Roger Penske could be the coolest guy alive. He’s rich beyond all comprehension, has been in racing for nearly 50 years now, and still stands as a very successful racing team owner in both open wheel and stock car series. The guy freaking bought Detroit Diesel from General Motors in 1988 and took it from a struggling afterthought in the heavy duty diesel trucking world to a 30% shareholder in the marketplace. While his current successes are awesome, we’ll always be thinking of Penske as he appears in this totally cool 1968 ad for Sunoco gasoline.
The clip starts and we see Penske playing golf and cruising in a cool old golf cart and then we get to see Mark Donohue hauling ass in his Sunoco blue and gold Can-Am car. Cut back to Penske rolling into a fake Sunoco gas station in a Camaro convertible and having the attendant choose the right “custom blend” Sunoco fuel at the pump. It doesn’t get any better!
Today we get run over with ads about how there’s nitrogen pumped into the gasoline. Today sucks.
PRESS PLAY BELOW TO SEE ROGER PENSKE AND MARK DONOHUE STAR IN A SUPER COOL 1968 SUNOCO COMMERCIAL
1968 Sunoco Commercial from Andy Jeffers on Vimeo.
Roger Penske does have that sort of Man From U.N.C.L.E., 007, Saint, 60’s spy guy sort of cool about him. But for me the things he did that made him cool were being a winning driver behind the wheel of Jim Hall’s Chaparrals before he retired from driving. Then as a team owner winning Trans-Am championships first with the Sunoco Chevy Camaro, then again with the Sunoco AMC Javelin. Both diven by the late, great Mark Donohue. The ad you posted is of that era and captures the super team of Penske & Donohue at their very coolest.
This is fun. I was thinking about old gasoline commercials the other day! Who remembers “FINA’s got FLASH” or “Put a tiger in your tank”! And those bitchin commercials where people wear sitting on the street driving around with no cars! The one where the guy pulls up next to the chicks, and did a burnout on his butt cheeks sent me into hysterics! Man, the 60s were cool!
Funny how they filmed the race shots at either Willow Springs or Riverside,with golf at Palm Springs and Ca. doesnt have Sunoco.
Ah , the old blending pumps. That would put different percentages of high grade and standard to arrive at different octane levels
Needs one of those selection knobs my self like the batmobile only better.
I’ve known Roger since the 50’s. Roger and my dad were partners. My mother said Roger was always a gentleman, even when a business deal went until 2:00 a.m.