Honda to join NASCAR!

[siegen]

Honda not to join NASCAR that is (how many of you had to make a trip to the bathroom after reading the title?)

http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns16378.html

Honda says no to NASCAR

Honda has no plans to move into NASCAR stock car racing, according to Robert Clarke, the president of the Honda Performance Development, the US company which runs all the company's racing activities in the United States. Rival Toyota recently abandoned open-wheeler racing to move into the stock car series but Honda has no plans to follow.

Clarke says that while he will not say it will never happen, there are no plans at the moment and Honda is in tending to continue its relationship with the Indy Racing League and the Indianapolis 500.

"We believe strongly in open-wheel racing as a form of racing that Honda has historically competed in, and particularly in Formula 1 and CART and now the IRL. We very much enjoy that style of racing at the premiere level, and we are showing our commitment to the sport and to the IRL in particular, by making our commitment through 2009. Honda's racing historically has been focused on technology. Having not been directly involved with NASCAR, I think it's probably unfair for us to say that their technology is dumbed-down or at a lower level, but it's clearly a different kind of technology."

[Petra]

"We believe strongly in open-wheel racing as a form of racing that Honda has historically competed in, and particularly in Formula 1 and CART and now the IRL. We very much enjoy that style of racing at the premiere level, and we are showing our commitment to the sport and to the IRL in particular, by making our commitment through 2009. Honda's racing historically has been focused on technology. Having not been directly involved with NASCAR, I think it's probably unfair for us to say that their technology is dumbed-down or at a lower level, but it's clearly a different kind of technology."

:rotflmao:

I love how they try here to gingerly step around the fact that NASCAR is stuck in the '60's.

[Flybrian]

Kudos to them for avoiding NASCAR and kudos to Pontiac for getting out of it as well.

[regfootball]

this is ok, they don't serve rice at the concession stands at nascar speedways anyways

[siegen]

this is ok, they don't serve rice at the concession stands at nascar speedways anyways

But they do serve sloppy joes, and you know what kind of crowd that brings...

[BrewSwillis]

But they do serve sloppy joes, and you know what kind of crowd that brings...     

Little kids from school cafeterias?

[Sixty8panther]

I always find it interesting that Honda insists on V6 and FWD for thier top of the line products (NSX & S2000 aside) and yet in motorsport they do not race wiht a V6 powered FWD car.

Put your money where your mouth is Pussys!

[siegen]

I always find it interesting that Honda insists on V6 and FWD for thier top of the line products (NSX & S2000 aside) and yet in motorsport they do not race wiht a V6 powered FWD car.

Put your money where your mouth is Pussys!

So they're supposed to put their family sedans and luxury cars into racing series? Honda and Honda sponsored teams are in a LOT of different racing series, not just open wheeled. The first one that comes to mind is Speed World Challenge. Realtime racing's Acura TSX's and RSX's (and previously Integra's) have dominated their RWD competition for a long time (site is moving slow right now otherwise I would post facts). Racing series like those are actually fun to watch, since the cars are only lightly modified (unlike Nascar).

So how many racing series does GM compete in with FWD sedans?

[AAS]

So how many racing series does GM compete in with FWD sedans?

2 that I know of. NHRA and Grand Am (?) with the Cobalt.

[siegen]

and yet in motorsport they do not race wiht a V6 powered FWD car.

Let me revise my question, to what motorsport are you referring to? If you think manufacturers sponsor V6 FWD cars in NASCAR, I think you're a little confused.

Honda participates in many different motorsports, on many different levels (from full factory sponsored teams to only partial sponsored teams). It would be extremely difficult to get a list of every single team that they sponsor in every different racing series in every country.

Edited March 14, 2006 by siegen

[mustang84]

Well, at least somebody gets it. I'm pretty sure the only reason Toyota got in NASCAR was for the PR and so Midwesterners will see them as a "good 'ol boy" brand so they can steal truck sales away from the F-150 and Silverado.

[Flybrian]

I always find it interesting that Honda insists on V6 and FWD for thier top of the line products (NSX & S2000 aside) and yet in motorsport they do not race wiht a V6 powered FWD car.

Put your money where your mouth is Pussys!

Every NASCAR entrant does the same thing.

[Cadillacfan]

I'm telling you.. NASCAR is the work of the devil! It's taking over every TV network and is making cars like the Monte Carlo profitable.

It must be stopped.

I see that Honda execs agree with me.

[siegen]

I'm telling you.. NASCAR is the work of the devil!  It's taking over every TV network and is making cars like the Monte Carlo profitable. 

It must be stopped.

I see that Honda execs agree with me.

It does bug me how that seems to be all they play on Speed channel Occasionally (and I mean occasionally) I'll turn it on to find horsepower tv or if I'm really lucky, a different racing series, but usually to my dismay I either see Nascar or people talking about Nascar (like there's that much to talk about).