34°17′50.5″N 79°54′18.4″W / 34.297361°N 79.905111°W
| Race details[1][2] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 42 of 59 in the 1966 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
 1966 Southern 500 program cover | |||
| Date | September 5, 1966 | ||
| Official name | Southern 500 | ||
| Location | Darlington Raceway, Darlington, South Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.375 mi (2.212 km) | ||
| Distance | 364 laps, 500.5 mi (805.4 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures of 89.1 °F (31.7 °C); wind speeds of 10.1 miles per hour (16.3 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 114.830 miles per hour (184.801 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 28,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Jon Thorne | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | |
| Laps | 131 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 16 | Darel Dieringer | Bud Moore | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The 1966 Southern 500, the 17th running of the event, was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on September 5, 1966, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina.
The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.
- ^ "1966 Southern 500 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
- ^ "1966 Southern 500". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved November 10, 2011.