The green flag drops today for the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500. In the long and storied history of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” there have been 12 pace cars from the Chrysler family of brands which have led the Indianapolis 500 field.
The first time a Chrysler vehicle led the field was 90 years ago when the 1926 Chrysler Imperial 80 was selected as the pace car for the 1926 race.
Subsequent pace cars included:
1933 Chrysler Imperial CL. Official pace car of the 1933 Indianapolis 500.
1941 Chrysler-Newport Phaeton
1951 Chrysler New Yorker. Official pace car of the 1951 Indianapolis 500.
1954 Dodge Royal. Official pace car of the 1954 Indianapolis 500.
1956 DeSoto Fireflite. Official pace car of the 1956 Indianapolis 500.
1963 Chrysler 300. Official pace car of the 1963 Indianapolis 500.
1965 Plymouth Fury. Official pace car of the 1965 Indianapolis 500.
1971 Dodge Challenger
1987 Chrysler LeBaron
1991 Dodge Viper prototype. Official pace car of the 1991 Indianapolis 500.
1996 Dodge Viper GTS. Official pace car of the 1996 Indianapolis 500.