Shane Lewis To Go After 2004 Daytona Prototype Championship In PAP-PARTS BMW FABCAR

Shane Lewis To Go After 2004 Daytona Prototype Championship In PAP-PARTS
BMW FABCAR

POWELL, Ohio, December 2, 2003 - Southard Motorsports' owner Steve
Southard announced today that sports car and endurance racing standout
Shane Lewis will be the lead driver of his No. 7 PAP-PARTS BMW-FABCAR in
2004. Lewis, of Jupiter, Florida, will contest for top honors in the
Daytona Prototype (DP) class for the full 12 race Grand American Rolex
Sports Car Series schedule with the Powell, Ohio-based team. The
exciting announcement came as Southard prepares to contest for the
championship in the fastest growing class in professional sports car
racing. Lewis' expertise with both racecraft and car development will be
leaned on heavily as the combination challenges the established teams in
the second full season of DP competition. Lewis will pilot a FABCAR
FDS/03 chassis with the headlights and taillights from the BMW Z-8
sports car. The car will be powered by BMW's powerful and highly
reliable 4.9 litre V8 and ride on Goodyear racing slicks. This marks a
return to driving BMWs for Lewis who helped develop the last generation
M3 for competition and spent 2003 developing the BMW-built MINI Cooper S
for Grand-Am Cup racing. The chase for the championship starts on
January 29th with the Rolex 24 at Daytona (Fla.).

"This is one of the best efforts I have been associated with," Lewis
enthusiastically declared about the Southard operation. "At the start of
the season every driver says how excited they are to be with a team that
can win the championship. I can honestly say that I am a true believer
in this program and I'm very excited about my relationship with Southard
Motorsports, Auto Assets, BMW and PAP-PARTS. This team is shaping-up to
be one of the top teams in Daytona Prototypes. We know that it will be a
bit of a development effort with the BMW and the FABCAR combination.
But, I feel like the pieces are there to give us a real shot at race
wins and the DP title. I'm so pumped about getting out there and driving
this car for overall wins. So much of winning and success comes from
enjoying where you're at and Steve and his crew chief, Rich Howe, have
put together a great team. I've been racing against them for years in
historics [racing] and I know how strong they are. FABCAR is a proven
winner and I'm really looking forward to getting to work with BMW again.
We're going to come out swinging at Daytona and I think we can take the
PAP-PARTS BMW FABCAR to the front of the pack."

"After a few years of winning in touring classes, I can't wait to get
going and run for overall victories again," continued Lewis when asked
about returning to the top-class of the Rolex Series. "The competition
in the production-classes is incredible but anytime you have the chance
to be the first one to cross the finish line; that is really why we all
race. This is a top of the line effort, in the top level of the Rolex
Series. I made the decision that I wanted to be teamed with winners in
2004 and I think that is exactly what I have here. Steve has made a
serious commitment to me. I'm looking forward to a very successful
relationship."

2004 marks the first full season in the Rolex Series for both Southard
Motorsports and Lewis. Lewis comes to the team as one of the most
respected race drivers in the country enjoying an extensive background
in endurance and sports car racing including seventeen 24 Hour races. In
2003 Rolex Series competition, Lewis earned a second in GTS class with
Gunnar Racing at the Paul Revere 250. He also drove in seven Grand-Am
Cup events racing a BMW Mini Cooper S setting a new track record and
fastest race lap at Virginia International Raceway as well as giving the
Mini its first top-10 finish in North American competition early in the
season. The No. 7 BMW FABCAR debuted at the Rolex Series' finale at
Daytona in early November. The car qualified fourth and finished ninth
in-class.  

"I am excited about 2004 and the potential of the car," quoted Southard.
"The finale at Daytona proved to me that I put the correct engine &
chassis combination together. The fact that we qualified fourth in class
the first time out with a car that had literally zero development time
on it speaks volumes to me. All this car needs is some set up time. I am
confident that Shane will bring that expertise to the team. I have been
a fan of Shane's work ethic ever since we worked with him on a vintage
Winston Cup effort several years ago."

Shane Lewis is one of the world's leading race and development drivers.
His skills have been utilized by Riley & Scott Europe, Pilbeam Racing
America, Mosler Automotive, Saleen, BMW, MCR, MINI and more to develop
new race cars. He has been racing since 1989 with multiple race wins in
Grand-Am sanctioned events, in the IMSA Supercar and SCCA Pro Series and
the Historic SportsCar Series. He has starts in ARCA stock car
competition, at the Pikes Peak Hill Climb and is a former Daytona
Endurance Champion and Formula Ford Festival winner. He has driven in
seventeen 24-hour races including six Rolex 24s and three 24 Hours of Le
Mans- leading the race in GT class in 2003. He has two overall and one
class-victory at the 24 Hours of Nelson Ledges. Lewis was honored as the
1998 Professional Sports Car Racing Rising Star award winner and was
test driver for author Don Alexander's book Performance Handling for the
90's. Lewis also serves as a test driver and private coach.

For more on Shane Lewis please see www.ShaneLewis.com. To learn more
about Southard Motorsports, please visit www.pap-parts.com or
www.autoassets.com.

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Digital images and bio available upon request.
Editors, please do not publish any contact information other than web
sites.  Thank you.

Contact: Tom Moore, Shane Lewis Racing: 770-466-5442 (office),
404-229-3703 (cell), tom@darkhorsecom.com