Category: throwback thursday

Chris Amon Matra 1971 #20 Matra MS120 was recently sold

Wow! That’s a good shade of blue! I also like the logo placement, the logos themselves, the diagonally angled numbers in a white circle, and the fact that many of the visible elements of the car are painted white, to match the shade of white used. This is a solid A scheme for sure!

Jack Brabham in his 1970 #12 Brabham-Ford BT33 at the South African Grand Prix

Formula One’s quarter of Throwback Thursday starts with a decent scheme. The yellow used here isn’t as bad as some shades of yellow that I’ve reviewed this year, but it’s not my favorite. I do like the sky blue, and the stripe across the front of the car. Also could we make Formula One teams put their car numbers diagonally on the car in a white circle? That looks really good. All in all, I’ll give it a B+.

Al Unser poses with his 1981 #88 Valvoline/Longhorn Racing Longhorn/Cosworth

For our last IndyCar scheme for Throwback Thursday, I have a question: Um…could someone explain to me why the blue on the stripes and the blue on the numbers are completely different from each other? I’d also like to know why the LONGHORN on the sides and tail are equally mismatched. The thing is, it you replaced one with the other, they would both work well, but because there are two different things going on pointlessly here, I have to give this scheme a C+

In what was his last race before his jump to NASCAR, Tim Richmond poses with his 1981 #84 UNO/WTTV/Guarentee Auto Parnelli Cosworth

It’s a simple design, red with white lettering. It’s a great design, red with white lettering. It’s a great shade of red, and a great shade of white. It’s a solid A scheme that doesn’t say much because it doesn’t really have to. It’s a shame Tim’s IndyCar career ended the way it did. It’s also a shame Tim’s NASCAR career ended the way it did.

Sheldon Kinser poses with his 1981 #81 Sergio Valente/Longhorn Racing Longhorn / Cosworth

Black and gold is a great color scheme for a car, and this example proves that. The white is a bit over done, and it does look kind of forced. The western theme works well, and it’s a solid B+ scheme. Sadly, Sheldon passed away from cancer in 1988. This is how the world should remember him.

Gordon Smiley sits on his 1981 #60 STP/Intermedics Wildcat/Cosworth in a mis-matched driver suit

Sadly, this is the last Indy 500 Gordon Smiley would race in before his death during qualifying for the 1982 race. Wildcat ran the same paint scheme as Mario, but the STP logos aren’t the prominent ones, and the car looks better as a result. The Intermedics logo could be better, but other than that, this scheme is worth a B+

Tom Bigelow gets ready to race his 1981 #56 Genesee Beer Penske Chevy

The blue fade effect is amazing, the color scheme is great, and I love the retro Genesee logos and car number. I wish the blue was the more prominent color, but the white works well, especially with the blue fade. I would also say that white on white doesn’t work for sponsor logos, especially on the front right wing. It’s a solid A scheme.

Mike Mosley poses with his #48 1981 Pepsi Challenger Eagle Chevrolet

Apparently Pepsi didn’t get the piss yellow memo, and here we have another example of why it’s a terrible color for a race car. It’s not just IndyCar, NASCAR and the NHRA also fell victim to the Pepsi Challenger design. Did Pepsi not realize that they have a great color scheme? Red, white, and blue is a color scheme that rarely misses, but for some unknown reason, Pepsi thought that piss yellow was the way to go…which it wasn’t. I’m giving this scheme an F.

Mario Andretti proudly sits on his 1981 #40 STP Wildcat Cosworth

It’s a great color scheme with a good color scheme except for the logo placement. Who in their right mind thought it would be a good idea to place a red STP logo on a red STP background? It makes no sense, and doesn’t look good. The logo does have a white oval around the red, but even in the closeup picture it’s hard to see. If the color scheme were flipped, I’d like it more. Still, it’s worth an B+

Scott Brayton smiles on his 1981 #37 Forsythe Industries Penske Cosworth

Another instance where I don’t like the shade of yellow being used, but since it isn’t the primary color of the car I can tolerate it. I like the vertical rainbow fade motif on the sides, as well as the lettering on the car numbers. All things considered, I’ll give it a B-