IMS Pace Car Reveal

Is there a way we can get involved with some of the pace car festivities this year? I would think it would be a Camaro convertible this year? Any way we can help transport them from a dealership down to the track? Other stuff?

Seems like we've been out of the loop lately with Chevy.

Hey Craig,

Im working on a few things for the month of May for the club at IMS. I have sent out some e mails, I have heard back but nothing is final yet. Keep posted and as soon as I know I will have it posted.

Thanks,

Steve

camarox2 wrote:

Hey Craig,

Im working on a few things for the month of May for the club at IMS. I have sent out some e mails, I have heard back but nothing is final yet. Keep posted and as soon as I know I will have it posted.

Thanks,

Steve

Can't wait

Here's an event at IMS in May that I've signed up for. It's for Indy pace cars and festival cars only.

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We only need to know when and where the heck they're gonna do it at!!!!!! Whoever knows ain't tellin'.
Been discussing it on camaropacecars.com. Rather than type it all up here, check it out if you're interested. I think I've got some pretty good theories anyway!

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Well it looks like Dennis called in in the other thread started.

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"Mike - You might have to go to Barrett Jackson in January to see the unveiling!! I don't know if they are going to auction one off for charity or what the color combination will be."

I appears the Heritage collection pace cars are prepped and headed for Scottsdale for the pace car unveil. Check out the post I linked in the above post for more info.

"...from Scott:
" ............you may catch a glimpse of them at Barrett-Jackson
NO - We are not selling them ....but they will be there as a part of the unveiling of the 2011 Indy 500 Pace Car -"

(refering to the Heritage collection '67 and '69 pace cars).

WOW!!!!....I like it!!

As posted on Camaro5.com

From Scott Settlemire:

On behalf of Team Camaro -- let me say that I could not be prouder to announce the following:

CHEVROLET CAMARO SS CONVERTIBLE TO BE 2011 INDIANAPOLIS 500 PACE CAR

- New Camaro SS convertible in white with orange stripes and orange leathertrimmed
interior evokes classic 1969 Camaro pace car model.

- One of the 50 Festival Committee cars will be auctioned for charity at Barrett-
Jackson Scottsdale auction on Jan. 22.

- 2011 is the 100th anniversary of Chevrolet and the Indianapolis 500.

DETROIT – A special-edition Chevrolet Camaro Convertible will serve as the official pace car of
the 2011 Indianapolis 500. Chevrolet and Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials made the
announcement at the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale classic auto auction, where a bidder will have
the opportunity to purchase the first of 50 Indianapolis 500 Festival Committee cars.
The 2011 Camaro Convertible is the 22nd Chevrolet chosen to pace “The Greatest Spectacle In
Racing®” and the seventh Camaro. Adding to the rich heritage is the fact that 2011 will mark the
100th anniversary of the first Indianapolis 500, as well as the centennial year of Chevrolet.
Chevrolet will donate full proceeds of the auction to the David Foster Foundation, a charity
devoted to supporting families with children in need of life-saving organ transplants. David
Foster, the 15-time Grammy-winning music producer and songwriter, founded the organization
in his native Canada.

The pace car, along with the matching festival cars, features a Summit White exterior accented
with orange stripes and door graphics. The interior is trimmed in orange leather, including front
seat headrests embossed with the Indy 500 logo, along with white door panels and instrument
panel trim. The instrument panel trim features extensions of the orange exterior stripes.
The color combination is similar to the design used on the 1969 Camaro Indy pace car –
replicas of which have become among the most popular Camaros in the collector world.
“It's an honor for Chevrolet to pace the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500, especially
during this landmark year,” said Chris Perry, vice president of Chevrolet marketing. “This is also
a great opportunity for us to build on Camaro’s strong momentum, while supporting an important
charity.”

The auction for the commemorative edition pace car takes place Saturday evening, Jan. 22,
during SPEED’s live coverage of the Barrett-Jackson event. The vehicle carries lot number
1284 and bids can be submitted at the auction in person or online by clicking this link for a 2011
absentee bidder registration packet:

“The Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Chevrolet name have long been associated with
one another beginning with Arthur, Louis and Gaston Chevrolet’s participation as competitors in
the Indianapolis 500,” said Indianapolis Motor Speedway President and CEO Jeff Belskus. “It is
fitting in this 100th year for both brands that we reinforce that relationship through this year’s
Camaro pace car, which resembles what many argue is the most famous pace car in IMS
history, the 1969 Camaro. We are looking forward to seeing this car on track, pacing the
greatest 33 drivers in the world on May 29.”

Pace car details

Equipped with a 400-horsepower (298 kW) V-8 engine and six-speed automatic transmission,
the actual pace car for the race requires no performance modifications to perform its duty in
front of the racing field.

All 50 of the Festival Committees cars will be SS convertible models fitted with the 2SS
equipment package, offering the following standard features:
- Four-wheel disc brakes with Brembo four-piston calipers and hydraulic assist
- StabiliTrak electronic stability control
- Competitive/sport mode that enhances on-track performance
- Performance Launch Control (with the manual transmission) that optimizes hardacceleration
launches for quicker, more consistent performance
- Twenty-inch polished aluminum wheels and performance tires
- Head-up instrument display
- Center console with auxiliary gauge package.
Along with the 2SS equipment, the cars feature the RS package, which includes HID headlamps
and unique tail lamps.

Convertible refinement

The Camaro Convertible delivers coupe-like driving dynamics, with the unmatched fun of open
air driving. The Convertible model contains an enhanced structure designed to eliminate the
traditional compromises of open cars, such as cowl or steering wheel shake. The goal is a
convertible that drives like the coupe. All the powertrain and suspension elements of the existing
Camaro Coupe carry over unchanged in the convertible. The top has a smooth, tailored fit, with
acoustical foam in the headliner that helps deliver a quiet ride with the top up.

Four strategic reinforcements enhance the already-stiff body structure to eliminate common
convertible maladies of cowl and steering wheel shake. They include:
- A tower-to-tower brace under the hood
- A transmission support reinforcement brace
- Underbody tunnel brace
- Front and rear underbody “V” braces.
The power-folding top retracts in about 20 seconds. It is built in partnership with the same
manufacturer as the Corvette convertible top, and operates in a similar manner. That means it
folds in a simple “Z” pattern and latches with a single, convenient handle located at the center of
the windshield header. Other convertible models in this segment still offer convertible tops with
dual latches, forcing drivers into two-hand operations reaching across the car.

The regular-production versions of the 2011 Camaro Convertible will begin arriving in Chevrolet
dealerships in February, opening a new chapter in the Camaro’s ongoing 21st century rebirth.
Even before the introduction of a convertible model, Camaro ended 2010 as the sales leader in
its class in the United States for the first time since 1985.
Chevrolet’s pace car heritage
Louis Chevrolet, who founded the brand with William “Billy” Durant in 1911, was a racer,
mechanic and pioneering engineer. He raced in the early years of the Indianapolis 500, which
also started in 1911, and served a luminary of the event in the years after he retired his racing
helmet. That included driving the official Indianapolis pace car, which was developed by Indy
500 founder Carl Fisher, who believed a rolling start was safer than a standing start. The first
Indianapolis 500 featured a pace car driven by Fisher.
The first Chevrolet selected as the Indianapolis 500 pace car was the 1948 Fleetmaster Six.
The brand would go on to lead the racing pack more than any other manufacturer.

The list of
Chevy pace cars includes:
- 1948 Fleetmaster Six
- 1955 Bel Air
- 1967 Camaro
- 1969 Camaro
- 1978 Corvette
- 1982 Camaro
- 1986 Corvette
- 1990 Beretta
- 1993 Camaro
- 1995 Corvette
- 1998 Corvette
- 1999 Monte Carlo
- 2002 Corvette
- 2003 SSR
- 2004 Corvette
- 2005 Corvette
- 2006 Corvette
- 2007 Corvette
- 2008 Corvette
- 2009 Camaro
- 2010 Camaro
- 2011 Camaro

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The first of the 50 Camaro Festival cars went for $225,000 at Barrett Jackson!! They stated that there would be a total of 500 replicas made and sent to Chevrolet dealers right after the race. Wonder what those will sell for????

$225,000 is a lot of money to pay for a Pace Car! The lady Addison Brown who purchased this car owns Browns Classic Autos LLC, Phoenix AZ. It is hard to believe that they would have purchased this car for an investment, I just don't see how it could retain this high value based upon other Pace Cars that have been used in the past. I just guess driving around the Speedway prior to the start of the race is worth $150,000!

D1

d1 wrote:

It is hard to believe that they would have purchased this car for an investment,

D1

They didn't, they bought a HUGE charitable donation tax write off, the car and the perks are just pluses.