With NASCAR’s domestic mainstays looking to downsize support in light of financial woes, it might seem like a good time for other foreign manufacturers to follow Toyota into the fray and take advantage of a possible power vacuum.
But representatives from several overseas automakers contacted by the Press say that you won’t be seeing their cars at the Daytona 500 or any other NASCAR race in the foreseeable future.
Earlier this month Volkswagen announced that it would build a new manufacturing plant in Chattanooga, Tenn. The company’s goal is to more than triple its current 2 percent share in the U.S. car market in the next 10 years. But NASCAR isn’t a part of the marketing plan at the moment.
“I don’t see us investing money toward gasoline-powered racing right now,” said Clark Campbell, motorsports manager for Volkswagen of America. “Unless they’re going to start allowing turbos and diesels into NASCAR, we wouldn’t even be thinking of it right now.”
Instead, Volkswagen is focusing on its fledgling Jetta TDI Cup series, as well as off-road racing. While Campbell admits that his company has ‘done the math’ about what NASCAR would entail, the price apparently seems a little high.
“Our [whole] Jetta TDI Cup is two weeks worth of budget for a NASCAR team,” Campbell added.
While Campbell said VW’s domestic motorsports program is just in its infant stages, another manufacturer with a much stronger foothold in racing has its reasons for staying away from NASCAR.
Honda is currently the sole player in the IndyCar Series. The company’s financial status is stable, as its U.S. sales have remained steady while others have suffered freefalls. The carmaker has been rumored in the past to land in NASCAR. But NASCAR mandates, which require technology to be very similar between brands in the name of on-track parity, doesn’t seem to jibe with a company looking to shift what it learns on the track to the showroom.
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so basically if GM and Dodge and Ford all go under….Nascar is dead? or everyones gonna be racing Toyotas….WOW…..this sucks…..damn you george bush and ur stupid war and inflation and screwing all ur american citizens over
darrell wrote:
could not have said it better myself
So howie how does this affect the acura rumor you posted about?
i know right…what are we to do without NASCAR?…i cant…cant watch IRL…or open wheel…..ill die !!!!
People read the article. It says VW Is not interested in NASCAR, and they said that for the same reasons they said they were not interested in F1 and DTM.
Honda will be here, what they are saying is that the technology they use in NASCAR does not translate to the street, however Honda has been involved in this style of racing for a long time on a private inter-company level for testing/R&D. They have messed with stock car technology since the 70s. They are not saying they don’t want to be in NASCAR, they are saying that NASCAR does not fit in their current plans, and that is because their current plan is IRL engines till 2010 or 2011.
As for Nissan, they will be in the Truck series, however they really have no need to enter the Cup series. Road racing is in Nissan’s blood, Road racing still uses completely stock appearing cars for the majority of their classes.
To bad americans have gotten so lazy that we dont even take pride in what we build anymore and the over thinkers for all these companies dont care enough bout this country that they have to send everything over seas or by there parts from over sees. Maybe the domestic manufactuers should step up and start making a more reliable product like the foreign companies have done. Plus HONDA is dumping all there money into F1 where they are doing horrible, I personally would love to see HONDA in cup. I wonder how many people would complain about HONDA being in cup cause they are foreign and those same people probably have honda generators or lawn mowers or outboards and so on.
NASCAR
N= NON
A= AMERICAN
S= STOCK
C= CARS
A= AND
R= RICEBURNERS
I’ve thought Honda should get into NASCAR for a while. They have a long racing tradition and are obviously interested in racing in America or they wouldn’t be powering the IRL and racing in the ALMS, Grand Am, etc… Then again, like the article says, they use their track experience to further their consumer car development, and carburated 350ci motors and big wings isn’t going to do that.
I don’t see VW getting involved in cup at all, regardless of the motor package. Just doesn’t seem like a good fit for some reason.
I could definitely see Nissan bringing the Titan to CTS. Actually I’m really surprised that they haven’t done it yet. It’s built in Mississippi and they have a V8 platform to build on. If they went on to the other series, they have the Maxima, and if NWS were to switch to pony cars, they have the GT-R and 350z.
The word is out that Hendrick Motorsports will have ACURA backing in 2010 for the Sprint and Nationwide series and that the new power plant is already in the final development stages in Santa Clarita, California.
The news spread when the American Lemans series was at Lime Rock last week and Erik Berkman of Honda Performance was there and was in discussion with a driver about how the progress of the new motor was coming along.
As of now we can all believe that with the switch from Chevy to Toyota with the Gibbs organization and the latest defection of Chevy from 2 racetracks that the company doesn’t have the funds anymore it takes to back the NASCAR top teams.
ROWDY BUSH wrote:
Better than
N-Non
A-Athletic
S-Sport
C-Centered
A-Around
R-Rednecks
lol
Knowing Ricks past dealings/history outside of NASCAR, HMS to Acura wouldn’t surprise me at all.
Actually I’m surprised that with Chips relationship with Toyota/Lexus that he has not jumped his NASCAR teams over there to try and salvage whatever is left of them.
Also it’s kind of funny when you look at the HAG Dealerships and you see Toyota’s #1 Fanboy DW has a Honda Dealership named after him.
BTW Howie I’ve heard that BMW was also looking at getting involved in Stock Car racing, have you heard anything on that?
Howie Motorsports Photography wrote:
Like they always say if you wont pay me someone else will.
Wasn’t Tony’s move back to a Chevy part of his agenda? I just don’t see him in a Honda/Acura but after seeing him in a Toyota, anything is possible. Slick Rick had those legal issues years ago with the Honda/Acura people as I recall. Just as the dust begins to settle, it gets stirred up again!
George I think you misunderstood the whole Acura thing. Tony has nothing to do with that (well unless when HMS makes the switch his team keeps getting engines/support from them)
I’m figuring the HMS support deal. That’s exactly what I’m talking about. If Haas gets their stuff from HMS now, you’d figure he stays with them like HOF(Yeley) did with Gibbs. That HMS support looked pretty sweet. If he stays with Chevy as many would hope, RCR-DEI engines would gladly take his money.