Toyota? Is this true? Ouchh!!!

tb3

elbows & a$$holes
Joined
Mar 31, 2006
I've said this before, and I'll say it again, I know squat about nascar. To get me interested enough to watch it,... they'd have to throw in a clown car going the opposite direction about 5 minutes after the race started.
However... I've just heard that Toyota could be entering Nascar as early as next year? Wow! Is this true? Talk about a kick to American built racing pride. Ricers in Nascar??? How sad to think that the "big three" I've always been familiar with since I can remember, is fading and slowly being overtaken by the import market. Hell... there's only 2 now. Dodge is no longer an American owened company, right? I guess it'll be interesting to see how their V8 single overhead valve engines will compare to our's, seeing as how they left that technology behind long ago, or did they? hell, I don't know, I'm outa here, I'm gonna go throw candy canes at the homeless. :frown:
 
My buddy follows nascar. he told me two camrys are gonna be running next year. from what i was told all nascar engines had to have pushrod valvetrains. but they are also going to unleaded fuel to. so i am sure that will bring speeds down a tad . due to lower rpms.that will give toyota a chance:eek:
 
I think that sucks too! Micheal Waltrip is one of the team owners/drives I think he is on the suck list now:biggrin:
 
betchs within a few years toyota will be wiping up the field.. Then they wil change the rules so that they won't.. anyone wana take that bet????;)
 
The Toyota Camry is the closest thing to an american made car there is. Top Ten All-American Imports

Why shouldn't they be allowed to race?
From what I've read there are going to be three Toyota teams.
What is it we tell everyone outside the Buick community? "Run what you brung and if you didn't bring enough you lose."
 
Good article. and further on down the downward spiral this country goes.... its going to catch up to us one day. :( sigh....its definetly not my dads General Motors anymore
 
Trucks

You know they have been in the truck series for some time now and kick butt there. Toyota has there "feet wet" in the sport. I have a feeling they are going to do very well in the first and second year at the cup level.
 
I have a feeling they are going to do very well in the first and second year at the cup level.

Not with Micheal Waltrip driving ! The only way he's going to
be in front is if he drives the Pace Car :eek: :D
 
I heard that since Toyota doesn't produce a pushrod V8 that they're using Chevrolet motors. So basically, the only difference in the Toyota cup cars and all the others is the sticker on the nose that says "Camry".
 
I suppose Nascar is probaby anxious to "broaden" their fan base too. If toyota really wanted to throw some salt in the eye, they could advertise "Our cars go more laps without pitstops". actually that would be hilarious. I should call them up.:biggrin:
 
I think this could be the beginning of the end of Nascar's huge popularity. Fact: American auto manufacturers are losing money and can't devote resources to engine R&D like a super profitable Toyota can. Toyota can afford to spend big bucks so they will assuredly eventually dominate Nascar.

These cars today bear no resemblence at all to "real cars" like in the old days. There is probably not one part from a production car in a Nascar race car. Today you have bland front wheel drive 4 door sedans made up to look like 2 door cars. Most foreign car owners are not into cars like Nascar fans are, so Toyota's dominance will not go over well with the current fan base. It could be like the IRL with fake bodies on the cars.

Maybe this could be a great time for a new racing group to be formed featuring "real" stock cars... based on real cars with real drivelines... just like the way cars were in the early days of Nascar. Win on Sunday and sell on Monday.
 
I think this could be the beginning of the end of Nascar's huge popularity. Fact: American auto manufacturers are losing money and can't devote resources to engine R&D like a super profitable Toyota can. Toyota can afford to spend big bucks so they will assuredly eventually dominate Nascar.

These cars today bear no resemblence at all to "real cars" like in the old days. There is probably not one part from a production car in a Nascar race car. Today you have bland front wheel drive 4 door sedans made up to look like 2 door cars. Most foreign car owners are not into cars like Nascar fans are, so Toyota's dominance will not go over well with the current fan base. It could be like the IRL with fake bodies on the cars.

Maybe this could be a great time for a new racing group to be formed featuring "real" stock cars... based on real cars with real drivelines... just like the way cars were in the early days of Nascar. Win on Sunday and sell on Monday.

Amen Brother! NASCAR has been a joke ever since they started running fwd cars in the sport in the rwd format. I hope NASCAR goes straight to HELL for this one. It would tickle me to death! :mad:
 
no way. Its too popular. it will just give the fans some rivalery. The same was said when they went to fwd sedans as bodys too and did it slow down? no
 
I am a huge NASCAR fan BUT, for some reason last year I started to get turned off by the sport. Not for Toyota, but for NASCAR's willingness to disregard the core fan base for a "new" fan base.

The Toyota is the most popular car sold in the US. That is bad. Not Toyo's fault, however more of these cars are built by US workers than the fomoco's or GM's. The dodges? I am not sure.

Anyways, what NASCAR wants is the big TV contracts and sponsors. A few events that happened this year really shed light on the situation. First, Mark Martin. Been with the 6 car for 19 years. Watches Roush go from an upstart to a powerhouse, mentored Jeff Burton and brought in Matt Kenseth. Mark wanted to retire before LAST year. Contract battles forced roush to be a driver short. Mark drove one more year and was competitive. Mark wanted to do a part time deal but the sponsor for his 6 car wanted a rookie in 07. Apperently that is want the contract stated. Martin went to another team, will drive a part time schedual with a rookie. It would have been ideal to do that in the 6 but the owner succumbed to the sponsors wishes. Next, the RYR fiasco. Finaly Yates came to his senses and put Rudd in the 88 (now 28) but he was waiting to find a driver that potential sponsors would want, not a driver who could perfom on the track. Ward Burton was told "bring a sponsor and you have a ride". They knew he could get the job done but the sponsors dont want a 40 somthing driver, they all want a young guy with raw talent and good looks.

Next issue was at Texas. fall race they DID NOT sell out. back stretch seats were empty for a Playoff ("chase") race. Fans did not want to spend $100+ for a seat. NASCAR sold the space to advertisers that installed banner adds in place of the empty seats. A Texas Speedway official was quoted saying somthing along the lines of that he did not care how the "space" was filled. If fans dont buy seats, they can generate revenue other ways. Hello, how do you think you got to this point?????? Sponsors or fans????

Next, California. They moved the Labor Day race from Darlington 2 years ago where it has been since NASCAR started and gave darlington 1 race in the spring. One of your best and toughest tracks. The race went to the big SO CAL market on a "cookie cutter" track. They had a hard time filling the place and I dont think they did. Point being they disregarded thier old fan base that got them to this point and tried to go to a new market and it has backfired. You could also say the same for North Wilksboro and Rockingham.

Toyota is just a way to get more of the casual fan into the sport plus Toyota has big $$ and they have been succesful in the truck series. Also, this year they will run the COT (car of Tomarrow) wich if anyone thought all the cars were the same before, just wait.

The hayday was the late 70's and 80's. The Buick Regal was so dominant in 81 and 82 they forced the other builders to change. That made better cars for us. We can also thank that dominance for the Grand National. Maybe Buick has a TR w/out the GN but the GN puts the TR on the map (IMO). And thus the GNX

Also back then, if lets say Chevy wanted to change thier cars to compete with a ford, they had to actually produce a certain number for street use before the change was implemented. Remember the Monte Areo Coupe and the Pontiac 2+2? These cars were a result of Ford comming out with the new T-Bird at the time and Bill Elliot was dominating the circuit. Today, if one brand is running near the back, they complain to NASCAR and they get changes, just like the Charger this past year. No changes to the street car, just changes to the race car so they have "parity".

The fall in dominance with NASCAR goes way beyond Toyota.
 
I love NASCAR and I think it should be available to any car manufacturer but make it a car that anyone can buy like it used to be. This corporate BS is getting out of hand. It's all about the Benjamin's anymore.
The car of tomorrow?????? Are they just selling LOGO space. This is a travesty. These cars are about as close to "STOCK CARS" as helicopters are to kites.
It looks like Orange County Choppers has a good shot at winning the manufacturers cup this year. :eek:
 
my interest in the sport has waned big time. it just has become way to corny. i tevo the race just so i can skip the dumb commercials and see if harvick or earnhardt jr. is in at least the top ten. wow, this year will probably be even more corny with promoting toyota topped with about 60 seconds more of commercials. :rolleyes:
 
crew chief

Not with Micheal Waltrip driving ! The only way he's going to
be in front is if he drives the Pace Car :eek: :D

My good friend David Hyder will be his crew chief. They will win. Take a look at Kenny's finish spots after Hyder was his crew chief.
 
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