About Art Ingels
Lived 1950 – 1981 (aged 30–31). Art Ingels was an American inventor, racing automobile driver and engineer.
John Arthur Ingels (May 14, 1918 – December 16, 1981) was an American racing driver. He is known as "the father of karting" for his invention of the go-kart.
In 1956, while he was a race car builder at Kurtis Kraft, a famous builder of Indy race cars during the 1950s, Ingels assembled the first go-kart in history out of scrap metal and a surplus West Bend Company two-stroke engine. It was built in his two-car garage in Echo Park, California, (now FIX Coffee Co), and was tested in the Rose Bowl parking lot, where it gained hundreds of enthusiasts.
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Important facts
People in Art Ingels's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Art Ingels's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Art Ingels?
American racing driver
When was Art Ingels born?
Art Ingels was born in 1950.
When did Art Ingels die?
Art Ingels died in 1981.
What was Art Ingels's occupation?
Art Ingels was an inventor, racing automobile driver and engineer.
What nationality was Art Ingels?
Art Ingels was American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Art Ingels. https://biography.guide/art-ingels/
MLA: "Art Ingels." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/art-ingels/.
Chicago: "Art Ingels." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/art-ingels/.
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