Supporting the aesthetics, uniforms, and memorabilia of auto racing since 2013.
By David G. Firestone
The Tide Ride makes its first appearance, this Chevy Monte Carlo driven by Darrell Waltrip.
Burnt orange looks really good, and the Tide motif on the rear looks really good. The Tide logo on the back is horrid. It should have been moved back, and that SuperFlo logo should have been moved down. The scheme works very well with the boxiness of the Monte Carlo. I’m also noticing that the name is much higher on the roof than most cars. It’s not a bad look.
By David G. Firestone
Dale Jarrett’s 1989 Hardee’s Pontiac Grand Prix is tasting the track this week.
Red and white, simple color scheme, but very attractive. The Hardee’s logo looks good, but I don’t like that part of it got cut off of the scheme. The number 29 looks really good, and is designed to match the sponsor. I like the non-linear red stripe on the hood. I do think the back of the car looks quite cluttered with all the small logos. I also noticed that the spoiler looks much higher. NASCAR must have been tweaking the rule.
By David G. Firestone
Patty Moise poses with her 1988 Crisco Butter Flavored Buick.
No the Buick isn’t butter flavored. Red, Yellow and white with a curved stripe up the side is a good look. I also like the logo curved over the wheel well. The gold reflective numbers look good, and the black outline works very well. The white looks really good on the Buick. The Butter Flavored letting could be in a different color, as it sort of blends in to the stripe. I also like the lettering on PATTY MOISE above the door.
By David G. Firestone
The Ageless Wonder Mark Martin sits next to his brand new Stroh Light Ford Thunderbird in 1988.
The Stroh Light Thunderbird is a very simple, yet very effective design. Dark blue, a really good shade by the way, is used over the whole car. White lettering is very visible on the blue background. The Roush #6 is white with a red border. It is a great scheme, and it looks very good. Simple is better, when it comes to paint schemes.
I wonder why Martin’s driver suit is a different shade of blue than the car. Neither shade is that bad, but they do clash in the photo. I’m also marveling at the rear spoiler. It looks like a spoiler from a pro stock car in the NHRA. It’s literally horizontal. On a different note, is the lettering on the tires getting bigger? It seems so.
By David G. Firestone
Ken Schrader takes his 1987 Red Baron Ford Thunderbird out for a Sunday Drive.
Red, white, and black is a good color scheme. The door numbers would work much better rounded than square. The Red Baron logo curving over the wheel well looks really good. The white under the door numbers looks decent, though the black stripe behind the door number really isn’t needed. The white hood and roof look decent, but would look a lot better with the red, rather than the white.
By David G. Firestone
3rd Generation driver Kyle Petty takes his 1987 Ford Thunderbird out for a Sunday Drive.
Red, white, and blue is a good color scheme, but the design scheme leaves a lot to be desired. They tried to do too much. The red front might work if the whole car is red, but this just doesn’t. The interrupted stripe design on the side, where the door number interrupts the racing stripe looks like a cop out. The diagonal stripe and logo would work, if the designer was commuted to the racing stripe. The blue hood with a logo works, but the non-commitment to the blue just looks awkward. Citgo should be embarrassed, and they are a sponsor who has had a lot of bad schemes over the years.
By David G. Firestone
Buddy Baker in his 1987 Crisco Oldsmobile…
Two shades of blue, one light, one dark run across the bottom of the car, and curve as it reaches the back. White on top, with chrome decals on the door numbers. This all works very well. The diagonal hood logo looks really good too. It’s a great scheme all around
Whoever did the contingency decals messed up the Ingersol-Rand decal, to the point that it wraps inside the wheel well. I also miss the series decal being simply a rectangular decal, with just the sponsor name on it. No fancy logo, no off-center oval, no fancy colors, just simple and attractive. I also love the fact that Dale Jr. used the number design Baker used on his car.
By David G. Firestone
Bob Howard tried to make the 1987 Winston Western 500 in this 1987 Oldsmobile Cutlass.
While Kodak has my favorite shade of yellow, Pennzoil has a good shade of yellow too. Bright, but not too bright, it works very well as a base color. The red numbers work well on the yellow background. The rear logo cuts off around the wheel well, and I really don’t like that.
I noticed at the front of the car that the contingency decals start by the number, and appear to be in good order, and they seem to get more and more clumsily applied toward the front. I don’t understand why the team didn’t move some towards the back, where there is a lot of empty space. It would look just as good. I also hate Oldsmobile, in terms of NASCAR, because their cars just don’t look good.
By David G. Firestone
The color scheme is good, blue and white rarely don’t work well with each other. The gold door numbers are good too. Metallic gold is an underused color for race cars in my book. I do like the design of using the aspects of the hood in a color coded manner. Wrapping the blue around the C-post and covering the back of the car is a decent look.
I will say that I don’t like the fact that the blue stops short of the front wheel well. It doesn’t continue to the front of the car either. That, to me, looks like laziness. It looks like whoever was designing just got to the front wheel and said “that looks good enough.” It just isn’t a good look, and takes away from a good scheme. Also, why is Mark Martin’s name in quotes?
By David G. Firestone
Quincy’s Steak House is the feature on the car, with a huge black logo on the yellow hood. The yellow extends to the middle of the C-post, where black takes over, and a large Quincy’s logo, slightly off-center, is the prominent feature. The color scheme is good, and the design scheme is decent, but the door number look odd. They look overdone, with the needless addition of red. Plain black, even with the outline would have worked very well.
I’ve also noticed a couple of things with the Ford Thunderbird in 1986. The grille is much more plain than in 1985, and the headlights have been covered, giving the car a smoother look, and more aerodynamic feel. Also note the small triangle which tells the crew members where to put the jack, something that wasn’t present on the other schemes I’ve done.
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