Paint Scheme Tracker February 11, 2015

By David G. Firestone

Brad Keselowski, Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer, Marin Truex Jr. all have new paint schemes this week

2015 Toyota Camry–The first Gen 6 redesign comes to the Camry for 2015. The front is sleeker, with a more aggressive nose, and grill area, the tail has been redesigned as well.

Jamie McMurray #1 Cessna/Beechcraft Chevy SS–No Change

Jamie McMurray #1 McDonald’s Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, but with a new door design.

Jamie McMurray #1 Sherwin Williams Chevy SS-New sponsor for 2015, Red, white and blue with a red line down the center, with the top fades blue to white on top, and white to blue on the bottom.

Brad Keselowski #2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion–Same basic design as 2014, but with no gold stripe, vintage Miller Crest, or hop designs on the side.

Brad Keselowski #2 Alliance Truck Parts Ford Fusion–New redesign, similar in design to Joey Logano’s Shell/Pennzoil Ford, black replaces yellow as the primary color.

Brad Keselowski #2 Wurth Ford Fusion–Redesign from last season, follows the Shell/Pennzoil template.

Austin Dillon #3 Cheerios Chevy SS–No change

Austin Dillon #3 Dow Chevy SS–No change

Austin Dillon #3 Bass Pro Shops Chevy SS–No Change

Austin Dillon #3 American Ethanol Chevy SS–No Change

Kevin Harvick #4 Budweiser Chevy SS–No change

Kevin Harvick #4 Jimmie Johns Chevy SS–No change

Kevin Harvick #4 Outback Steakhouse–No Change

Kevin Harvick #4 Ditech Chevy SS-New sponsor for 2015, blue, and white is the primary color scheme

Kasey Kahne #5 Great Clips Chevy SS–No Change

Kasey Kahne #5 Time Warner Cable Chevy SS–No Change

Kasey Kahne #5 Farmers Insurance Chevy SS–Complete redesign from last year, black, and dark blue replaces light blue and silver, and the design has been completely revamped.

Kasey Kahne #5 Liftmaster Chevy SS-New sponsor for 2015, red and white redesign of the Time Warner scheme.

Kasey Kahne #5 Pepsi Chevy SS–No change

Trevor Bayne #6 Advocare Ford Fusion-New team, new sponsor, red, white and blue is the color scheme.

Alex Bowman #7 Nikko/Toy State Chevy SS-New sponsor for 2015, Red borders a blue design on the sides and hood.

Sam Hornish Jr. #9 Twisted Tea Ford Fusion–No Change

Danica Patrick #10 Aspen Dental Chevy SS–Same basic design as last year, but the blue ovals on the white are more pronounced.

Danica Patrick #10 GoDaddy Chevy SS–New redesign with more black and less orange.

Danica Patrick #10 GoDaddy/TaxAct Chevy SS-New sponsor combo for the Sprint Unlimited, front of the car retains traditional GoDaddy design, whereas back quarter panel is TaxAct

Danica Patrick #10 TaxAct Chevy SS-One race sponsor, will run at Martinsville in March, red, white and black scheme, with diagonal design up the doors.

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry–New redesign with a much simpler front and more design on the sides.

Denny Hamln #11 FedEx Office Toyota Camry–Same redesign as FedEx Express

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry–Same redesign as FedEx Express

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Ground Toyota Camry–Same redesign as FedEx Express

Denny Hamlin #11 SportClips Toyota Camry–New redesign with a new door design

Tony Stewart #14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevy SS–Same color scheme as last year, but with a new design on the side.

Tony Stewart #14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevy SS–Same color scheme as last year, but with a new design on the side.

Tony Stewart #14 Code 3 Associates/Mobil1 Chevy SS–No Change

Clint Bowyer #15 5 Hour Energy Toyota Camry–No Change

Clint Bowyer #15 Peak Toyota Camry–No Change

Greg Biffle #16 Cheez Its Ford Fusion-New sponsor for 2015, red with a cheese colored stripe and crackers on the side.

Greg Biffle #16 Clean Harbors Ford Fusion-New sponsor for 2015, red white and black design

Greg Biffle #16 Ortho Fire Ant Killer Ford Fusion–No change

Greg Biffle #16 Ortho Home Defense Ford Fusion-New sponsor, white design with a red and yellow stripe on the bottom, with a net design on the side.

Greg Biffle #16 Ortho Bug-B-Gon Ford Fusion-New sponsor, new design, red, black, and white is the primary color scheme.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #17 Fastenal Ford Fusion-New primary sponsor, blue, and white is the color scheme.

Kyle Busch #18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry–No Change

Kyle Busch #18 M&M’s Toyota Camry–No change

Kyle Busch #18 M&M’s Crispy Toyota Camry-New design for 2015, with a green background and more emphasis on M&M’s Crispy, as well as a new hood logo.

Carl Edwards #19 Stanley Toyota Camry-New team and new sponsor, yellow, black, and white is the color scheme.

Carl Edwards #19 Aaris Toyota Camry-New team and new sponsor, reddish orange with the Aaris logo used as part of the side stripe.

Carl Edwards #19 SportClips Toyota Camry-New sponsor, same design as Denny Hamlin.

Carl Edwards #19 Subway Toyota Camry–New sponsor for Joe Gibbs, much simpler design.

Matt Kenseth #20 DeWalt Toyota Camry-New sponsor, black, green, yellow, and white is the color scheme.

Matt Kenseth #20 Dollar General Toyota Camry–Much simpler than the 2014 scheme, with fewer side designs.

Ryan Blaney #21 Motorcraft/Quicklane Ford Fusion–No Change

Joey Logano #22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Fusion–No change

Joey Logano #22 AAA Ford Fusion–The AAA logo has been straightened up in 2015.

Joey Logano #22 Pennzoil Platnum Ford Fusion–No Change

J.J. Yeley #23 Dr. Pepper/Maxim Fantasy Sports Toyota Camry-New sponsor for the Daytona 500.  Black on top, white on the bottom, red stripe in between,  Dr Pepper style logo on the door number.

Jeff Gordon #24 3M Chevy SS-New design for 2015, silver, with red accents and numbers, with a white hood design that extends over the roof and deck-lid.

Jeff Gordon #24 Axalta Chevy SS–No Change

Jeff Gordon #24 Drive to End Hunger Chevy SS–Much simpler redesign, with new hood logo and same color scheme–

Jeff Gordon #24 Panasonic Toughbook Chevy SS–No Change

Chase Elliott #25 NAPA Chevy SS-New sponsor and car number for 2015, blue is the primary sponsor, with a yellow design on the side.

Jeb Burton #26 Live Deals Ford Fusion-New sponsor for the Daytona 500, will have similar design as JJ Yeley, but with orange, black, and white.

Paul Menard #27 Pittsburgh Paints/Menard’s Chevy SS–No change

Paul Menard #27 Menard’s/Serta Chevy SS–Same basic scheme as 2014, but with more blue on the sides than last year.

Justin Marks #29 American Born Moonshine Toyota Camry-New sponsor for the Daytona 500, has a wood finished look, with white lettering.

Ron Horniday #30 Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevy SS-New team and sponsor for 2015. Two-tone green design with white lettering and yellow accents.

Ryan Newman #31 Cat Chevy SS–Same color scheme, but the car as a whole has been redesigned

Ryan Newman #31 Quicken Loans Chevy SS–No change

Ryan Newman #31 Granger Chevy SS-New sponsor for 2015, green, red and white, with some designs on the side.

Go FAS Racing #32 Keen Parts Ford Fusion–Simpler redesign and a much simpler color scheme.

Go FAS Racing #32 C&J Energy Services Ford Fusion–Same color scheme, but with a different and much more complex side design–

Ty Dillon #33 Yuengling Brewery Chevy SS-New sponsor, red, white, and blue is the primary color scheme.

Ty Dillon #33 Cheerios Chevy SS-New sponsor for the Daytona 500, based on Austin Dillon’s Cheerios scheme, but with a Kroger’s logo on the hood.

David Ragan #34 KFC Ford Fusion–Redesign for 2015, all white front, KFC style stripes on the back.

Cole Whitt #35 Speed Stick Gear Ford Fusion–No Change

David Gilliland #38 Love’s Travel Stops Ford Fusion–No change

Landon Cassill #40 Snap 24-7 Fitness Chevy SS–Slight redesign from last year, with the black quarter panel replaced with red.

Kurt Busch #41Haas CNC Chevy SS–Same color scheme, but the car has been completely redesigned.

Kurt Busch #41 Slate Water Heaters Chevy SS–No change

Kyle Larson #42 Target Chevy SS–Same basic design as 2014, but with some sponsor changes on the quarter panel.

Aric Almoriola #43 Eckrich Ford Fusion–Same basic design, but with a Nathans logo on the rear.

Aric Almirola #43 Smithfield Ford Fusion–No change

Aric Almirola #43 Fresh From Florida Ford Fusion–No Change.

Aric Almirola #43 STP Ford Fusion–No Change.

Michael Annett #46 Pilot/Flying J Chevy SS-New car number and design. White is the primary color, with red and yellow accents on the sides and front.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Better Than Bullion Chevy SS-New Sponsor for 2015, all black with a gold stripe running down the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Bush’s Best Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, some logos have changed on the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Clorox Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, some logos have changed on the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 House Autry Chevy SS-New primary sponsor for 2015,  Red sides, with blue roof and posts.

AJ  Allmendinger #47 Bush’s Chilli Beans Chevy SS-New sponsor, yellow to orange to yellow fade across whole car.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Hungry Jack Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, some logos have changed on the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Kingsford Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, some logos have changed on the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Scott Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, some logos have changed on the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Bush’s Grilling Beans Chevy SS–Same basic scheme, some logos have changed on the side.

AJ Allmendinger #47 Kroger Chevy SS–No change

Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowe’s Chevy SS–New design, bears a resemblance to the old Kobalt tools scheme from 2009.

Jimmie Johnson #48 Kobalt Chevy SS–New design, redesigned version of the current Lowe’s scheme.

Justin Allgaier #51 Brandt Chevy SS–Same primary design, but the door number has reversed colors.

Brian Vickers #55 Aaron’s Toyota Camry–Same basic design as last year, the nose has been changed, the main blue is slightly darker, and the gold has been replaced with light blue

Mike Wallace #66 Crazy Vapors/X8 Energy Gum Toyota Camry-New sponsor for 2015, Hood has Crazy Vapors green stripe design, side has X8 abstract design.

Martin Truex Jr. #78 Furniture Row Racing Chevy SS–No Change

Johnny Sauter #83 Dustless Blasting Toyota Camry-New sponsor for 2015, green stripes up the hood and roof, white design with Dr Pepper style door numbers.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 Nationwide Chevy SS–No Change

Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevy SS–No major changes,except a Nationwide logo replaces the National Guard logo.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 Kelly Blue Book Chevy SS–Same basic design but blue has replaced white as the primary color.

Michael McDowell #95 Thrivent Financial Ford Fusion–Redesign of last year’s scheme, another example of logo as a stripe pattern.

Michael McDowell #95 K-Love Ford Fusion–Template has been redesigned, and the city outline on the rear quarterpanel has been removed.

Arm Gussets…Comfortable AND Safe!

By David G. Firestone

We’ve all seen them in telecasts and photos, but what many of us do not realize is what they are and what they do. I am talking about the arm gusset. Arm gussets are seen at the top of the sleeve on a driver suit, under the shoulder. They are a flexible piece of Nomex specifically designed to do two things. One is protect the driver, the other is give the driver some freedom of movement.10-labonte-rshoulder 10-labonte-lshoulder

Arm Gussets are almost always present on race-worn driver suits. Anyone who has worn a one-piece full body jumpsuit can attest to the fact that it restricts freedom of body movement. The gusset takes some of that restriction away. This is important when it comes to driving, because it gives the driver one less thing to concentrate on, and in the worst case scenario, can help a driver escape a burning vehicle much quicker.36-said-rshoulder 36-said-lshoulder

Gussets have very little variation, though I have seen one unusual one. In this Ricky Craven suit from 1996, the front of the sleeves look like they are attached to the body, whereas the back has a gusset in it. This would be done for driver preference of course, bur I have never seen a half gusset before or since.100_3458 100_3457 100_3456

This Lake Speed suit from 1997 is store bought, as opposed to custom designed, and it has no gussets. This suit would have some restriction of movement. Again this can come down to driver choice.9-speed-rshoulder 9-speed-lshoulder

The need for protection vs. the need for driver comfort is a major conflict in the world of racing safety. The gusset is a major meeting point between the two sides involved, and the drivers love them.

RIP Jason Leffler…you will be missed.

Now on to paint schemes.

Jame McMurray #1 Parade Magazine Chevy SS-Great color scheme, great design, nothing wrong at all, A+

Jame McMurray #1 Banana Boat Chevy SS-A scheme that could be a B+ is ruined by an awful color scheme. That orange is the worst I have ever seen on a race car. It takes this scheme and takes to a D-

Jamie McMurray #1 Bad Boy Buggies Chevy SS-An attempt to be innovative with design fails horribly here. The color scheme is decent, but the design is awful.

Marcos Ambrose #9 Stanley/DeWalt Racing for a Miracle Ford Fusion-This is a major improvement over what they currently run. This just works! A+

Denny Hamlin #11 Sport Clips Toyota Camry-Seriously? Why does it look like a sperm is painted in red on the side of the car? The red/white/black color scheme works, but the door design is just awful! D-

Denny Hamlin #11 Fedex/Autism Speaks Toyota Camry-Much better! The puzzle design, and solid color scheme look really good here. The red 11 is amazing too! Can’t give this anything but an A+

Tony Stewart #14 Code 3 Chevy SS-Love the scheme, love the simple design and great color scheme.  Works very well and earns an A+

Clint Bowyer #15 5-Hour Energy Patriotic Toyota Camry-How is this patriotic? Oh….I get it…the stars….just one problem…THE COLOR SCHEME IS WRONG! If it was red white and blue I would like this, but this is just awful! You want to honor America, but can’t get the color scheme right? F-

Greg Biffle #16 Fastenal Ford Fusion-Since minor variations of this scheme were run by Biffle, Ricky Stenhouse, and Carl Edwards with minor variations between them, I will grade them all here. Solid scheme, good color scheme, A+ for all 3.

Greg Biffle #16 3M/Ace/Rite Aid Ford Fusion-The color scheme is good, but the door design is too busy. If it was one single color, it would work quite well, but being a mix of black, blue, red, and white it just looks confusing. It works, but not as well as it could, and earns a C+

Jeff Gordon #24 Axalta Chevy SS-Another DuPont scheme with different logos that works very well. Good color scheme and design. A+

Paul Menard #27 Menard’s/Libman Chevy SS-The Libman green hood design just looks horrible on the yellow background of the car. The green is too light, and if it were darker it might work, but this scheme earns a D

Kevin Harvick #29 Budweiser Patriotic Chevy SS-This is another patriotic scheme that works very well with a good design. A+

J.J. Yeley #36 Click it or Ticket Chevy SS-Good design, but awful color scheme. The green and blue is just horrible. If one or the other was used it might work, but this is horrific. F

Ryan Newman #39 Quicken Loans Patriotic Chevy SS-Meh.  The design needs work.  Too much going on with the front of the car to earn anything above a C

Aric Almirola #43 Air Force Ford Fusion-Great design, simple design with a great color scheme. A+

Bobby Labonte #47 Bush’s Grilling Beans Toyota Camry-The overall design and color scheme is good, but the major flaw here is that the quarter panel has 5 different logos, most of which clash with the Bush’s scheme. It takes an A scheme and drags it down to a C

Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowes Patriotic Chevy SS-The only bad thing I can say about this is that the red should be a little darker. Other than that, this scheme earns an A

Jimmie Johnson #48 Monsters University Chevy SS-If the blue was darker, I would like it more, but the blue is too light. Other than that, this is a solid scheme. B+

Martin Truex Jr. #56 Napa Patriotic Toyota Camry-Perfect…that is all I can say. A+