Chevy will not use the Camaro brand when the Nationwide Series goes to the car of tomorrow, sources said Thursday at Daytona. Richard Childress Racing built the new car for General Motors that has been tested in the wind tunnel. The current version is an Impala the same as the Sprint Cup car but that could change to a Malibu. NASCAR hopes to go to a COT for the series in 2009 but has yet to announce definite plans. Only Dodge, which will use the Challenger, has announced its Nationwide brand for the COT.(SceneDaily.com)(2-14-2008)
UPDATE: There still is an ongoing dialogue between the four manufacturers and NASCAR as to which models will be used on the Nationwide cars when they debut in 2009. After hundreds of thousands of dollars spent in wind tunnel development by Chevy and Ford, the latest word is that both have abandoned the muscle car in favor of a more marketing department-friendly choice. As a result, all signs point to Chevy using the Malibu nameplate for its Nationwide effort. Speculation is that Ford marketing execs have suggested reintroducing the Taurus. The Taurus nameplate, which was the model used by Ford in both Nationwide and Cup competition from 1998 until 2005, recently resurfaced on the street version of the somewhat redesigned Ford 500. When quizzed about which model eventually would be used, [Ford’s Dan] Davis said that Ford was not prepared to announce it as of yet, and he hinted that it could end up being an altogether different car, one that has yet to be introduced to the American public. And despite his refusal to acknowledge that Dodge is moving forward with its plans to use the Challenger, [Dodge’s Mike] Accavitti did admit that when it came to making the decision which model Dodge would use, as a former marketing executive, he was empowered to make the decision.(Yahoo Sports)(2-16-2008)
