Indianapolis 500

Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 30 May 1982

Notes on the cars:

1. March 81C [9] (Jim Hickman): The Rattlesnake team had a March 81C for 1982 although it was sometimes described as a 82C. It appears in March records as 81C-9 dated 26 Oct 1981. All photographs found so far show a 81C so it is assumed to have been a 81C at all races.
2. Eagle 81 [8104] (Herm A. Johnson): New to John Menard and entered for Herm Johnson to drive in 1981 as Menard's #28 Menard Cashway Lumber entry. He first appeared at Watkins Glen in early October, qualifying sixth, and then at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and at Phoenix later that month. Retained by Menard for Johnson to drive in 1982 at Phoenix, Atlanta, Indianapolis and at Milwaukee in June. The Menard team also acquired a newer 1982 Eagle, chassis 8110, which he used for most races after the Indy 500 in 1982. The newer 8110 was then sold to Dick Hammond for Steve Chassey to drive in 1983, but 8104 remained with the Menard team and was driven by Johnson at Road America in 1983. It was entered at the Indy 500 as late as 1985. According to RM Auctions in 2014, the car was acquired by Thomas Mittler (South Bend, Indiana) in 1989, then became part of the Pond Collection some time before 1993. It was raced by John Morton in an American IndyCar Series (AIS) race at Willow Springs in 1993. Nothing more was said of its history but it had been inspected at VARA Tustin Thunder in September 1998. It was auctioned again by RM in 2019, when the owner was said to have purchased it directly from the Pond Collection. In July 2020, Peter Jamie was completing a restoration of the car for Can-Am Cars Ltd.
3. Lightning 80 [LHR-003] (Gary Bettenhausen): Built in August 1980 to replace the prototype car destroyed by Johnny Parsons Jr in practice at Pocono. This car does not appear to have been at the Indy 500 in 1981, but was one of two cars given by Lindsey Hopkins to Gary Bettenhausen in September 1981. It was Gary Bettenhausen's race car at the 1982 Indy 500 using a Cosworth DFX engine and was then rebuilt for the 1983 season using a 355 ci Chevrolet V8 that Todd Bettenhausen recalls was built by Donnie Ray Everett in Pittsboro, Indiana.
4. Eagle 81 [8113] (Michael Chandler): New to Bill Freeman for 1982, to be run by AAR for Mike Chandler to drive, the son of Los Angeles Times owner Otis Chandler. It was fitted with a normally aspirated 355ci Donovan-block Chevrolet engine, using a Moldex crank with Carrillo rods and other components, and entered as #68. Although listed as a 1982 Eagle, The Indianapolis Star said it had a 1981 chassis. Chandler returned with the car for Riverside in August and Phoenix in November, where it was entered by Hodgdon Racing. Subsequent history unknown.
5. Eagle 81 [8105] (Tom Bigelow): Built by AAR as the works' #48 "Pepsi Challenger" entry and prepared for road courses. Raced by Geoff Brabham at Riverside in late August, where he qualified on pole position, then by Mike Mosley at Michigan in September after he had destroyed 8103 at Milwaukee, then by Rocky Moran at Watkins Glen in early October, by Brabham again at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez two weeks later and finally by Mosley at Phoenix. It was then sold to Ray Lipper's Center Line Wheels for Lipper to drive at Phoenix in early 1982, but after being wrecked in the consolation race, it was sold to Bob & Bill Hall for Tom Bigelow to drive as the brothers' #72 H B K Racing entry for the rest of the season. It was retained by the team for Bigelow to drive at a few races in 1983. The Hall Brothers retained the car again for 1984, when Kenny Acheson was given it to drive in his Rookie Orientation Program. It had been modified by the team for Pocono in 1983 with new bodywork fashioned from a fiberglass countertop. Acheson, who had been told to expect a new 1984 Lola, refused to even sit in it. Instead it was loaned to Chuck Ciprich to complete his Rookie Orientation Program. The team never ran it again. Subsequent history unknown.
6. March 81C [2] (Jerry Sneva): Bignotti-Cotter's first March 81C in 1981. At Riverside in August (On Track 17 Sep 1981 p13), Sneva "was in the Bignotti-Cotter team's spare March 81C - a new and previously unraced chassis". It's not clear which car he then used at Milwaukee a week later but it would be reasonable to assume that this would be his older car as the setup for Riverside and Milwaukee would be so different. At Michigan in September, On Track notes that Tom Sneva drives "his spare" 81C (a subsequent advert suggests his older car) but this car is heavily damaged in Sneva's accident during the race. He presumably returns to the newer car for the next two races but crashes this heavily in Mexico in October. At Phoenix two weeks later, On Track (12 Nov 1981 p4) notes that Sneva used the car he had crashed at Michigan. Jerry Sneva drives a March 81C in 1982 which is advertised (National Speed Sport News 28 July 1982) by Richard Hoffman as March Indy 'driven by Tom and Jerry Sneva. Won Milwaukee and Phoenix'.
7. Eagle 81 [8108] (Chet Fillip): Josele Garza employed Bobby Unser to be his team manager for 1982, and ordered a pair of new Eagles to drive. Both were built with Cosworth DFX engines. Unser decided to buy a March 82C for Garza instead, so the two Eagles were sold on, chassis 8108 going to a new team for Chet Fillip to drive. The team was put together by Marvin Fillip and Tom Mitchell, a Texan rancher newly rich from natural gas deposits. Mitchell had previously sponsored Chet Fillip in stock car racing. They recruited chief mechanic Mark Stainbrook and team manager Bud Poorman, formerly with Goodyear. The team was named Circle Bar, after Mitchell's "trucker resort". Fillip qualified for the Indy 500, but crashed heavily on 11 August in practice for his next race at Pocono. The Eagle was destroyed and Fillip suffered a broken heel and bruised legs. Then used the team's Wildcat Mk8 for the rest of the season, and bought a new Eagle for 1983. Subsequent history unknown.
8. Eagle 81 [8111] (Pete Halsmer): New to Frank Arciero and his crew chief Chuck Looper for Pete Halsmer to drive as the #66 Arciero Racing entry. It was fitted with a Champion-built turbo Chevy V8 engine, Halsmer qualifying for the Indy 500. Mike Hull then took over as crew chief and the car was fitted with a normally aspirated Chevrolet V8. In this form, Halsmer raced it at Riverside, Road America and Phoenix later in the season. Frank Arciero bought a Penske PC10 from Roger Penske for 1983, and after being used as a backup at the Indy 500, the Eagle was put up for sale. It was later rebuilt with 1983 bodywork and fitted with a Donovan Chevrolet 355 V8 engine for Jeff Wood to race at Caesars Palace and Laguna Seca. When Wood drove it, it was said to be Arciero's car but run by Dan Gurney's AAR team. In February 1984 it was advertised by Mike Hull at Arciero Racing as a 1983 Eagle "like Al Jr's", with a comment that it had been factory-run twice. Subsequent history unknown but possibly Dale Coyne's car in 1984.
9. Eagle 81 [8106] (Dennis Firestone): New to BCV Racing and entered for Dennis Firestone at the 1982 Indy 500 as the #75 BCV Racing entry, using Milodon Chevrolet engines. The team principals were drag-racing chassis builder John Buttera, drag racing crew chief Ronnie Capps, and Bob Varnberg, owner of the Viking Racing Formula Super Vee team. Raced by Firestone at Phoenix in March 1982 and at the 1982 Indy 500. Mike Mosley was then scheduled to drive the car at Milwaukee, but the finance could not be raised. According to a Hot Rod article in 2016, the 1982 car "languished in a couple of shops back in California" until it was bought by Dennis Varni and added to "his eclectic car collection". In 2013, Firestone acquired the car from Varni and it was restored by Bob Morris.
10. Rattlesnake 21 (Steve Chassey): New at the 1982 Indy 500 as Rattlesnake Racing's #11 Hubler/Q95 entry for Steve Chassey at the 1982 '500'. He was unable to get the car any faster that 191 mph during practice, but a new Cosworth DFX engine was shipped from England for a brief test before the start of qualifying. Unfortunately, Chassey hit the wall and the car was broken in half by the impact.
11. Finley 80/82 ('PC7') (John Mahler): Built for John Mahler's team for 1980 as a copy of a Penske PC6, but arrived too late to practice at the 1980 Indy 500. Mahler raced it at five races later in the season, but did not finish any of them. He returned to the Indy 500 with the car in 1981, but again failed to qualify. Later that season, he raced the car three more times, but again failed to finish a race. It was driven by Michel Jourdain at the Copa Mexico 150 in October 1981. Mahler then retired from racing and entered the car for Jerry Sneva at the 1982 Indy 500. Ed Sneva designed new tunnel sidepods for the car and a rear end modelled on the latest Eagles, the resulting mishmash being described as a "PC7". When the Snevas left the team, Mahler returned to the cockpit just before qualifying, but crashed heavily on Thursday 20 May. The car was extensively damaged, and was not seen again.
12. Penske PC7 [011] (Bill Alsup): This car was identified by a later Chuck Haines advert as Penske PC7 chassis 011, owned and raced by Bill Alsup in 1980, 1981 and early 1982 but raced in the 1981 Indy 500 by teammate Pete Halsmer. It passed to Jim Buick in 1983.
13. Watson 'PC7' (Dick Simon): For 1981, AJ Watson built a copy of a Penske PC7, using "some pieces" that Bill Finley had fabricated for Grant King and were just "laying around". Watson understood that a Penske cost $70,000, and felt he could build his own "ground effect" car for $20,000. Dick Simon moved from Rolla Vollstedt's team to the Leader Card team, bringing sponsor Vermont-American with him. Neither of the Leader Card entries qualified for the 1981 Indy 500, and although Simon continued with the car for the rest of 1981 and through 1982, he neither Watson qualified in 1982 either. This car was wrecked in Dick Simon's massive accident at Riverside in 1982. It evidently survived, and is believed to have been restored by Eddie Baue after King died in December 1999. It was next seen when acquired by Bill Wiswedel from a guy in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Wiswedel then sold it to Chuck Haines, who sold it to Dave Bartush (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan).
14. Watson 78/80 (Rusty Schmidt): New for Sheldon Kinser to drive as the Leader Card #24 Thermo King entry at the 1978 Indy 500, and at races later in the season. Kinser continued to race this car for the team in 1979, now with Genesee Beer sponsorship. The car was updated for 1980 with "ground-effect" sidepods. Kinser started the season in it before moving over to the 1979 Watson, and Billy Vukovich then qualified it for the Indy 500, finishing 12th. Kinser and Vukovich both raced it later in the season, as the team rotated all three of the 1977-1979 cars. It was entered as a backup car for Dick Simon in his #22 Vermont American livery at the 1981 Indy 500 and was raced by Simon at Pocono and Milwaukee later that season. It was then sold to Rolla Vollstedt for Max "Rusty" Schmidt to attempt to qualify at the 1982 Indy 500. Vollstedt recalled selling it to a female Formula Ford racer in Portland whose cheque bounced. This must be the Amber Furst (Brightwood, OR) who entered a Watson-Offy for the 1983 Indy 500 with husband Tim Furst as chief mechanic but was refused a chance to take her rookie test. After Vollstedt got the car back he sold it to "a local fellow" who put a Chevy in it. Subsequent history unknown.
15. Finley 82 ('Eagle 81') (Jerry Karl): Built for Usona Purcell's team for 1982 as the #32 Purcell Racer for Jerry Karl to drive at the 1982 Indy 500, using 355 ci Chevrolet V8 engines. The car arrived late after its production fell behind schedule, and then on its first run it suffered suspension problems. When those were resolved, its intended race engine blew just before qualifying started. Purcell returned with the car for Ken Schrader to drive at Indy in 1983, but the team also had a March 82C. Schrader only used the Finley-Eagle in his rookie orientation program. The Finley-Eagle reappeared later in the season when Phil Krueger drove it at Mid-Ohio. He was very slow in practice but was allowed to start as a promotor's option, only to be the first retirement. Subsequent history unknown.
16. Eagle 81 [8107] (Desiré Wilson): Josele Garza employed Bobby Unser to be his team manager for 1982, and ordered a pair of new Eagles to drive. Both were built with Cosworth DFX engines. Unser decided to buy a March 82C for Garza instead, so the two Eagles were sold on, chassis 8107 going to Teddy Yip's Theodore Racing. Yip entered Desiré Wilson in the car for the 1982 Indy 500, run for her by Bob Fletcher's Fletcher Racing, led by crew chief Derek Mower. Wilson was unable to qualify after running out of Cosworth DFX engines. The car was not seen again that season and was sold to Bill Jamieson's Arizona International Traveler team for 1983. It can be distinguished from the Jamieson team's original Eagle chassis 8101, as 8101 had an extended rollhoop from when Chris Kneifel raced it in 1982. Chassis 8107 was driven by Spike Gehlhausen as the team's #47 entry at the 1983 Indy 500 but failed to qualify. It was also raced by Bob Ward at Riverside later that season.
17. Eagle 80 [8001] (Hurley Haywood): Eagle's 1980 'BLAT' car appeared for Mike Mosley at the 1980 Iindy 500 fitted with a Chevrolet stock block engine. It only appeared two more times that season. After the 1980 season, the Eagle appears to have been upgraded to DFX spec and sold to the Wysard team. It is referred to as a Eagle 80 in On Track in 1981 and 1982 (e.g. 1981 issue 12 p13 Riverside report).
18. Eagle 80 [8001] (Steve Krisiloff): Eagle's 1980 'BLAT' car appeared for Mike Mosley at the 1980 Iindy 500 fitted with a Chevrolet stock block engine. It only appeared two more times that season. After the 1980 season, the Eagle appears to have been upgraded to DFX spec and sold to the Wysard team. It is referred to as a Eagle 80 in On Track in 1981 and 1982 (e.g. 1981 issue 12 p13 Riverside report).
19. Eagle 80 [8001] (Bob Lazier): Eagle's 1980 'BLAT' car appeared for Mike Mosley at the 1980 Iindy 500 fitted with a Chevrolet stock block engine. It only appeared two more times that season. After the 1980 season, the Eagle appears to have been upgraded to DFX spec and sold to the Wysard team. It is referred to as a Eagle 80 in On Track in 1981 and 1982 (e.g. 1981 issue 12 p13 Riverside report).
20. Penske PC7 (Patrick Bedard): Scott Brayton "replaced his old Penske PC6 with a newer PC7" for the Milwaukee CART race in June 1981 (Autosport 11 Jun 1981 p47)
21. Penske PC7 (Scott Brayton): Scott Brayton "replaced his old Penske PC6 with a newer PC7" for the Milwaukee CART race in June 1981 (Autosport 11 Jun 1981 p47)
22. Penske PC7 (Vern Schuppan): Scott Brayton "replaced his old Penske PC6 with a newer PC7" for the Milwaukee CART race in June 1981 (Autosport 11 Jun 1981 p47)
23. "McLightning" (Phil Caliva): New to Bob Fletcher's Cobre Tire team for Bobby Unser to drive in 1977. After the team's second car was converted to a Cosworth DFX engine late in 1977 but then wrecked by Pancho Carter in testing, this car was also converted to Cosworth power and was raced by Vern Schuppan early in 1978 while Carter recuperated. Carter drove this car at the Indy 500 where it was said by Hungness to be the same car Unser drove in 1977 and also said in press reports to be the car raced by Schuppan at Texas and Trenton prior to Indy. Carter then wrecked this car at Mosport two weeks later and photographs suggest that it was not used again that year. It reappeared for Steve Krisiloff to race at Atlanta in early 1979 and was his intended backup car at the Indy 500, which he raced after withdrawing his primary car. He also raced it at Michigan and Watkins Glen (and probably at the two Trenton races) but Krisiloff then quit the team in frustration. It was not seen in the Fletcher team again but was given by Fletcher to Phil Caliva in 1981 after Caliva had wrecked his McLaren M16C/D in practice at the Indy 500. Caliva built up a "McLightning" combining the monocoque and front section of the Lightning with the rear of the McLaren. He raced this car in 1981, then appeared at Indianapolis, Riverside and Phoenix in 1982 without qualifying for a race, and also raced it at Riverside in August 1983. History then unknown until bought by Dave Roberts (Weddington, NC) in northern Indiana in 2011, on track at the Indianapolis historic event in May 2013, then taken to England for the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2014 in Budweiser livery. Also displayed at Indianapolis in the same livery in 2015 and at the Coronado Speed Festival in 2015, but by 2017 it had the Budweiser signage removed and Phil Caliva's name on it instead.
24. SEA 01 (Armstrong) (Greg Leffler): The SEA 01 (also known as the Armstrong) was designed by Pete Swingler for Sherman E. Armstrong's team and was a development of thei March-built 1980 Orbitor chassis. It was fabricated by Pete Howerton, previously responsible for the Williams-based Longhorn. Tom Bagley briefly qualified the car for the 1981 Indy 500 but was bumped soon after. Johnny Parsons Jr, qualified the car for the poorly-supported USAC raceat Pocono but its only other race was at Phoenix in October, where Greg Leffler was an early retirement. It was highly modified for 1982 with new rear suspension, nose and tunnels, and Leffler tried it again at two races but was unable to qualify for either.
25. Eagle 82 [8114] (Mike Mosley): Built by AAR for Mike Mosley to drive as the #48 All American Racers entry at the 1982 Indy 500. Mosley had two 1982 Eagles on the entry (#48 and #48T), both with normally aspirated Chevrolet V8 engines, but the only car to appear was fitted with a turbocharged Chevrolet V6, and this proved both slow and unreliable. Mosley could not get the car much above 194 mph, which would turn out to be too slow to qualify. By 21 May, the team had lost six engines, with only one left. The final engine failed the next day, leaving Mosley unable to start a qualifying run. Gurney then withdrew his team from Indycar racing. This car was then rebuilt by AAR with a Cosworth DFX engine as a first test car delivered to the Galles team and driver Al Unser Jr. This would be the 1982-shape car raced by Unser at Atlanta in mid-April 1983, just a day or two after he completed his Rookie Orientation Program at the Indy Speedway. It is then likely to have been Unser's nominated backup for the Indy 500. After that, this car does not appear to have been used again.
26. Eagle 81 [8101] (Chip Mead): Originally built by AAR as a team car for Tom Sneva, chassis 8101 was sold after Sneva's sponsorship package fell through to a new team being put together by Chip Mead. Unlike the other 1981/82 Eagles, it used Cosworth DFX engines. John Barnes was crew chief, and the car was entered as #49. Mead failed to qualify for the Indy 500, but raced the car at Pocono, the July Michigan and the October Phoenix. It was loaned to Bobby Hillin's Longhorn Racing for Al Unser (Sr) to drive at the September Michigan. Bill Jamieson bought Mead's team for 1982, keeping on Mead and Barnes. After wrecking the car at Milwaukee in June, Mead left the team and Spike Gehlhausen, who had been driving the team's older Penske PC7, took over the Eagle, only to wreck the car again in testing five days before the Pocono race. It was rebuilt and both Chris Kneifel and Jacques Villeneuve (Sr) drove it later that season. Jamieson acquired a second 1981 Eagle for 1983, and the only time 8101 was used was when Bob Ward drove it in practice. After Jamieson Racing disbanded at the end of 1983, chassis 8101 went to an unknown owner and was seized by the government after it was involved in a drug deal. Little is known of it after that until it was bought from Bill Goodridge of Connecticut by the Dresang family in June 2008.
27. Penske PC7 [006] (Tom Bigelow): This car was identified by a later Chuck Haines advert as Penske PC7 chassis 006, a Penske team car for Rick Mears in 1979 and then passing to Dick Hammond and driven by Joe Saldana in 1980 and Tom Bigelow in 1981. The advert is slightly puzzling as it appears to show the car today in #58 Genesee Beer livery; at the 1982 Indy 500 there appear to have been two Genesee Beer cars: a #56 DFX car and a #58 Chevy car? Is the story of 006 less clear cut than it appears?
28. Penske PC7 [006] (Joe Saldana): This car was identified by a later Chuck Haines advert as Penske PC7 chassis 006, a Penske team car for Rick Mears in 1979 and then passing to Dick Hammond and driven by Joe Saldana in 1980 and Tom Bigelow in 1981. The advert is slightly puzzling as it appears to show the car today in #58 Genesee Beer livery; at the 1982 Indy 500 there appear to have been two Genesee Beer cars: a #56 DFX car and a #58 Chevy car? Is the story of 006 less clear cut than it appears?
29. McLaren M24 (Billy Engelhart): After Tom Sneva's #1 Jerry O'Connell Sugaripe Prune McLaren M24 was crashed at the 1979 Indy 500, the team acquired a new M24, believed to be chassis M24B-003. This car was first seen at Michigan in July 1979, but Sneva crashed it in practice, "causing extensive damage". Photographs indicate that Sneva raced the new car at Trenton in August, and at Ontario in September, but used his regular "Ol' Hound" at other races. Sold to ex-sprint car driver Billy Engelhart and Beaudoin Racing before (or maybe at) the Indy 500, and raced by him as the #29 Beaudoin Racing entry at five more races later in 1980. Returned for four more races in 1981, but did not qualify at Indy. Engelhart rebuilt the car himself for Indy in 1982, now entered as #59, but again did not qualify after his only engine exploded. In 2015, Engelhart commented that car was now owned by Don Devine.
30. Eagle 81 [8102] (Bob Frey): New to Max Dowker & Bob Soltow of Jet Engineering as the team's #64 entry for Steve Chassey to race in 1981. Retained for 1982, again as the team's #64, for Chassey at the opening race, then Bob Frey at two races, and then Greg Leffler for the rest of the season. Retained by Jet Engineering for a third season in 1983, when it was driven by Leffler, and by Tom Bigelow once at Laguna Seca at the end of the season. The two Jet Engineering cars, 8102 and 8109, remained together and were acquired by an unknown owner in 1996, who used 8102 with a 358 ci Donovan Chevrolet engine in vintage racing at Road America and IRP. They were advertised on race-cars.com in 2001.
31. McLaren M24 [002] (Teddy Pilette): New to Penske Racing for Mario Andretti to drive as the #9 CAM2 Motor Oil entry at eight races in 1977. Sold to George Walther's Dayton-Walther team for his son Salt Walther to drive in 1978. The ex-Andretti car was Salt's intended race car at the Indy 500, but he swapped to his ex-Tom Sneva car for qualifying and the race. Photographs indicate that Walther raced the ex-Andretti car at Pocono and Ontario in 1978. Walther acquired a new Penske PC6 for 1979, but one of the M24s was retained as a backup. The ex-Andretti car was sold to Tom Frantz (Littleton, CO) for 1980, but only appeared at the Indy 500, where he did not qualify, and was then sold to Don Mergard (Cincinnati, OH), whose crew chief Eddie Meinking fitted a Chevrolet stock block engine. Mergard entered it for Phil Threshie at the Indy 500 in 1981, and for Teddy Pilette in 1982, but both failed to qualify. Mergard advertised the car in February 1982 as being "ex-Andretti". The movements of the car are unknown after that date, but at some point it was restored to the livery Sneva's 1977 pole position car and put on display in the Historic Auto Attractions Museum in Roscoe, Illinois. However, it still had its M24-002 chassis plate, its USAC sticker from when Tom Frantz ran it in 1980, and the Chevrolet stock block engine from the Mergard era.
32. Lightning 77 (Dean Vetrock): Chassis "ROMLIN/7" was one of the 1977 Lightnings but its history before it was raced by Bobby Unser for the Teddy Yip/Dan Gurney AAR team in early 1978 is unresolved. It was used for the opening four races of 1978 before being replaced by the team's new Eagle. To Richard Hoffman (Milford, OH) for 1979 and raced by Joe Saldana as the #59 or #69 car during 1979 and 1980. These entry numbers were also used by the team's old 1972 Eagle and exactly how the two cars were used is still to be determined. The Lightning was run in practice at the 1981 Indy 500 with modified sidepods and nose but was crashed by Saldana. It was acquired by Dean Vetrock (Racine, WI) for 1982, but he failed to qualify for the Indy 500 and did not appear in the series again. Vetrock raced this car briefly in the CAT (ex-Can-Am) series in 1987. Four years later, the car was acquired from a Monterey area dealer by a client of Tom Tatalovich Racing Services (Golden Valley, AZ). Tatlovich restored the car to AAR livery, and it was sold at a Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona in January 1992. Tom recalls that the buyer was from Hilton Head. By 2002, the car was owned by Larry Wharton, who completed a restoration that year. In 2008, it was bought from Wharton by David S. Morrison (Long Beach, CA).
33. Lightning 77 (Billy Scott): New to Alex Morales for 1977 and entered as the #78 Alex Foods car for Bobby Olivero. Presumably his #78 car for the rest of the season but it is possible that the sister #15 car was also used as the #78 at some points during 1977. Then the #78 Alex Foods car for Max Mosley in 1978 and presumed to be the same #78 car he uses all season but it is again quite likely that the sister car was used somewhere. This was then Pancho Carter's Offy-powered #10 Alex XLNT Foods car at the 1979 Indy 500 and as the sister car had been converted to Drake V8 power, this is presumably the Offy car he used through 1979. As the Drake car was converted to a Cosworth DFX and retained for 1980, this Offy car would be the car sold to John Menard's team and entered as the #28 for Herm Johnson in 1980, still with Offy power. For 1981, the Menard team, led by ex-Parnelli mechanic Dan Cota, extensively modified the car with new ground-effect sidepods and fitted a normally-aspirated Chevrolet stock block engine. The car went well at the Indy 500 but Herm Johnson was bumped. To Larry Walker (Indianapolis, IN) for 1982, and entered by his Timberwood Racers at the Indy 500 in 1982 and 1983 as the #88 Frito-Lay Racer, for Billy Scott in 1982 and Roger Rager in 1983, but did not qualify. Subsequent history unknown.
34. Swingler S2 (Gary Irvin): The Swingler was built by Jackie Howerton for the 1982 Indy 500 but owner/driver Gary Irvin was unable to qualify. It reappeared at the 1983 "500", entered by Irvin for John Mahler as the #92 "Lion" but again failed to qualify. The car did not appear again and in 2004 was owned by Chuck Haines. It was fitted with a 358ci Chev.
35. Finley 80/82 ('PC7') (Jan Sneva): Built for John Mahler's team for 1980 as a copy of a Penske PC6, but arrived too late to practice at the 1980 Indy 500. Mahler raced it at five races later in the season, but did not finish any of them. He returned to the Indy 500 with the car in 1981, but again failed to qualify. Later that season, he raced the car three more times, but again failed to finish a race. It was driven by Michel Jourdain at the Copa Mexico 150 in October 1981. Mahler then retired from racing and entered the car for Jerry Sneva at the 1982 Indy 500. Ed Sneva designed new tunnel sidepods for the car and a rear end modelled on the latest Eagles, the resulting mishmash being described as a "PC7". When the Snevas left the team, Mahler returned to the cockpit just before qualifying, but crashed heavily on Thursday 20 May. The car was extensively damaged, and was not seen again.
36. King 'PC7' (Jim McElreath): Built by Grant King as a copy of the Penske PC7 for the 1980 Indy 500, but could not be prepared in time. Roger Mears qualified it for the 1981 Indy 500 but was bumped. Jim McElreath took over the drive for 1982, but did not make an attempt to qualify. The car did not appear again after this, and remained at Grant King's workshops.
37. Lightning 80 [LHR-002] (Gary Bettenhausen): Manufactured in June 1980 and presumably the car raced by Johnny Parsons Jr at Ontario in October 1980 after he had demolished the first 1980 Lightning in practice at Pocono in June. Raced by Bettenhausen in the 1981 Indy 500 and was then Bettenhausen's backup car at the 1982 Indy 500. This was the car fitted with a twin-turbo Chevrolet V6 and entered as a "Spirit 83" for the 1983 Indy 500 where Bettenhausen made two qualifying attempts but came in both times. It was raced by Bettenhausen at Milwaukee in June but he drove the sister car at Pocono in August. Bettenhausen also practiced the turbo Lightning at Mid-Ohio in September but felt unwell on race day and Herm Johnson was flown in to take over the drive. Then unknown until offered for sale by Chuck Haines (St Louis, MO) still in its 1983 #28 livery.
38. Wildcat Mk 8 (Chet Fillip): Circle Bar Auto Racing ran a Wildcat Mk 8 for Chet Fillip in 1982 and 1983. According to an advert in NSSN 28 Jul 1982 p38, the car had been 'driven in 1981 by Gordon Johncock'.

Sources

Note that the identification of individual cars in these results is based on the material presented elsewhere in this site and may in some cases contradict the organisers' published results.

The foundation for this research is the work done by the late Phil Harms collating the results of all AAA, USAC and CART races, including the period covered here. His data was refined by Michael Ferner who added more information before making it available to OldRacingCars.com. Since the start of the USAC project on OldRacingCars.com in 2004, a wealth of further information has been gleaned from the Carl Hungness and Donald Davidson Yearbooks, Formula and On Track magazines, USAC News, National Speed Sport News and other published sources. Gerry Measures has also provided much information from his files as have others on TNF and Trackforum. Since 2009, the work of Simmo Iskül and others identifying cars from period photographs has has moved this research forward significantly.

All comments, clarifications, corrections and additions are most welcome. Please email Allen (allen@oldracingcars.com) if you can help in any way with our research.