The Hall of Fame Museum at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is pleased to host several race cars on loan in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Jim Clark’s 1965 win at Indianapolis and the 100th Anniversary of the 1915 race. What every fan of the 500 needs to know about these short-term exhibits follows:
Lots of Lotuses!
We have on display the Lotus race cars driven by Jim Clark at Indianapolis. Two will be on display only through June 14:
1963 Lotus, powered by Ford
Dan Gurney and Ford Motor Company joined with Lotus Cars, Ltd. to build three rear-engine cars for the 1963 Indianapolis 500 race. Each was powered by a 4.2 liter Ford V8 engine. The drivers were Jim Clark and Dan Gurney. Clark started fifth and finished a close second to Parnelli Jones. Vehicle is owned by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation, Inc.
1964 Lotus/Ford
Clark made history in 1964 by becoming the first driver to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 in the pole position while driving a rear-engine car. His 1964 Lotus type 34 with a Ford V8 engine smashed the qualifying records with a four-lap average of 158.828 mph and a single lap high of 159.377 mph. Tire failure in the 47th lap (while in the lead) took him out of the race. Vehicle is owned by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Foundation, Inc.
1965 Indianapolis 500 Winner
The 1965 race represented the first win at Indianapolis by a driver in a rear-engine vehicle. Jim Clark was backed by Colin Chapman’s Team Lotus and Ford Motor Company. Clark started the race from the middle of the front row and dominated the entire race. He led all but ten laps and won at a then-record average speed of 150.686 mph. On loan from The Henry Ford throughJune 14, 2015.
1966 STP Lotus
Andy Granatelli and the STP Corporation sponsored Lotus’ fourth trip to the Indianapolis 500 in 1965. The vehicle was still powered by the Ford V8 double-overhead camshaft engine, but had transitioned from the British racing green and yellow to fluorescent “day glow” orange in color. Clark qualified in second place and led for 66 laps before succumbing to handling problems and spinning twice. He managed to finish second behind Graham Hill. On loan from Jim Jaeger through June 14, 2015.
Remembrance of Times Past – 100 Years Ago
The Hall of Fame Museum is hosting two vehicles that ran at Indianapolis in 1915.
1915 Pace Car – Only available to see for two more weeks.
On loan from Allen Strong of Champaign, Illinois, is the 1914 Packard that served as the Indianapolis 500 pace car in 1915. At that time, Carl G. Fisher owned this vehicle, which is a custom-built Packard consisting of a shortened 1913 chassis powered by a 1914 Model 2-38 six-cylinder engine. Fisher held onto the car for several years after the race as the Indianapolis 500 race tradition of giving a pace car to the winning driver did not start until 1936. This vehicle is on loan only through June 18, 2015.
1915 Stutz
One of the best known of all American automobile manufacturers, Stutz was an Indianapolis-based firm that entered stripped-down passenger cars in early races to promote its products to the general public following race track successes. The company’s slogan, “The Car That Made Good in a Day” referred to a prototype having finished the full 500 miles to place 11th in the 1911 Indianapolis 500 race, shortly before Stutz automobiles were available to the public. Henry Stutz campaigned his “White Legion” team through to the end of 1915 and won eight AAA National Championship events that year. At the end of the year Earl Cooper, National Champion for Stutz in 1913 and 1915, purchased number 8 (along with three of the four team cars) and campaigned it as a privateer until 1919. On loan from History Collection, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. This vehicle is on loan through Jan. 31, 2016.