Category: paint scheme grades

Paint Scheme Grades-October 17, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Austin Dillon #3 Dow/Arm & Hammer Chevy Camaro-I think the sunburst around the Arm & Hammer logo takes away from the scheme. It’s still good, so it gets an A-.

Daniel Suarez #7 Freeway Insurance Chevy Camaro-Good color scheme plus awful design scheme will always earn a C.

Ryan Blaney #12 Menard’s/Richmond Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

William Byron #24 Axalta Throwback Chevy Camaro-Great throwback, great look, this gets an A.

Cole Custer #41 Sysco/Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers Ford Mustang-Red and black works well with this template, and I like cold beer and cheeseburgers, so this gets an A.

BJ McLeod #44 PCNY Chevy Camaro-Good color scheme plus awful design scheme will always earn a C.

Ryan Preece #60 Fry’s/Cottonelle Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Gray Gaulding #66 Flywheel Ford Mustang-A solid line would work better than the stripes, and would take this A- scheme to a solid A.

Corey Heim #67 Mobil 1/O’Reilly Auto Parts Patriotic Toyota Camry-Getting rid of the patriotic elements takes this scheme to a C from a D.

Michael McDowell #71 Tecovas Chevy Camaro-Too many colors and too over designed to get anything better than an F.

Paint Scheme Grades-October 10, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Austin Cindric #2 Menards/Libman Ford Mustang-Same scheme as #12, same B grade.

Christopher Bell #20 DeWalt Toyota Camry-Taking a great scheme and adding needless elements takes a great scheme down to an F.

Joey Logano #22 Shell/Pennzoil 60th Anniversary Mosaic Ford Mustang-Not a fan of mosaic designs, but this is pretty solid. A-

William Byron #24 Valvoline Blood Cancer United Chevy Camaro-Pinkwashing is an automatic F, and I would say that even if this wasn’t an ugly, over designed mess.

Riley Herbst #35 The Laughing Cow Toyota CamryA smooth look with a great color scheme will always earn an A.

Cole Custer #41 Sysco/Carolina Ale House Ford Mustang-Getting rid of the sublimated designs would elevate this to an A. With the designs, this gets a B+

Tyler Reddick #45 Jordan Brand Toyota Camry-Getting rid of the yellow would elevate this to an A. With the yellow, this gets an A-.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #47 Beyond Resilience Chevy CamaroYou can’t go wrong with chocolate waves. A

Ryan Preece #60 Kroger/Blue Buffalo Ford Mustang-Great look, but a bit of a downgrade from last year. A-

Corey Heim #67 Field and Stream Toyota Camry-Reversing the color scheme really works better. A

Paint Scheme Grades-October 3, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Ross Chastain #1 Tootsies Orchid Lounge Chevy Camaro-I’m really over Tootsies Orchid Lounge as a sponsor, and I’m tired of their schemes. F

Austin Dillon #3 Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Magnum Pheasant Chevy Camaro-Great color scheme, not over done, this gets an A.

Kyle Larson #5 HendrickCars.com Chevy Camaro-It’s a good throwback, a good tribute, and it gets an A.

Ty Dillon #10 Patriot Mobile Chevy Camaro-The red and dark blue is a much better look. This takes a B scheme down to a C.

Austin Hill #33 BetMGM Chevy Camaro-Not bad, but a downgrade from the previous scheme. A-

Riley Herbst #35 FRE Nicotine Pouches Toyota Camry-The dots do not work here, and the black on the rear is a killer. This gets a C.

Cole Custer #41 Sysco/Sahara Ford Mustang-Not enough metallic gold in racing, and I like the color and design schemes, so this gets an A.

Tyler Reddick #45 Jordan Brand Toyota Camry-Not a good shade of green, and the car is over designed. F

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #47 Jack Links Chevy Camaro-A smooth look with a great color scheme will always earn an A.

Ty Gibbs #54 Saia Freight + Logistics Toyota Camry-This is not a good look when compared to the previous scheme. It goes from an A to a B.

Ryan Preece #60 Smith’s/Tree Top Ford Mustang-The white really takes away from the scheme. It goes from an A to a B.

Carson Hocevar #77 Spectrum Chevy Camaro-I like this scheme because it reminds me of old blank VHS tape covers. A

Paint Scheme Grades-September 26, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Daniel Suarez #7 WIMNA Nation Chevy Camaro-A great look, love the colors, and the design is great! A

Chase Elliott #9 Kelley Blue Book 100th Anniversary Chevy Camaro-Adding a fade on the read makes a great scheme better. A

Ryan Blaney #12 Menard’s/Cardell Cabinetry Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Chris Buescher #17 Castrol/Heathwood Ford Mustang-Cleaning up the sides is a massive improvement. A

Josh Berry #21 Menard’s/Dutch Boy Ford Mustang-Adding more blue takes a C scheme down to a D.

Todd Gilliland #34 Federal Solutions Company Ford Mustang-Getting rid of the white on the front and adding black to roof would elevate this to an A. This get a B. Not bad, but can be improved.

Alex Bowman #48 Ally Financial Chevy Camaro-Too many colors and too over deigned to get anything but an F.

Michael McDowell #71 Delaware Life Chevy Camaro-Much better look than the cluttered up schemes of 2026, I like the look! A

Paint Scheme Grades-Sepember 19, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Chase Elliott #9 NAPA Gold Filters Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

AJ Allmendinger #16 Suburban Propane Chevy Camaro-Removing the blue would elevate this to an A. This gets an A-.

Chris Buescher #17 Kroger/Kool-Aid/Little Bites Ford Mustang-A smooth look, not over done, this gets an A.

Christopher Bell #20 DeWalt Toyota Camry-Too over designed. F

Bubba Wallace #23 Outlaw Light Toyota Camry-Good color scheme, good design scheme, this gets an A.

Cole Custer #41 Texas A&M University Ford Mustang-Take an A scheme, over design it a bit, and you have a C scheme.

Tyler Reddick #45 SiriusXM Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year, same C grade.

Ty Gibbs #54 M&M’s Kyle Busch Tribute Toyota Camry-Normally I hate mosaic schemes, but this is a worthy and touching tribute. A

Ryan Preece #60 Body Guard Ford Mustang-Reversing the color works well. A

Josh Bilicki #66 Flair Spirits Ford Mustang-The sublimated design takes this fro an A to an A-. I do like the gold.

Carson Hocevar #77 Zeigler Auto Group Chevy Camaro-Reversing the colors works a lot better. A

Paint Scheme Grades-September 12, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Brad Keselowski #6 BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang-Great look. A

Denny Hamlin #11 King’s Hawaiian Cinnamon Bites Toyota Camry-Great look, I like the red, this gets an A.

Ryan Blaney #12 Menards/Atlas Designer Shingles Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A- grade.

Joey Logano #22 Pennzoil Ultra Platinum Ford Mustang-Too over designed, and it just looks awful. F

Austin Hill #33 Lucas Oil Chevy Camaro-Better color, still awesome! A

Cody Ware #51 Rocket Doctor Chevy Camaro-Adding more white does NOT help this scheme. F

Ryan Preece #60 Kroger/International Delight Ford Mustang-I like this scheme, it works well, and the color scheme is good. Especially when compared to last year. A

Chad Finchum #66 AutoParts.com Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A- grade.

Connor Zilisch #88 Very Good Ventures Chevy Camaro-I hate the dots, an the unicorn doesn’t do this any favors. F

Paint Scheme Grades-September 5, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Austin Dillon #3 Boot Barn Chevy Camaro-Major downgrade from last year. B-

Noah Gragson #4 Southeastern Equipment and Supply/Tennant Company Robotics Ford Mustang-I like this, good design, and good color scheme. A

AJ Allmendinger #16 Gerald’s Tires/BTS Rewards Chevy Camaro-I really like the shade of orange, it works well with the black. I think the sides can be cleaned up. All things considered, this gets a C.

Chris Buescher #17 Kroger/Gold Peak Tea Ford Mustang-The darker shade of green is an improvement on an already great scheme. A

Bubba Wallace #23 Columbia Sportswear Toyota Camry-Great design scheme with an awful design scheme will always earn a C.

William Byron #24 Valvoline Restore & Protect Chevy Camaro-The new added designs take an A- scheme down to a C.

Riley Herbst #35 GoGo Squeez Toyota Camry-Both the color scheme and design scheme are mediocre. C

Cole Custer #41 Sysco/Parker’s Kitchen Ford Mustang-White and blue with chicken tenders, need I say more?

Tyler Reddick #45 Jordan Brand Toyota Camry-Get rid of the designed on the white, this gets an A. With the designs, this gets an A-.

Cody Ware #51 ApexFX Chevy Camaro-Getting rid of the dots would elevate this from an A- to an A.

Corey Heim #67 Celsius Toyota Camry-Same scheme as #16, same A grade.

Carson Hocevar #77 Spectrum Chevy Camaro-Too over designed, and I hate the gray here. F

Paint Scheme Grades-August 29,2026

By David G. Firestone

Ross Chastain #1 Wendy’s Watermelon Lemonade Chevy Camaro-New sponsor for 2026, yellow with watermelon motif. F

It’s a horrifically over designed mess. F

Austin Cindric #2 Menards/Maytag Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Austin Dillon #3 Bass Pro Shops Deer Season/Winchester Chevy Camaro-Love the look, not over done, this gets an A.

Austin Dillon #3 Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Deer Season XP Chevy Camaro-Getting rid of the white would get this a solid A, but with the white, this gets an A-.

Daniel Suarez #7 Coke Zero Sugar Chevy Camaro-Getting rid of the black would get this a solid A, but with the white, this gets an A-.

Todd Gilliland #34 Grillo’s Pickles Ford Mustang-Not bad, but a downgrade from last year. A-

Zane Smith #38 Aaron’s Dream Machine Ford Mustang-This is a great look, and brings back some Mac Tonight memories! A

John Hunter Nemechek #40 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry-Getting rid of the white is a slight upgrade, but it is still over designed. C+

Erik Jones #43 Dollar Tree Throwback Toyota Camry-I love a good 1990’s throwback, and this is a great throwback. A

Joey Gase #44 National Fire Prevention Week Chevy Camaro-Too many colors and too over designed, so it gets an F.

Cody Ware #51 Super.com Chevy Camaro-Love the look, not over designed, this gets an A.

Ryan Preece #60 Oikos Ford Mustang–New scheme for 2026, white and black.-Not bad, but a bit of a downgrade from last year. A-

Michael McDowell #71 Fly Alliance Chevy Camaro-Too. Many. Stripes. F

Paint Scheme Grades-August 22, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Daniel Suarez #7 UHP.com Chevy Camaro-A good look with a great color scheme will always earn an A.

Chris Buescher #17 Kroger/Kleenex Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Austin Hill #33 zone Sweet Coffee Chevy Camaro-I like the dark red, it works well with this scheme. A

Todd Gilliland #34 Nucar Ford Mustang-Good color scheme, and an awful design scheme will always earn a C.

Zane Smith #38 imagine360 Ford Mustang-Not a bad look, the circle motif can work when not over used, this gets an A.

Cody Ware #51 Schluter Systems Chevy Camaro-Metallic gold isn’t used enough, and this not over designed scheme works well as a result. Also, this is a major upgrade from last year. A

Carson Hocevar #77 Modo Casino Chevy Camaro-If this was just the fade, it would get an A. With the designs, it gets taken down to a C.

Connor Zilisch #88 SuperFile Camaro-There is no way I can defend a hideous mess like this. F

Shane van Gisbergen #97 SuperFile Chevy Camaro-See above. F

Paint Scheme Grades-August 15, 2026

By David G. Firestone

Ross Chastain #1 Jockey 150th Anniversary Camaro-Same scheme as #88, same A grade.

Ryan Blaney #12 BodyArmor Flash I.V. Ford Mustang-As much as I like fades, the colors are off, it should be pink to yellow. Also, the black stripes look odd. This could be an A, but this gets a C.

AJ Allmendinger #16 Black’s Tire Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Austin Hill #33 Morgan & Morgan Kyle Busch Tribute Chevy Camaro-The color scheme is good, the design scheme is awful, all things considered, this gets a C.

Cody Ware #51 Rocket Doctor Chevy Camaro-These changes are rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. F

Ty Gibbs #54 Victory Junction/Cook Out Toyota Camry-Too over designed to get anything but an F.

Shane van Gisbergen #97 Mitti Chevy Camaro-It’s basically a redesign of Safety Culture, which is an F scheme. This gets an F as well.