In this content post, I Motor Man Dan present throwback photos of March 2017 at the Winter Wonder Car & Truck Show at the Sun’ n Fun airstrip in Lakeland, Florida.
Featured in this post is this Chevrolet Monte Carlo stock racing car, driven professionally by Ted Head.
Feel free to check out the February 2017 feature story about the Winter Wonder Car & Truck Show at MotorManDan.WordPress.com.
Motor Lens: Let knowledge drive you!
Aric Almirola Ford Fusion car on display at Sebring International Raceway in 2017. (Photo by Dan Fisher)
For every journey, there is an end.
As for Ford in the NASCAR Cup Series, replacing the Fusion with the Mustang in 2019 is the beginning of an era for the Blue Oval.
Though expectations are high in the Ford camp, the pre-production script for the Mustang’s full-scale assembly comes first, said NASCAR.com on Tuesday, April 17.
According to Ford officials, the Mustang is still going through initial testing and will be formally submitted to NASCAR for approval this summer.
“NASCAR has a really good process that continues to get better every year,” Ford Performance Global Director Mark Rushbrook said during a Tuesday teleconference. “It’s a very well-defined process for timing. The submission will happen through June of this year, and then depending on how things go on that initial test, that will lay out the rest of our timeline.”
— NASCAR.com Press Release
With the Chevrolet Camaro in its first year competing full time in the Cup Series while fielding entries to teams in the NASCAR Ixfinity Series, it would seem that Pony car competition is beginning to grow in NASCAR’s top level series.
As Ford Performance Global Director, Mark Rushbrook, said in the NASCAR.com Press Release, NASCAR Cup teams with Ford entries look forward to the Mustang’s 2019 debut with great interest.
“We tried to leverage the skill across all of our teams,” Rushbrook said. “We’ve had active engagements from Roush Fenway Racing, Team Penske and Stewart-Haas Racing. They’ve been the main contributors to this, but (all of the teams) are anxious to get the best car on the track in 2019, so they’ve been very active with us.”
— NASCAR.com Press Release
Once the Mustang makes its debut in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Daytona, expect Ford teams to saddle up and rub shoulders with the Camaro and Toyota Camry.
My best selected photos from the 66th 12 Hours of Sebring, March 17, 2018.
It would seem Tesla has some competition in the electric car market in California, according to a business article by the San Francisco Chronicle on Feb. 28.
And its challenger: the Chevrolet Bolt.
David R. Baker further documents the Bolt in the following block quote:
The Chevrolet Bolt topped electric car registrations in the state last year, according to the report from the California New Car Dealers Association and Auto Outlook, Inc. A total of 13,487 Bolts were sold or leased in California, compared with 11,813 Tesla Model S sedans. The vast difference in prices — the Bolt starts at $36,620, while the most basic version of a Model S costs $74,500 — may have something to do with the ranking. — David R. Baker, SFC Business Reporter
1st Generation Tesla Model S on display at the University Town Center mall in Sarasota, FL.
Interestingly, Baker writes in the following excerpt that illustrates California’s 2017 electric car sales. Though Tesla is not the Bolt’s only sales competitor.
California electric car sales in 2017
Chevrolet Bolt: 13,487
Tesla Model S: 11,813
Tesla Model X: 6,910
Fiat 500: 4,943
Nissan Leaf: 4,418
VW Golf: 3,202
With more car companies entering the electric car market, it would seem that this particular automotive class is projected to grow over the course of time, both nationally and globally. Now the question is: What other car companies will be next on the diving board, to jump into the pool of the electric car market?
MotorMan Dan 