When I have the chance to interview folks from the motorsport world, I love to ask them about their daily driver. That is, mostly, just a little tidbit of information for my own enjoyment, but every so often, you get a racer with a really great story — and Simona de Silvestro has one of my new favorites.
De Silvestro has been a mainstay in the racing world for years, but she’s recently been competing for the female-forward Paretta Autosport team in IndyCar, which put together a lineup of four races for the 2022 season. I had a chance to sit down with both de Silvestro and team owner Beth Paretta at the Music City Grand Prix in Nashville, TN, at what was supposed to be the team’s final race of the season. However, it was just announced they’d also be taking on the season finale at Laguna Seca. And, as usual, I ended my interview with my usual question: What’s your daily driver?
Right now, both Paretta and de Silvestro have something fun — a BMW M235 and a Porsche Cayenne, respectively. But as we chatted, de Silvestro revealed a story about the Chevrolet Volt she had when she was competing for the KV Racing Technology Team in 2013.
“I actually really, really liked it,” de Silvestro said of the plug-in hybrid vehicle, “But I was living in an apartment in Indianapolis on the third floor, and at the time, there was no power plug.
“So, I’d just throw a cable down over my balcony to plug it in.”
The semi-ridiculous process probably would have annoyed other people, but de Silvestro was never put off: “It was perfect. I never had to fuel, and when I had to go somewhere farther away, like Chicago, I was still fine.”