Jeff Wackerlin
Assistant Editor
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Posted Thursday, January 8, 2004 |
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This Season not only will there be a new look in NASCAR, with Nextel and Sunoco, but also some of the cars will take on a new look in 2004.
With Pre-Season Testing and Fan Fest getting on its way in Daytona this week, RacingOne takes its annual look at some of the new NASCAR Nextel Cup standard and special paint schemes for this year.
John Andretti: Andretti will have sponsorship from Maxwell House/Post on the No. 1 DEI Chevrolet for a one race deal at Daytona. The car will be blue and white ("E" stripe will be white also) with the Post logo on the hood and Maxwell House on the rear quarter panels. This will be the second time Maxwell House has sponsored a DEI machine. Last season they sponsored Teresa Earnhardt and Dale Jr's Chance 2 Busch Series team at Las Vegas with driver Steve Park. This will be the first time since 1994 that Maxwell House has sponsored a car in NASCAR's top division, last being Bobby Labonte when he drove the No. 22 car for Bill Davis. DEI's previous sponsor Pennzoil will be an associate sponsor on all Roush Racing Nextel Cup cars and the primary sponsor for the No. 9 Busch Series team driven by Mark Martin, Jeff Burton and Matt Kenseth. There is no word yet on what Andretti will do after Daytona. Martin Truex, Jr., the 2004 Chance 2 driver, could possibly run some Nextel Cup events for DEI.
Rusty Wallace: Wallace's No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge will remain the same in 2004. Associate sponsor MeadWestvaco will be on the rear deck lid. No word yet on any special paint schemes.
Terry Labonte: The No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet will have some minor changes in 2004. The milk jug on the driver's side will be replaced with the No. 5's new associate sponsor Delphi, which comes over from the No. 25 car from 2003. Delphi will also replace Dupont on the rear deck lid. Labonte will also run a black and red Delphi scheme in five races starting at Las Vegas. No other special schemes have been announced yet, but I would expect to see another Got Milk? car.
Mark Martin: The No. 6 Ford will have the same colors as it did in 2003, but this season it will take on a new look. In 2004, the car will stay black and blue and white stripes will curve upward along the front wheels to the roof. Both the roof and the rear deck lid will be blue and the Viagra blue pill will be on the hood and the doors. Martin will also run a red, white and blue Kraft Ford in the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona and it will feature the Kraft "sandwich" brands - Miracle Whip, Kraft Cheese Singles and Oscar Meyer deli meats. Martin will also run a reverse white scheme (Pictured) in some night races this season with my guesses being Daytona and the Labor Day California race. Pfizer, the parent company of Viagra will also be on the No. 6 in a number of races in 2004.
Dale Earnhardt Jr: This season Junior's No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet will remain the same except for the rear deck lid where the Budweiser Crown "B" logo will now be displayed. The car will still carry the popular "E" stripe design that was implemented last season to honor the late Dale Earnhardt. Junior will also run a white Budweiser Born on Date car (Pictured) in the Bud Shootout. He is scheduled to run another Born on Date car in the Daytona 500, but I heard it will be different. No other special schemes have been announced for the Bud Chevy, but I would expect to see more like in the past. Earnhardt will also run a new blue Oreo Chevy in the Hershey Kisses 300 Busch Series event at Daytona. Side note: Dale Jr. and Tony Stewart will drive two full-size Monster Trucks in an exhibition event, on Daytona beach Thursday prior to the July Pepsi 400 race.
Kasey Kahne: Kahne will replace Bill Elliott in the No. 9 UAW/Dodge Dealers Dodge, but it looks like the car will be slightly different in 2004. The car will still be red with white numbers and letters and red wheels, but this season it will feature black streaks on the sides with the Dodge Ram logo. It will also sport the new headlight lense decal along with the rest of the Dodge's. Kahne will also run a Popeye the Sailorman, 75th Anniversary scheme at Daytona in July.
Scott Riggs: Riggs' Valvoline scheme (Pictured) will be slightly different from last season's car, in which Johnny Benson piloted. Changes include the switch from Pontiac to Chevrolet, and the car will now be red in the back with the car still taking on its familiar look with the lightning numbers. Riggs is also scheduled to drive a Harlem Globetrotter's scheme at the Bristol Spring race. No other special scheme's have been announced, but I would expect to see another EagleOne scheme this year.
Ryan Newman: The No. 12 Alltel Dodge will have one change to its paint scheme in 2004. The white band that runs from the front along the side will now have a curved look. Colors on the Alltel Dodge will remain the same and no special paint schemes have been announced, but expect Sony and Mobil to run designs this season.
Micahel Waltrip: The Napa Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004 featuring the "E" stripe like Dale Jr's Chevy. Best Western will be on the rear deck lid this season and Domino's Pizza will now be on the lower rear quarter panel.
Greg Biffle: The National Guard, Todd Bodine's 2003 sponsor, will join Roush Racing in 2004 as primary sponsor of the No. 16 (Pictured) with Subway Restaurants as co-primary sponsor. Travelodge hotels and Jackson Hewitt Tax Service will be associate sponsors on the patriotic looking Ford. The National Guard will advertise in the primary sponsorship position on the No. 16 Ford Taurus throughout the 2004 season, except during select races where Subway, Travelodge and Jackson Hewitt will be featured in the primary locations. The National Guard is scheduled to debut two special paint schemes this season with my guesses being the Coca-Cola 600 and the September California race. Biffle's No. 60 Busch Series Ford, sponsored by Charter Communications, will have a purple and yellow scheme.
Matt Kenseth: The DeWalt Ford will have a new design this season with a silver streak that runs across the side panels dividing the yellow and black colors of the No. 17. Kenseth will probably run a number of special schemes with Smirnoff Ice and maybe Carhartt again this year.
Bobby Labonte: The Interstate Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004. Labonte will run a special Shrek 2 paint scheme at the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in May.
Jeremy Mayfield: Mayfield will run a NHL All-Star game paint scheme (Pictured) at the Budweiser Shootout. The next day the NHL will hold the game in St. Paul, Minnesota. Dodge is also a major sponsor of the NHL's All-Star/Superskills competition. His 2004 standard scheme will change slightly with more black, just like Kahne's No. 9. Mayfield will also run a Popeye the Sailorman, 75th Anniversary scheme at Daytona in July.
Tony Stewart: Stewart's standard paint scheme will look the same in 2004. A new Racing Against Asthma decal might be on the rear deck lid, but the current 2004 die-cast does not have it. Stewart will also run a Shrek 2 scheme at the NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge and a reverse scheme at California in September. Stewart will also team with Kid Rock for a special scheme on Kevin Harvick's No. 29 Chevrolet for the Busch race at Lowe's Motor Speedway in May.
Ricky Rudd: The No. 21 Motorcraft Ford will look the same in 2004 except it will now have a yellow roof number and yellow spoiler. Rudd will also drive an Air Force and Rent-A-Center scheme this year.
Scott Wimmer: The Caterpillar Dodge will have a new look this season. The No. 22 will now feature streams of black and red that sweep up the sides and the CAT Rental Store will be on the rear deck lid.
Jeff Gordon: The popular Dupont "Flame" Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004. Gordon is also scheduled to run a new Pepsi paint scheme at Talladega in April and another Pepsi Billion dollar car at Daytona in July. Gordon will also run his retro Dupont rainbow scheme in the NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge.
Brian Vickers: Vickers' No. 25 machine (Pictured) will have a new look in 2004. This season GMAC and Ditech.com will replace the 2003 sponsor's UAW and Delphi, which will move to the No. 5. The car will look the same but the colors will be different. The GMAC machine will now carry a blue and black paint scheme, with yellow and light blue accents.
Kevin Harvick: The No. 29 Goodwrench Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004. Harvick will also run a Hershey Kisses at Daytona and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup scheme in the Busch Series. Harvick will also run a special red reverse scheme in the Budweiser Shootout and a Snap-On scheme in the Nextel All-Star Challenge.
Johnny Sauter: The AOL Chevy will keep its blue and yellow colors, but will look different in 2004 (See Picture). Sauter will also run a special paint scheme at Las Vegas to promote the NASCAR IMAX movie.
Robby Gordon: The popular orange reverse scheme which was a special paint scheme last season will now be the standard scheme in 2004. This year the car (Pictured) will feature the large Cingular "X" logo on the hood and a black swoosh on the lower rear quarter panels. The old standard black scheme could possibly become a special scheme sometime this year. Gordon will also drive the No. 55 Fruit of the Loom Chevrolet in the Busch Series.
Elliott Sadler: The M&M's Ford is known for is colorful paint schemes, but this season Sadler will start the season off in a black and white car (Pictured), which will race until Las Vegas, will tie in with M&M's new 'The Great Color Quest' promotion. The standard scheme (Pictured) will also undergo some changes with larger M&M's on the hood, roof and on the sides around the numbers, which will now be white. Gone this season are the M&M's on the sides wearing the radio scanners. Expect to see a number of different schemes on the No. 38 this year.
Sterling Marlin: Marlin is scheduled to run a special paint scheme celebrating the 130th Anniversary of the Kentucky Derby on May 2nd in California.
Casey Mears: This season the No. 41 paint scheme will have more white in it. The side will feature red stripes that will swoop down in front of the numbers. The large bullseye will stay on the hood, but Target will be replaced by five mini bullseye's on the rear quarter panels. Mears could possibly run another FUJI Film and Energizer scheme sometime this year.
Jamie McMurray: This paint scheme is my favorite for this season, as Chip Ganassi Racing will bring the traditional Havoline colors back to NASCAR. The car (Pictured) will be black with red numbers and yellow lettering and will have the famous "Texaco Star" on the hood. Texaco's Express Lube will be on the rear deck lid.
Jeff Green: The Cheerios Dodge will sport the same colors, but this year it will have a yellow stripe run down the sides of the car. The No. 43 is another car that possibly might run a number of special schemes this season.
Kyle Petty: Petty will run a special "Brawny Man" scheme in 15 races in 2004. The standard red, white and blue scheme will look the same this season.
Brendan Gaughan: Gaughan's new No. 77 Kodak Dodge will look different in comparison to some of the schemes on the No. 4 car in the past. The car will still be primarily yellow but it will feature black on the hood and front end. Kodak will be on the rear quarter panels in red and "Kodak Racing" will be on the hood. Jasper Engines will also have logos on the hood and on the lower rear quarter panels. A red checkered stripe will run across the top of the car.
Kyle Busch: Busch will attempt to qualify for six NASCAR Nextel Cup Series races in 2004 with support from primary sponsor CARQUEST Auto Parts. The car (Pictured) will be red, white and blue with yellow numbers. CARQUEST will also become a major associate sponsor of the No. 25.
Dale Jarrett: Along with the standard brown and white scheme, Jarrett will run a special tribute to Arnold Palmer paint scheme (Pictured) at Atlanta in March. Palmer will be competing in his 50th consecutive run for the famous "Green Jacket" in the April Masters Tournament.
Kurt Busch: The Sharpie Ford scheme for 2004 will look similar to the No. 97's 2002 paint scheme. This season it will be gold and black to promote Sharpie's gold metallic marker. Busch will also run another Irwin Tools car in a number of races. Expect to see many more schemes on the Roush Racing Ford this year.
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