Compare NASCAR car to regular car

For instance, it used to be that the floorpan had to be factory original but it could be modified to accept shifter, transmission, rear drive, etc. As far as I know that was the only requirement a few years ago. There may be more but not much.

It is funny how NASCAR fans are almost married to the sponsor products their favorite drivers. The funnier part is the Ford VS Chevy thing. Those cars are not even close to a Ford or Chevy but if it is painted to look like a Ford or Chevy then it IS a Ford or Chevy.

When NASCAR first started, the cars really were factory stock. That era fascinates me. Some NASCAR drivers even drove their cars to the track. Then they yanked out the back seat; removed the passenger backrest from the front seat; tied ropes to the hood and trunk, taped up the headlights and they were race-ready.

Amazing.

I remember reading somewhere that the first NASCAR rule about roll bars left out one important word: "metal." So some drivers used pieces of wood they could remove after the race.

Once on the Speed Channel, I saw a vintage NASCAR documentary with Junior Johnson and other vintage drivers. Johnson laconically commented: "NASCAR never did make a safety rule until one of us got killed."

Then he described pulling Fireball Roberts out of his flaming car. Roberts' Pontiac rolled onto its roof and the gas tank ruptured. Raw fuel poured into the interior and pooled in the lowest spot--the inverted roof. Then it ignited.

NASCAR wasn't alone. Just recently I saw a documentary with Stirling Moss. He said he drove in over 400 races and never used a seat belt.

And AFAIK, the worst crash in motor racing is still the 1955 Le Mans horror, when Pierre Levegh's Mercedes went airborne into the spectators, shedding parts all the way. The front suspension, exhaust and engine block scythed into the crowd, killing 80 people and injuring many more.

Adding to the danger, the Mercedes was made of a new lightweight magnesium compound. When fire crews tried to put out the fire with water, they only made the fire burn more fiercely. (You can see the original newsreel films of the crash on YouTube.)