Imagine discovering a one-of-a-kind PPG Indy Car World Series Pace Car while shopping dealers of pre-owned vehicles for a daily driver. In early 2020, that’s exactly what Mike Blaze did. Then he bought it!
The production engineer from southwestern Pennsylvania recalls, “I was looking for an SUV at Marion Motors in Connellsville, when talk turned to cars. The owner had an AC Cobra (kit car) in his garage and asked if I would like to see it. While walking through the six bays, I saw something under a cover and asked about it.” It was this 1981, GM X-body-based, front-wheel-drive, Oldsmobile Omega PPG Pace Car showing just under 14,000 miles. “I’d never seen anything like it,” Mike admits, “so I looked it over inside and out.”
Once back home, “I did some research, but found very little beyond a brief writeup on,” he remembers. Only one photo was available then, and this car was believed to have been crushed. Mike went back to convince the owner to sell, and he quickly agreed. It was later learned that “he was retiring,” Mike recalls, “so I happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
