Top 10 Oddest Cars To Race NASCAR
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2024
- NASCAR has the reputation for being a competition of American stock cars, but throughout its 75 year history, some surprising cars have competed. From the top-level Cup Series to obscured short-lived divisions, the diversity of cars has been extraordinary. Where else would a Porsche 911 race on a dirt half-mile oval?
0:42 Edsel
2:15 Jaguar
3:52 Austin-Healey
4:33 MG
5:15 Alfa Romeo
6:51 Porsche
8:15 Citroen
8:58 Tucker
10:10 Mini Cooper
10:38 Volkswagen Beetle
Narrated by Brock Beard
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Imagine the total shock of everyone seeing a Mini Cooper of a cars to show up and race against Camaros and Mustangs.
I'm thinking when the Mini Cooper showed up for a NASCAR race and the Ford Galaxie showed up to race in BTCC that someone mixed things up in shipping and everyone else just went along with it.
@@skaldlouiscyphre2453 the ford galaxie in the old time btcc race is my favourite car its a great race minis alfa romeos mustangs ford galaxies
@@bratasaurus2222 Jack Sears drove it if I remember correctly.
Well in 2005 a VW Beetle turned up for a race and won!
what about Herbie
Imagining a Mini Cooper amongst Ford Torinos, Chevy Impalas, and Dodge Chargers is a hilarious thought
Not quite the same, but the Mini did challenge against Ford's Fairlanes in the British Touring Car Championship in the 60's.
ua-cam.com/video/nS4MIfA5i64/v-deo.html
go check some Goodwood classics or Goodwood revival!
Even against a Porsche 911 or Alfa Romeo Giulia… Those were rockets on wheels compared to a Beetle, Mini, Fiat 500 or what else the "average European" drove by then.
Where Herbie?
As a Mini Cooper owner, finding out that a Mini Cooper competed in a Nascar race made my day lol. Imagine if Mini raced in nsscar today, they would run out of oil after 20 laps💀
They need to go back to actual stock car racing.
ua-cam.com/video/nS4MIfA5i64/v-deo.html
As an owner of a 1975 MGB, I can confirm that it would run out of oil after 20 laps. Gotta love our British cars lol!
@@DEIFAN They haven't been 'stock' since 1965.
@@skaldlouiscyphre2453 I want the Xfinity races to have Base model mustangs, Camaros,Challengers,Supras,Zs,and Civic Si. And the Cup races have the Mustang GT,Camaro ss/z28, Challenger/Charger Scat or R/T, and Supra 3.0 and Civic Type r.
It is insane to me that out of 51 cars ever produced, one managed to find it's way into NASCAR. Even more wild it was just the 4th one produced, and that it's now in a museum in Japan. Tuckers are so damn cool.
That pic of the Porsche closely followed by a normal stock car looks fantastic.
It was probably for the best that mini Cooper only did one lap at Darlington....
Someone would have _definitely_ punted that thing into the guardrail at some point.
@@Dat-Mudkip I imagine the driver thought it would be awesome and then when the race started he got terrified of the cars around and parked it, blamed it on a mechanical issue lol.
I feel sorry for that petite 911. Looks like it's being stalked by a potential rapist 😁
@@Dat-Mudkip My thought exactly! Give the back of that 911 a tap and the heavy end at the back will quickly be pointing forward.
@@jonw12 Lol, you're aware that all that weight in the back increases rear traction, no?
911s used to be prone to snap oversteer in some situations, but being tapped from behind isn't one of them. It used to be due to lifting off and having weight shift forward when the driver worries he's going in too fast.
Once the back end starts to spin it's hard to recover, but that doesn't mean it's loose all the time. All things equal a rearward weight bias will make the nose light, aka understeer. Tuning the suspension to compensate for that can result in a car that's overly twitchy, or behaves unpredictable when CoG transfers aren't taken into consideration by the driver.
My dad owned a Mini Cooper and we took it on the Autobahn (im german).
If you ever crossed the three digit mark in a mini, even with Kp/h, you know what horror is.
I dont want to imagine what it must have felt like racing one on a short track with stock cars all around you.
Also, 9th back then is like a 5th place today with them back then having twice the field size and four times the deadlyness
fellow Bavarian here ✌💖☮
100 mph in a short wheelbase is like 200 on a bike. I've done both, but my 81 Subaru gl hatch at 110 is death incarnate.
@@xijinpingsfavoritehemorrho1328 i want to believe they at least somewhat strenghtened the hull of that cooper, because im somewhat sure the manufacturers left the tollerances on the factory model as somewhat of a warning
"Jolly, plenty fast, arent we? listen to the shake of the hood good friend, we dont want to break the speed limit or the car, do we?"
(Like a british pre-digital speed warning noise)
that 44 domino pizza volkswagon beatle looks so cool
Great piece, but you missed the most obscure of them all. In that same 1958 Riverside race that featured the two Citroens, Don Eames finished 27th, 43 laps behind but still running, in a GOLIATH, an obscure German import that would bite the dust a few years later. If I recall correctly what I saw online, Goliath ran an ad after the race bragging that it's car had finished "first in class." First in a class of 1, I guess. Look up the Goliath online, and you'll see the weirdest import ever to run a NASCAR Grand National (Cup) event.
In 1958 Goliath had at least four-stroke engines (just as their newest feature!)…
Yeah!! I'm surprised that didn't get any mention, it's definitely the most obscure. Unless I'm really misremembering, it had only one pit stop over the entire event, just for fuel. Crazy little thing.
Goliath at the time was owned by Borgward, which iiirc was second only to VW in domestic market sales. They were pretty good cars, and there are still a few survivors in the US.
If my memory serves me correctly, Lloyd Shaw's pole came in his only start, making him the only driver to have a 100% pole percentage.
Al Keller's car was owned by bandleader Paul Whiteman, the best-selling artist of the 1920's.
Nothing in the index about it but Roger Penske fielded an AMC Matador in some Nascar races in the mid 70's with Bobby Allison getting the win in one in the Rebel 400 at the Darlington Raceway.
That's not really a odd car though, just another big coupe with a V8.
Nothing unusual about an AMC Matador in NASCAR... Roger Penske and Bobby Allison (together and separately)ran them from 1972 at least 1978 with Mr Allison running one as a Sportsman car on the big tracks . The 1st win for a NASCAR Racer with disc brakes was the legendary Mark Donahue driving a Matador for Penske at Riverside in 1972...
@@roberthill2219 '73. Ray Elder won in '72.
@@seannolan9857 They ran twice a year in the early 70s...
@@roberthill2219True, the other race was won by Richard Petty. I just mentioned Elder because it was the more unusual occurrence.
Nice to know the VW "AP" raced at these races against v8's in a modified Golf Body, assuming it had the original engine in it.
FYI... If anybody wants to see the NASCAR Herbie, It presently resides at Electric Dreams slot cars Is in El Sagundo California... If you bring your kids, or you are a big kid yourself, You'd better bring your checkbook as well...
It's also worth mentioning that Bill Amberg drove an Austin A40 in the fall 1951 race at Oakland Stadium, becoming the first driver to enter a foreign manufacturer in a Cup race. He lasted 94 laps, and according to newspapers, was leading when he barrel rolled it down the track's 62 degree banking.
6:54 that picture of the 911 with the Camaro behind it is funny af
Agreed
That No. 16 Mercury Cougar was pretty cool looking...
Somewhere in a stack of magazines I have a swedish issue which shows a picture where a Volvo is racing in a NASCAR sanctioned race in the 50s. a Volvo 544 if I'm not mistaken. When I find it I will notify you as it is also among the weird ones.
4:25 Nahnahnahnah hold on.... Corvettes.....in Nascar... now wait a second I think we need to go back to that.
Id love to see an imsa race on an oval lol. I doubt prototypes would be feasible but a good gt showdown would be awesome. Would be crazy on a short track with 2 classes
Look up TC2000 from Argentina, copy those regs for the small cars and make Xfinity into the new GTO category.
Michelin Pilot Challenge and MX-5 cup should race on ovals.
When Jaguar raced on NASCAR it was at the top the XK120 was like todays supercars, Alfa Romeo was more succesful on Europe on the FIA European Touring Car Championship, when the production car races had an endurance format the scene of this competition was very similar to the races mentioned on this video, little Alfas and British Ford Escorts Against big cilinder American cars like Mustang or Camaro.
Due to the timing of the rule changes, the USA missed a few great USA vs Europe fights:
· 1960s Ford-Lotus Cortina = Light and powerful enough for a short dirt track, the predecessor to the Ford Escort RS
· 1960s-70s Ford Escort RS = Available with a 1600cc, 1800cc or 2000cc engine depending on the year, it would've killed giants in the shorter ovals with its impressive handling
· 1960s-70s BMW 2002tii = Another very impressive sedan for its time
· 1970s BMW 3.0 CS or CSL = The best inline-6 car until BMW themselves made a bunch of newer ones
· 1970s Mercedes SLC = Not too light but had big engines available and was rather good in the faster dirt rallies in Europe
However the Cortina did get to race a big Holman and Moody Ford Galaxie, but the Cortina had home field advantage in what is now BTCC
It's a shame we never saw C10 Skylines.
you may like this race ua-cam.com/video/cawBXWWgqCI/v-deo.html
@@77appyi Merci.
And yet in Australia, the ‘65 Minis v ‘65 Mustangs race is a thing, and its cool as fuck to watch.
One make I was surprised didn't make the Top 10 was Nash. Nash is tied with Jaguar for fewest wins by an manufacturer, with just 1. Curtis Turner drove an Nash automobile to an win at the Charlotte Dirt Track in the early 1950s.
I think I know why the Mini only did one lap at Darlington: it looked at the track and said: "bruv, bit odd for a British chap such as myself to be on a track like this innit? I don't believe that I would be able to complete a proper lap"
your comment is great very humorous but have you seen the original italian job movie 3 minis going around the oval on top of the fiat building in turin the mini could have done darlington
@@bratasaurus2222 I honestly forgot about that scene
@@patrickracer43 no problem i thought your comment was great ,those test drivers were so brave is no way i could put my foot down on the peddle knowing i was on a rooftop oval
Just run Darlington clockwise and the Mini would be right at home.
I can only imagine Daniel Suarez driving one of his Beetles at a NASCAR track lol
I was selling a 59 Devin and recieved a call from William Warner, founder of the amelia concours d'elegance. He believed my car had race history and told me about a 59 Devin that was in the 1960 Daytona 500. A Jacksonville, FL VW dealership he worked for at the time owned it. My car had red and white paint in the right places. My car was not the one in the race however. He sent me pictures of the car. It took a lot of trimming for them to lower the body in their car. It didn't match mine.
I came here for the Tucker and I wasn't disappointed. I wish there were a few more photos of it floating around out there.
When it only ran one lap in each of two races, there wasn't much opportunity to get many. 😁
My dad used to race at Canfield! In the 70s! Very cool to learn that a tucker ran very shortly in a nascar race there. He definitely would have thought that to be neat
That's pretty cool. I wouldn't mind seeing other manufacturers come into the sport. Even European manufacturers. Would raise the competition level of other teams if they got proper factory support.
Definitely. I'd love to see every brand that builds cars in North America compete in NASCAR, the only worry I'd have is how that would quickly result in every NASCAR team becoming some manufacturer's works team and costs going up.
That said, Gen 7 might eliminate that concern.
Volvo would be a nice entrant, but their polestar lineup is pricey to market to middle class america.
When a video like this starts with a Ford Edsel of all things, you know it's going to be an interesting one!
Not just that, but with a driver from my hometown!
Edsels were not too totally rare on the local tracks here in Southeastern Michigan/Northwest Ohio. One in particular ran Edsel sheet metal until they couldn't find anymore. It was the #08 driven by Danny Byrd, sponsored by Stark Hickey Ford and Edsel.
@@roberthill2219 Jerkwater, USA???
@@sludge8506 excuse me???
they should bring back the international 200 would be great
No mention of the Sunbeam Alpines…
Imagine being there to see the Mini race with all of the American cars
ua-cam.com/video/nS4MIfA5i64/v-deo.html
Not quite the same thing, but theres video of a Galaxie and a Mini going head to head at Goodwood in the UK. The Galaxie walks away from the Mini on the straight, but as soon as it hits the corners, the Mini is right up its tailpipe. I absolutely love seeing two completely different cars going at it on a track that doesn't give either a clear advantage.
@@musewolfman There's similar videos from Australia of Minis vs. Mustangs.
@@skaldlouiscyphre2453 speaking of Australia, if you like this kind of seemingly mismatched cars, the Improved Production series is phenomenal. Cars ranging from 1970s to today, and everything from small, low-ish power but stupidly nimble Celicas and Civics, through quicker and still somewhat nimble 3 Series BMWs, up to big chungus Falcons and Commodores that can't turn as well, but can charge the straights like no one's bisiness
@@musewolfman I think I've seen that, there's a thoroughly memed clip of an AE86 vs. an EG6 Civic, no?
Wow, a Citroën!
Here in Oz on dirt ovals there was many very succesfull Minis, And they beat Aussie and US muscle. At times on bitumen ovals as well.
Here in South Oz we had a Citroen Light 15 that was a regular winner. Late 60s. Against far more modern and powerfull cars.
Less unusual was Ford Zephyrs, Jags, 100E and 105E Fords along with the mainstream Holdens and a few Falcons
ua-cam.com/video/nS4MIfA5i64/v-deo.html
Occurring much later in NASCAR history, a few Holden Commodores were built for NASCAR Australia racing in the 1990s. The Commodore would re-appear as the rebadged Chevrolet SS in 2013.
What an awesome video. Taught me a couple of things for sure.
Interesting video! I live in Warwick, England where many Healeys were made. Did you know the Sprite is better known as 'Frog Eye' here across the pond?
🤪🤪🤪🤪👍👍👍👍👍
Imagine NASCAR bringing back the International 200..... at Bowman Grey Stadium! That would be EPIC!
For me the Citroen ID was the biggest surprise. I know they were often used in rally racing but seeing it at NASCAR was absolutely unexpected.
Also the Tucker considering how many of them were made, although i think it was more close to 100 then to 50 as mentioned here.
My only question is how would they change the rear tires on the Citroën? No way they went all 500 miles on a single set of rear tires
It's a front driver so they might have gotten away with it.
These citroens have hydropneumatic suspension, if you change 1 wheel at a time you dont need a jack. Plus its a FWD car so it didnt really need to change rear tires
Rear fenders come off with a single nut. Plus, as the other replies said, the power goes to the front wheels and the rears are just along for the ride anyway.
The first time I watched Herbie fully loaded I was like COME ON!!!! Little did I know……….
There was also a dotsan that raced in the baby grand series. Sponsored by far east motors I think. I saw it race at north wilkesboro N.C.
A 510 or would that have been a 200SX?
@@skaldlouiscyphre2453 don't really remember, I was just shocked that a Japanese car was in the race, but it was competitive. Sorry I don't remember more about it
@@pughoneycutt1986 No worries. I know about 200SXes in the Dash series (with Dean Combs) but I'm always trying to research earlier involvement.
Oh yes, the Volkswagen Beetle. I thought it was gonna win multiple races. Lol
Herbie did it in 2005 😁
I ran VW's at short tracks around Michigan, Ohio, and in Ontario, Canada
In the early '80s, an Avanti II tried qualifying for the Daytona 500. I think it was a factory effort. I recall seeing it in a issue in an article in Collectible Automobile magazine.
83 Daytona 500, finished 27th overall and was as high as 4th place at one point, pretty remarkable when you consider they weren't an established team, however don't forget they weren't really "stock cars" anymore, meaning it was a NASCAR chassis and a real Avanti modified to race, also the engine's in them were 350 Chevy's at that point meaning they probably just bought one from an established engine builder who probably built half the 350 Chevy engine's running out there on the track, but still, for a team and a car that were put together to even finish the race is quite an achievement much less be running in 4th at one point, that's respectable.
I feel like an international 200 should return, for other international automakers and not just Toyota
Too bad it arent stockcars anymore
The mini finishing 9th is impressive considering the engine was probably 3x smaller than the rest of the field
If this had continued, we would have more manufacturers in NASCAR today.
What a cool video.
I want to build a dirt modified for the street, same style, but add just enough (passenger seat, glass, wipers, headlights) to make it function on the street. always loved the look
Minis have been raced on 1/4 mile oval dirt tracks for years, right up to the 2000s in Australia.
no suprise to see british and german cars but i never woulda thought an alfa raced nascar.
I’ve just started the video all I have says I better see the tucker. It’s astonishing that that car even tried to race now that there’s only 46-47 left.. this is one of my favorite cars. The innovation they had after WW2 scared some of the big boys.. Anyhow, I’m back to the video!! Lol
This gave me the information I was looking for years ago and I'm very grateful.
Thank you very much for the look back. 👍✌
Seems like the Sprites would be quick around Bowman Gray.
A very interesting subject & well done video. Lol "They'll know you've arrived!"
I tried to get a Yugo in the 86 Talladega 500, but I could only avg 188 mph in qualifying.
My GEO Metro qualified at Rockingham one year.
I actually am fascinated by the times in which truly stock cars competed in NASCAR. I think current management should at least give a go to the idea of returning to such a thing, it actually is maybe the biggest part of the charm of "classic" NASCAR.
The distinctive headlights on the Austin Healey Sprite are known as “Frog Eye”, not “Bug Eye” 😊
Try googling Bug Eye Sprite. Both terms are used.
Interesting topic, great approach and well packaged.
U know about when several nascars were entered in 24 hr of Le Mans?
Thank you for reminding me of Dick "Not American Bandstand" Clark's VW Rabbit modified!
Sad thing is this list will never grow..
Yeah, nowadays an oddball would the Cadillac version of the Camaro, or a Lexus RC F. Not exactly weird by any stretch.
I recognize that footage of the Nimitz racing at Goodwood! :D
Lol I can only imagine a split window or Zwitter beetle in a nascar race. That's 25 hp, and an unsynchronized 1st gear, hell and 4.56s too screaming and getting nowhere fast in the dirt 🤣
The Beetles top speed was its cruising speed.
Well good morning to me!
This is a perfect video to wake up to.
Can we have Porsche, Jaguar, Alfa Romeo and Volkswagen run it back?
All I have learned is that Sprite raced at Bowman Gray.
My dad used to race an Alfa Romeo GTV in the North Suburban Sports Car Club based out of the Chicago area. The tracks they raced at include Blackhawk Farms, Grattan (in western Michigan), State Fair Park (the Milwaukee Mile’s infield road course), and Road America, a track I remember going to in person as a kid.
🤔🤔🤔🤔…I wonder if Dad knows that the brand he drove has made NASCAR starts.
A bit of trivia for you...
Not sure if you guys can buy it in the states but there is a cider called Rattler made in Cornwall England.
The company is run by the grandson of Donald Healey who made Healey cars.
Saw an edsel in bangers this year
As a Beetle Owner,I will always find it funny that a VW Beetle beat actual stocks cars, sometimes by pace. Sometimes by reliability. But no one can deny the fact, that the little car was a Jack of all trades in terms of motorsports
I don't think you caught the part where they competed in separate classes than the true "stock cars", they had different classes back then specifically to get people with foreign automobiles into NASCAR sanctioned races, like the GT class they had for a while and later on the Baby Grand where cars like VW's ran in an under 2 liter class, like Le Mans they were on the track at the same time but not really competing against the real "stock cars" just each other, races where he's listing their overall place like 26th out of 29 you can say they beat 3 real stock cars but the thing is those were cars that had serious issues during the race and only completed them for the couple points they'd get for that as opposed to retiring from the race and not getting any, listings where he says they were in the top few positions would be for the class they ran in, but realistically they weren't beating any true stock cars in the overall standings unless they were very sick cars that had issues in that race, the leaders would finish laps up on them, that's really who you should compare them to if you want to talk about their abilities, not against cars that are running on 7 cylinders or have a bent steering assembly from being in an accident.
Back in the day in Europe Minis were always racing against big American cars, as were the MK1 Lotus Cortinas. And in 2023 a NASCAR Chevrolet Camaro is going to race at Le Mans entered by Hendrick Motorsports. I already have my tickets for the 24 hour race.
I’d love for there to be another similar race to the International. I’d love to see other sports cars running low downforce setups race against stock cars. It would be really interesting to watch
great content, I never knew any of this,,👍
There are reasons why No 1 and No 2 cars made into top 10 list of automotive icons.
To say that when it can to oval racing on my living room floor with Hot Wheels clearly not up to oval racing was weird already.
Fascinating! Wish NASCAR could still do this. ....
Don’t forget AJ Foyts pacers
Where did you get your info on the Volkswagens I would like to do some more research?
A toyota corolla was entered in a goody's dash series race in early 80s. I saw a picture of it once
I think also in the 90s they raced in Goody's dash series
Just to add to the fun, there was a Toyota Cavalier in JGTC briefly. What's a Toyota Cavalier you ask? Well, when GM was partnered with Toyota, Toyota had to sell some GMs domestically, just like GM was doing with Toyotas. The Cavalier was a commercial flop in Japan but Wise Sports still tried to run one as a GT300 car. It wasn't very competitive.
Davey Allison ran a Celica in that series.
Do you have a link so I can see that clip of Dale Earnhardt’s first race that you showed in this video. Was it a small clip or the hole race?
TIL they used to race convertibles in NASCAR. 😳
Imagine if a base model Honda Civic somehow ended up competing.
Im sure somone did this in some kind of local short track race some time
Honda should race in the cup series.
citroen went behind the iron curtain in the 80s and formed a partnership with the romanian government the cars built looked exactly the same as french citroens but were called olt-cit imagine if a olt-cit had turned up for a nascar race
Renault also did that to create Dacia, a brand they still own and brought back to life. Very popular cheap cars in Europe now.
@@wanganeu i am a huge dacia fan
Well, olt cit was only sold in europe, not america, and it was very unreliable, even compared to other eastern bloc cars
Imagine:
Hamlin just got past by a Mini Cooper
I don't know why he said the asphalt modified was the strangest car, its the only one that looked normal to me.
ah what we really wanted were Reliant Robins, Bond Bugs, Messerschmitt KR200s and Citroen 2CVs (with the big block 602) :)
Love the JagWaar pronounciation.
ngl he got me at the first part when he showed Herbie clips
Wow what a video!
I've attended Winston Salem State University football games at Bowman Gray...it's so odd to see the tire marks and NASCAR livery. I can't image stock cars racing in that little bull ring.
The thumbnail legit make me think this was a SlapShoes video
Quick note: it's Citroën DS 19 not ID 19 😁
both exist; "ID" would be the cheaper trim (which sounds reasonable, as you would throw that our anyway).
8:59 can anyone tell me what movie is playing in the background? It looks interesting...
Some say the Beetle STILL has not finished
I gotta say seeing the mini was awesome 🤘🤘 my dad had a 61 cooper wagon, the guy he bought it off of stuffed a 1400cc engine in it and did some other mods to it as well. It was a 4 speed, but I gotta say for it's time and what it was, it was fast as Fuck. Love the old mini's. Wish he still had it. It was a lot of fun to drive. But to see one actually make a lap at Darlington 😂😂😂 too funny.
The use of “ID” by Citroen was a pun in the French language, so "ID" is pronounced as idée ('idea').
Never heard a Citroen DS be called an ID19 before
I think the volkswagen beetle is the most interesting of all!