I am not a huge nascar fan. I use to sit and watch races every weekend, but have lost interest in the past few years. What are the opinions out there about Toyota entering Nascar this coming year. I personally don't see myself watching it much at all any more.

 

just dosent seem right....

 

I kind of liked it when there were more than just fords, chevys, and dodges out on the track. I know toyota is a foreign car maker, but I hope this is the start to getting more brands involved again.

 

Are you saying that Toyota will be in the cup races? I haven't heard about this...what will they race, Avalons? Ever since Toyota entered the truck series, I've lost interest...and I don't think I'm alone. If you are right, NASCAR has pulled another boner IMO.

MR

 

Right Now Toyota is only in the truck series. I don’t really pay much attention to the truck series. I watch the Cup and Bush series. Last year when they changed the format in the Cup series in which the last 10 races would put the top 10 drivers in the race for the championship I didn’t like it and thought it was a bad idea.

However, after watching it play out I think it was one of the best and most competitive Cup seasons I have ever watched. As far as foreign brands entering any of the Nascar series which is many more then just the Truck, Bush and Cup series I don’t think of it as foreign. Toyota is built here in America, foreign owned yes but many businesses in America are foreign owned and we know what the “foreign” auto manufactures have done for Detroit. They have made Detroit pull their heads out of their butts and concentrate on quality and affordability rather then crappy vehicles at high profit margins.

Competition is good and produces better products/services at lower prices. Only the strong survive and the weak fall by the wayside, as it should be.

I am looking forward to next years Cup races…

 

True, SOME Toyotas are built here in America, but most are still built in Japan. The profits from those cars stay in Japan and make the Japanese economy and the Japanese people stronger.
But, that is not what I was getting at. It just doesn't seem right to have them in Nascar. Japanese automakers just started building V-8' s a few years ago, have never ever built a musclecar, and don't have any connection to "stock car racing" whatsoever. I don't know much about Toyota cars, but have any ever had a V8 engine in them?? The old saying "a win on Sunday means sales on Monday" cannot hold true if you cannot go into a dealership and buy a car with an 8 cylinder engine in it.

 

True, but there is nothing stock about stockcar racing. The motors are not stock and you can’t buy anything close on Monday to what won on Sunday. I do understand what you are saying about Toyota but the Toyota Tundra does have, or has the option, of a V8 motor and that is why they are in the Nascar truck series.

You won’t see Toyota in the Cup series until they have an option for a V8 in one of their cars (maybe they do now, I don't know because I don't like Toyota) and then the body will basically have to have the shape of the Ford, Chevy, or Dodge which have basically the same body designs/aerodynamics.

 

The Toyota Lexus and Crown have a V8 engine, pretty much the same as the pick-up motor.
I don't see why they can't fit one in the equivalent model to a Monte Carlo or whatever the current body style for NSACAR is supposed to be.
After all, you can't buy the Chevy/Ford/Dodge motor in any road going car.
It would be nice if there was a return to the old days. Manufacturers should be forced to use a production body style with minimum aerodynamics and a production based engine.
By that, I mean stock bore/stroke and production based heads.
That would force manufacturers to make fast engines to compete with each other like when they used the 426 Hemi, 427 Ford and Big Block Chevy.
If they were using the Chevy LS1, Dodge Hemi and the Triton, we would get the trickle down effect in our own cars.

 

Hell, the ford nascar vehicle the Taurus doesn't have a V8 that you can buy in the showroom. And as far as I know neither does the Intrepid and whatever car chevy uses. As far as I know if Toyota comes in it will use the Camry since its build in the USA. The only requirement for nascar is that the vehicle has to be American made.

And about the Japs building V8s for only a couple of years I gotta call BS. Maybe they haven't been making huge carbed V8s that were state of the art 20 years ago, but what about Indy and F1 where they got V8s turns 15,000+RPM and more technology that Nascar has ever seen. I think toyota coming in has been a good overall thing, more competition, and hopefully maybe they can bring in some technology or a different point of view and update the sport a bit.....Just my 2cents

 

All I was saying was that you cannot go into a Toyota dealer and buy a car with a V-8. I understand that "stockcars" are not stock. Toyota IS running in NASCAR starting this coming season. It will be interesting to find out what car and what driver will be used. I would assume most people that don't have a problem with it aren't familiar with how nascar started and where it came from. I guess i am just old school.

 

I think Bill Davis racing (cat 22) lost his factory backing a couple of years ago for talking with Toyota. I think he will be one of the first to go with Toyota.

 

Just in looking around the internet trying to find some more info on Toyota came across the final points in the truck series

Manufacturer in the NCTS Point Standings - following season finale @ Miami
1st Dodge - 162 points
2nd Chevy - 149 points
3rd Toyota - 123 points
4th Ford - 116 points

Looks like Toyota didn't do too shabby for their first season. Don't get me wrong here I love Ford, have only ever owned Fords (96probe, 91MustangGT, and in a about a week a 04F150) I just look at it from the perspectiive of how foreign auto makers forced the big three to make a better car or truck, same thing will happen in the racing scene. And about the history of nascar, I respect your opinion screwbuilder, but if the foreign makers had made a cheap car with a large motor back in '48 racers would have no problem using them (besides the whole war issue). Most racers care more about winning and using the best equipment that is avilable than brand loyalities. Again, just my 2cents

 

I, for one, will be glad to see Toyota in the "cup" series in 06. They will be dropping out of the FIRL and that can only help speed up the demise of that totally useless series and that crackhead FTony George...

 

You can walk into A lexus shop and get a V8. Thats a Toyota

 

I quit watching after Bill Elliott retired at the end of last year. It will never be the same without him. I will say this, if they allow Toyota in, they need to allow MB and BMW in. And yes, they are chomping at the bit to enter NECKCAR if there is any doubt.