Another Win, But Only Two Races In

Nascar is about as rigged as pro wrestling, and even less entertaining. If you really want to make a splash in the racing world, enter a team in Formula 1.

Enthusiasts identify with the Corvettes at LeMans or the CTS-Vs, but NASCAR has little or no identification with the Chevrolet brand.

Let me be the first to say: "Who Cares"

Those race vehicles aren't any more 'Chevrolet' then my toilet.

NASCAR is a sport about driver personality, i.e. professional wrestling, not about the cars. The technology is straight from the 1950’s and it has little correlation to today’s road cars. I believe the majority of the population sees NASCAR for what it is, pure entertainment… and those who don’t need to open their eyes. If GM were to abandon its NASCAR program I seriously doubt there would be any real difference in new car sales or in showroom traffic. GM would be better served by spending their NASCAR budget on developing and designing better car interiors, exteriors, drivetrain technology, etc. and continuing the push to regain their rightful status as the worlds premier auto maker.

"Win on Sunday, sell on Monday" was over a long, long time ago. NASCAR has about the same level of commonality with a street car as an F1 machine, but without all that pesky technology in the way and about the same level of panache as your average Wal-Mart parking lot. I agree with Zivnuska's comment about enthusiasts identifying much more with the Corvette Racing or CTS-V programs. NASCAR is one steel cage match away from being the lowest common denominator of all sports, and why any brand seeks to build positive equity in what is essentially a spec racer series is beyond me (and that goes for Ford, Dodge, and Toyota, too, not just GM.)

I'm an enthusiast and love to see Chevy in Nascar. Keep up the awesome work.

What Zivnuska and Dave said.

I believe the CTS-V embodies the best of the CTS-V racecar. I KNOW the Z06 was developed in conjunction with the C6.R. But the only connection a Nascar Chevrolet Monte Carlo has to the road car is the name.

So GM should just get out if racing, huh? How about not. GM has always been a leader in racing, and the type of equipment used in NASCAR is used in our passenger vehicles, to make them safer, and to develop powertrains like the legendary small-block V8.

Another thing you guys forget is the innovation GM has to do to keep up in the sport. They are in a very tight rule book, yet they need to have their equipment both perform at a high level and be durable and safe.

Lastly, to GM this is a huge marketing opportunity. They can showcase their cars to large audiences of fans loyal to GM and GM only. Without this level of enthusiasm and loyalty for the brand, you become just another brand.

People that follow GM in NASCAR and other series are diehards. Often, they buy Chevy trucks to tote their racecars, buy Chevy's for their children and spouses, and buy Chevy motors and performance parts for their own racecars, which in turn inspire future fans, whether it be their children or the people coming to the races. I was one of those "inspired" by them, and wouldn't be here personally if Chevy was gone from racing.

Finally, there's the "duh" factor. NASCAR is the fastest growing sport, and when you showcase your cars winning most of the races like this year, you're more likely to sample the offerings of that manufacturer, or become a diehard fan of them. This is what Toyota wants, and that's why they continue to persue a bigger part of NASCAR.

"If you have to ask, you'll never understand"

The fastest growing sport in the country, steel bodied cars at 200 plus mph, racing like there is no tomorrow. Yep, boring stuff for some people I'm sure.

"

Let me be the first to say: "Who Cares"

Those race vehicles aren't any more 'Chevrolet' then my toilet."

Your toilet is powered by an 800+ hp Chevy engine? Wow, it must be some toilet.

Seriously though, Nascar is about racing. Just like any other series. They are not like pro-wrestling in that they don't pick who the winner is going to be beforehand. As for the cars, well it's basically the closed wheel version of Open wheel. The bodies are all going to be fairly similar, with a few areas that give each car it's own look. That said, it's all about the racing. Yes, it's also turned in to a marketing extravaganza, but that's par and parcel with how popular it's gotten.

Oh, and F1 is a bad idea. The last time i could bring myself to watch an F1 race, I fell asleep and missed the only on track pass for the lead.

Lastly, to GM this is a huge marketing opportunity. They can showcase their cars to large audiences of fans loyal to GM and GM only. Without this level of enthusiasm and loyalty for the brand, you become just another brand. - mikesright

Here's an idea: Showcase GM vehicles to people who aren't diehard GM fans. Maybe then you'll convince these folks not to buy other brands.

If you could figure out how to apply the same level of talent and committment it takes to win these races to developing competitive new products, we would not have to be humiliated by this constant loss of market share to the likes of Toyota and Honda.

Sorry to repaeat myself, but if you took the same people who can make a pushrod ohv V-8 live at over 9000 rpm and told them you want a 50 mpg Aveo by the end of the year, to help to save the Corporation, they would By God do it.

To be clear, when I say "we", I speak as one of the millions of die hard Chevy fans. I do not work for GM.

NASCAR "jumped the shark" with me about three years ago when I saw that brawl between two pit crews at Richmond. Ever since, it seems that the action on and off the track is more about posturing, chest thumping and fisticuffs and less about the actual racing and the cars themselves

I think that the visibility of the manufacturers has receded in direct proportion to the rise in NASCAR's selling of their personalities and the "story-line" between teams.

With NASCAR, the line between sport and entertainment has been long since crossed and it is obvious that the France family is following the McMahon family's business model.

Sure NASCAR is a real sport, but it's NOT stock car racing. Does anyone even know why NASCAR still calls themselves the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing?

Wouldn't it be nice to see NASCAR have two or three REAL stock car races each season, where they drive real Dodges, Chevies, and Fords -- straight off the showroom floor except for necessary safety modifications?

I bet both the drivers and fans would love it. Plus, if a Chevy won on Sunday, it would actually translate to increased traffic in the showroom on Monday.

Wasn't there a time in NASCAR's early days when a few drivers actually drove their race cars to the track, and back home again after -- assuming they hadn't crashed?

What NASCAR is today is no more about stock cars than thoroughbred horse racing is to the days when working cowboys spent their Sundays racing their cow ponies.

GM has had a great few year of racing success. Now lets see some expansion. I strongly believe that GM and racing enthusiasts alike would want to see a few Cobalts in SCCA WC touring class to compete against the same vehicles they compete in the market place, Hondas and Acura TSX/RSX. The other is the World Ralley Championship. I understand its expensive but its also one of the most watched forms of motor racing mext to F1. It would be great to see factory backed/sponsored Opel Astra or Saab 9-3 competiting against Ford, Citroen and Peugeut. Its a great marketing opportunity. Perhaps launched with the next generation that will offer AWD.

I like to watch NASCAR every once in a while, but there's no thrill when compared to watching an F1 race. Simply because you know NASCAR drivers are running an old 4 speed, carburated pushrod engine and a solid rear end, all covered up by a universal body that looks no more unique than vanila ice cream. I appreciate the fact that motor generates 900 hp. But to me, it's more impressive for an engine to develop that same power with half the displacement and 5 times the computing power. F1 cars are the true wonders of the automotive world. Build us an F1 car, GM. 900 hp out of a 3.5 liter V8 running at 10,500 RPM, utilizing a 6 speed sequential manual gearbox that can shift gears in less than .02 seconds. THAT'S a race car.

Give me a true race car that performs..... F1 cars are so laser sharp in the corners, they could litteraly run circles around even the best NASCAR vehicles.

Please. GM can't afford to dump billions into a "From scratch" F1 team. So they went with the cheapest and biggest advertising bang for the buck in the United States, NASCAR.

In the world of racing, NASCAR is a drop in the bucket compared F1. They can't afford the massive blitz it would require to gain ground on such famous names as Ferrari and McLaren. Not too mention they are decades behind in technology.

NASCAR is boring, the cars are cookie cutter boring and the technology is outdated. If they were such supreme cars, they wouldn't need to race on banked tracks just to keep from sliding into the wall. You think 9,000 rpms from a V8 for 2 hours is impressive? Try turning almost 20,000 for several hours. Thats true technology.

Real race cars can turn!