1906 Tarrant
The superbly crafted Tarrant car was the basis of the most ambitious early attempt to launch an Australian motor industry. It was also the first Australian car to win a motor race.
The Tarrant was the brainchild of Victorian-born Harley Tarrant, who had built an internal-combustion engine in the 1890s.
Tarrant’s first attempt at car making was in 1897 when he built a motorised buggy. It was not a success but a year later he launched the Harley Tarrant Motor Syndicate. The new company’s main line was manufacturing stationary engines but, in 1901, in partnership with Howard Lewis, Tarrant designed and built a lightweight car with a 6 HP Benz engine.
A third man, Bill Ross, joined the partners and they started selling imported cars. Recognising the need for local production Tarrant set up Melbourne Motor Body Works, later to become Victoria’s largest body-building operation.
Still determined to launch his own car, Tarrant built a two-cylinder 8 HP model in 1903. This car won Australia’s first recognised car race, held at Sandown Park in March 1904. Tarrant also won the 1905 Dunlop Reliability Trial driving an Argyll. He entered his own 8 HP in the second Dunlop Trial, also held in 1905, and was among five men declared joint winners.
His next venture was a four-cylinder 14/16 HP tourer which he intended to produce in volume.
Tarrant showed it was possible to produce a car in Australia which was every bit as good as imported models. But depite his eagerness, engineering ability and business acumen, he found it impossible to compete on price. Only 16 Tarrants were built over a ten-year period.
Tarrant later made a fortune selling Model T Fords. He lived until 1949, his ninetieth year.
