Chevrolet's First Indy 500 Win
Written by Bill Bowman
Having attended 47 out of the last 50 Indianapolis 500 races, I can say that in 1988, I was there when Chevrolet scored its first Indy 500 victory with Rick Mears at the wheel of the Roger Penske owned, Pennzoil sponsored, bright yellow, Penske Z-7 Chevrolet.
Mears started from the pole position after setting a new four lap qualifying record of 219.198 MPH.
The engine in Mears car was a Chevy Indy V8, 2.65 liter, turbocharged, methanol burning, and dual overhead camshafts with four valves per cylinder. This engine went on to dominate the Indy car competition winning the Indy 500 for six consecutive years and the PPG sponsored Indy Car World Series championship for five consecutive seasons.
As a reward for giving Chevrolet its first 500 victory, Chevrolet presented Mears with the first ZR-1 Corvette ever made.