, the Mk.14. Campbell ran a

Boss 302 powered Forsgrini Mk.14 in the 1970 Tasman Series. Campbell scored his only championship point at the Lady Wigram Trophy. At the Wigram Airfield Circuit the American finished sixth. His only other race finish was at

Warwick Farm Raceway Warwick Farm Raceway was a motor racing facility which was in operation from 1960 to 1973. Warwick Farm Raceway hosted numerous major events during its life such as the Australian Grand Prix and rounds of both the Australian Touring Car Champio ...

, a tenth place. Lyle Forsgren closed Forsgrini Engineering in 1971. After building racecars Lyle moved to

Oshkosh, Wisconsin Oshkosh is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, of which it is the county seat. The city had a population of 66,816 in 2020, making it the ninth-largest city in Wisconsin. It is also adjacent to the Town of Oshkosh. History Oshkosh was ...

to work for

Mercury Marine Mercury Marine is a marine engine division of Brunswick Corporation headquartered in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. The main product line is outboard motors. It also produces the MerCruiser line of sterndrives and inboard motors. Some manufactur ...

Racing cars

References

{{reflist American racecar constructors Formula Ford cars Formula 5000 cars Sports car manufacturers Organizations based in Issaquah, Washington Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1960 Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1971