Melvin Grant Randall was born September 6, 1931, in Pine, Arizona, 92 miles northwest of Phoenix, a true son of Arizona. As many sons named after their father are prone to do, he adopted his middle name as his first.

After high school in Mesa, AZ, he continued to the University of Arizona to get his degree in Mechanical Engineering. That education would serve him well throughout his life. And now may get him into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame.

In the early 1950s, right out of college, Grant started racing dirt tracks in a jalopy, cutting his racing teeth going wheel to wheel against the likes of Indy drivers like Roger McClusky and Bill Cheesboug.

By 1960, the family owned a Hudson Dealership in Mesa, and Grant found himself immersed in the world of auto sales and service. Grant also extended his racing resume by adding drag racing and, later, road racing in AMC products. The racing projects kept Grant in practice with his mechanical engineering degree by upgrading the racing machines. A practice that would continue for many years to come.

Off-road racing entered his life in 1971 when customers Charlie and Ed Nelson came looking for sponsorship for their CJ-5 for the 4th Annual Mint 400. By 1972, Grant was in the same Jeep with Charlie and finished seventh in class. The dealership was also sponsoring John Ulfeldt and Sandy Cone in a Jeepster.

Like with most people that try off-road racing, the hook was set deep in Grant’s cheek. He was intrigued with the sport itself, and the marketing opportunities for the dealership. The engineer in him also saw improvements that could be made to increase the speed and longevity of off-road racing 4x4s.

In the coming years, Grant moved into a modified J-10 taking wins at the 1978 SCORE Las Vegas Silverbird Invitational, two class four wins at Riverside International Raceway, a short course win at the HDRA Orange Crush Classic, and a fair amount of top-three finishes. From the passenger seat, Grant coached James Brolin to the inaugural Jeep Celebrity race win and quickly became a favorite coach in the series. He would go on to coach Martin Milner and Larry Wilcox.

Before Jeep started using the 401 cubic inch V8 in full size Jeeps some off-road racers were using the engine out of AMC Matadors and Ambassadors in their CJs and J-10s. AMC created the engine by stroking the 390 cubic inch V8. While powerful, the engines were not living in the harsh environment of desert off-road racing. Overheating and failures within the crankcase were typically to blame.

While teams threw bigger radiators and oil coolers at the problem, it was Grant Randall who used his engineer-trained brain and traced the issue to oiling problems to the heads and, more importantly, in the return to the crankcase upon heavy acceleration.

After studying the casting of the block and taking into consideration the beating every part of the engine compartment takes in the course of up to 1000 miles, he came up with a solution. At the rear of the engine block, just above the oil pan, two holes were drilled directly across from each other, they were tapped for AN fittings and a braided steel oil line ran from one fitting to the other. This allowed for enough oil, slammed to the back of the pan to enter the hose, and return immediately into the crankcase to bathe the crankshaft and bearings in life- saving oil.

While Grant could have kept this a family secret he shared it with other teams. The move made the 401 engine a viable powerplant in off-road racing going forward, saving many teams who wanted the 401 from many race failures. Since he was selling parts to many Jeep teams, it was a smart business move since Randall AMC Jeep was making these modifications in their machine shop.

Without this revelation could you imagine the Budweiser Honcho trying to chase down Rod Hall with a 360 cubic inch V8?

In a move to maintain loyalty to the Jeep brand, both for Jeep corporate and his own dealership, Grant was allowed to utilize Jeep’s warranty program to replace larger parts for race teams. For engines and transmissions to transfer cases and axle housings, Grant kept lower-budgeted Jeep teams racing where Ford, Chevrolet, and Dodge were not.

Grant Randall died on July 7, 2017. He left a legacy in off-road racing, drag racing, and road racing. He and his sons created the 401-XR, an AMC Pacer fitted with the 401 engine that is still talked about today. The Randall family continues to race off-road to this day, now in its fourth generation.