The circuit was established to bring high-profile open-wheel racing to Northern California's Silicon Valley. Initial plans called for the track to circle around the SAP Center, but higher-than-expected costs for street repairs and infrastructure improvements prompted organizers to relocate it directly through the heart of downtown San Jose.
The final layout began on Almaden Boulevard, running north along the southbound lanes before reaching a sharp hairpin at turn one, just before Santa Clara Street. Drivers then doubled back southward along Almaden before turning east onto Park Avenue. From there the course proceeded onto Market Street, passing Plaza de César Chávez through a shallow chicane, crossing VTA light rail tracks twice, and looping back to the start via Balbach Street. The circuit's counter-clockwise direction and numerous 90-degree turns gave it a technical, unforgiving character that drew considerable criticism from Champ Car drivers.
The inaugural San Jose Grand Prix was held on July 29–31, 2005, under the title "Taylor Woodrow Grand Prix of San Jose." Before the race weekend was over, drivers had already raised concerns about the circuit's narrow width, rough surface, and especially the light rail crossings on Market Street, where Champ Cars became briefly airborne at speed. Several layout modifications were made mid-weekend, including the addition of a chicane on the front stretch and repositioning of a grandstand to expand a run-off area. Despite the criticism, the event attracted over 60,000 spectators on race day alone and more than 150,000 across the three-day weekend.
For 2006, renamed the "Canary Foundation Grand Prix of San Jose Presented by Taylor Woodrow," organizers introduced meaningful changes to the layout. The pit road and front stretch were swapped, moving the start-finish line to a more visible location. The chicane near the rail crossing was removed, converting that section into a longer straight, and several corners were widened to improve overtaking opportunities. The rail crossings were levelled to eliminate the airborne hazard. Despite the improvements, paid attendance fell to 83,248 — a significant drop from the inaugural year.
The 2007 edition was run under the banner "San Jose Grand Prix at Redback Raceway," with Redback Networks, an Ericsson subsidiary, as title sponsor. No on-course layout changes were made. Justin Wilson claimed pole position with a lap of 49.039 seconds, while Robert Doornbos took race victory — his breakthrough Champ Car win. Total weekend attendance held roughly steady at around 120,000.
The 2005 race proved to be a survival contest, with half the starting field failing to finish due to crashes or mechanical failures caused by the bumpy track surface. Drivers openly mocked the circuit, comparing it to a motocross venue, yet the spectator turnout exceeded expectations and validated the market for racing in Northern California.
Sebastien Bourdais, the dominant Champ Car champion of the era, set the outright lap record on the original layout during qualifying for the 2005 race with a time of 54.243 seconds, and then bettered it with a 48.678-second lap during qualifying for the 2006 event on the modified layout.
In July 2007, Ryan Dalziel suffered a broken collarbone in a cycling accident days before the race and was replaced by Mario Domínguez.
On September 11, 2007, race organizers announced that the 2008 San Jose Grand Prix had been cancelled, with the Northern California Champ Car race transferring back to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The cancellation was rendered moot when the Champ Car World Series itself ceased operations in February 2008 and was absorbed into the Indy Racing League.
The San Jose Street Circuit represents one of several temporary downtown street courses that Champ Car promoted in the mid-2000s as it sought to expand into major American urban markets. Its three-year run demonstrated both the appetite for motorsport in Silicon Valley and the considerable logistical and safety challenges posed by racing through tight city streets shared with light rail infrastructure. The circuit never achieved the racing quality or fan loyalty needed to sustain it, but it briefly put San Jose on the map as a venue on North America's top open-wheel racing calendar.