2019 Corvette Grand Sport Reports For Indy 500 Pace Car Duty

The Official Pace Car for the 2019 Indianapolis 500 is the 2019 Corvette Grand Sport.

America’s sports car will lead 33 drivers to the green flag on May 26 for the 103rd running of the legendary race that is part of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, the other two being the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix.

It will be the 16th time a Corvette has served as a Pace Car, with the tradition starting in 1978. At the same time, it will be the 30th time a Chevrolet has led the field at the Indy 500 — the first time was in 1948 when a Fleetmaster Six convertible paced the race. No other brand or vehicle has served as the Indy 500 Pace Car more than Chevrolet and the Corvette, respectively.

“Chevrolet is honored to lead the way for the 500 once again. The Grand Sport is a particularly excellent choice as its wide body and aerodynamic features are steeped in racing heritage,” said Steve Majoros, director of Chevrolet passenger car and crossover marketing.

For the occasion, Chevrolet has given the 2019 Corvette Grand Sport Pace Car a unique GM Design Indy 500 decal package and full-length racing Blade Silver dual stripes on top of the Long Beach Red Metallic Tintcoat.

The rest of the car is stock, meaning the LT1 6.2-liter aluminum V8 makes 460 hp and 465 lb-ft (630 Nm) of torque. Hooked to an eight-speed paddle-shift automatic transmission, it enables the Corvette Grand Sport to sprint from 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 3.6 seconds.

That will come in handy on the Brickyard, as will the dry sump oil system and cornering capability of 1.2 g made possible by the many advanced aerodynamic components. Other performance features on the Corvette Grand Sport include the performance suspension with Magnetic Ride Control, Brembo carbon ceramic brakes, and Competition Sport Bucket Seats.