Cool Fuel – Penske and the Art of Refuelling

Sunoco was approached by Roger Penske, in the fall of 1965, to sponsor his newly formed racing team. After the financial details were worked out, a representative from Sunoco’s Automotive Laboratory in Marcus Hook, PA, was loaned to the team. I was the first person to serve in this manner during the 1966–67 seasons. When I left the team, Jerry Kroninger assumed that responsibility and continued with it throughout the years of Sunoco’s Penske sponsorship.

The Sunoco representative on the team was to assure that the proper fuels and lubricants were at the track, that they were actually used in the car (for advertising documentation) and that they did not fail to perform as expected. The products were Sunoco 260 gasoline and Sunoco engine oil, gear lubricant and wheel bearing grease. This crewman was also expected to do all he could to recommend product improvements and whatever else he might do to help the team win within the SCCA rules. This was part of the team’s philosophy of the “Unfair Advantage”—read the rulebook carefully and if something isn’t specifically forbidden, see if you can take advantage of it. The famous acid-dipped “lightweight” 1967 Camaro was a product of this type of thinking.