The Indianapolis Motor Speedway has announced that renowned engine builder Louis “Sonny” Meyer Jr. died Saturday, Nov. 7, in Crawfordsville, he was 89 years old.
Meyer will be remembered as one of the most accomplished engine builders in Indianapolis 500 history, as well as the son of Louis Meyer, the first three-time winner of the Indy 500.
“Sonny Meyer was one of the quietest, most pleasant men in Gasoline Alley but spoke loudly through his instrumental involvement as an engine builder or chief mechanic in at least 15 Indy 500 victories,” the speedway said in a release.
Meyer built the engine that powered Gordon Johncock’s first Indy 500 victory, in 1973, in the No. 20 STP Double Oil Filter Eagle/Offy owned by Patrick Racing.
Meyer was inducted into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame in 2013.
