Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Will the Mustang start a new trend in stock-car racing?

Could it be the Car of Tomorrow that fans actually like? NASCAR announced Tuesday afternoon that it will begin its rollout of the new Nationwide Series car at a limited number of tracks in 2010. The Ford Motor Company was quick to also announce on Tuesday that it will use the Mustang nameplate on the new Nationwide car.

Could we eventually see a trend toward cars that more closely resemble their street versions? Well, judging from this artwork supplied by Ford, I would say that’s a possibility.

Click to enlarge photo

Dodge plans to use the Challenger, Toyota will stick with the Camry and, unfortunately, Chevrolet will likely continue with the Impala instead of switching to the new Camaro.

I wonder how the folks at Toyota feel knowing that the Camry, the nameplate of its pedestrian-looking grocery getter, will be competing against a muscle-car brand?

And what about the Cup series? O.K., I know money is tight and teams might not want to spend the capital to put new skin on their COT fleets. In addition, too many changes aren’t what the teams need as they continue to try to get the new car sorted out. But once this recession is over and the spigot of sponsorship money is turned back on, it will be time for the sedans to exit the Cup series.

The decision to use the Mustang is a smart marketing move by Ford and possibly a smart marketing move for the Nationwide Series.

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