The Dork-O-Motive Podcast

Oil Burners: The Improbably Awesome History of Cummins At The Indy 500

June 24, 2026·59 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

Cummins diesel engines are an American institution. They've been one of the most massive manufacturers of diesel engines in the United States for more than 100 year now, but did you that they have an incredible history in racing, tied to the Indy 500. From 1931-1952 Cummins ran five different cars with five different engines at the 500 and all of them are amazing. Cummins is credited for more Indy 500 firsts than any other single person or entity in the history of the race. This is the complete history of Cummins at the Indy 500. Their most massive and well known headline was winning the pole in 1952 but that was a moment 40 years in the making. In this video you'll learn about the cars, the people, and take a deep technical dive into the engines that defined these events and Cummins as a company. These were production diesel engines mixing it up with racing engines on equal footing. It's one of the most surprisingly cool racing stories in American motorsports history.

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