Category: paint scheme grades

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-February 20, 2016

By David G. Firestone

Jamie McMurray #1 Credit One Chevy SS-Too many designs going on at once. It’s just an awful mess. F

Jamie McMurray #1 McDonalds/Cessna Chevy SS– A major downgrade from last year’s amazing fade. The two designs just don’t work that well together, and the car looks like a jumbled mess. Still, the color schemes are really good, so I’ll give it a B-

Regan Smith #7 Golden Corral/Niko Toy State Chevy SS-See above, but without the color scheme bonus. F

David Ragan #23 Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry-Not bad, but the side design is a tad over done for my taste. Still, it’s worth a B+.

Robert Richardson #26 Stalk It Toyota Camry-It’s a bold look with a really good color scheme that isn’t overdone. In my book, that earns an A+.

Josh Wise #30 Toyota Camry-Nothing to complain about here! A+

Bobby Labonte #32 C&J Energy Services Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year, same F grade.

David Gilliland #35 Ford Fusion-Nothing to complain about here! A+

Landon Cassill #38 Florida Lottery Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year, same C+ grade.

Michael McDowell #59 Thrivent Financial Chevy SS– Same scheme as #95, same B+ grade.

Martin Truex Jr. #78 Auto Owner’s Insurance Chevy SS-The vertical fade look is great, and the shades of blue look good. The numbers look really good here too. A+

Michael Waltrip #83 Maxwell House Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Matt DiBenedetto #93 Dustless Blasting Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year, same B– grade.

Cole Whitt #98 Premium Motorsports RTIC Coolers Toyota Camry-A smooth look with a really good color scheme will always earn an A+.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-January 30, 2016

By David G. Firestone

Tony Stewart #14 Bass Pro Shops Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same C+ grade.

Greg Biffle #16 Kleen Performance Products Ford Fusion-I don’t think I got around to this scheme last year, so I’ll fix that mistake right now. I like the shade of green, and the red looks good too. The interrupted stripe across the side is ugly, and I do not think the black is needed. Also, the liquid design doesn’t make sense. I’ll give it a B+.

Paul Menard #27 Menard’s/Peak Chevy SS-Bold look, moving away from the Menard’s Template, and, it works. The design scheme looks good, and it has a great color scheme. I give it an A+.

Kyle Larson #42 Target Chevy SS-Vertical fade looks really good, and has a really good color scheme. A+

AJ Allmendinger #47 Kroger’s Chevy SS-Same basic scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-January 23, 2016

By David G. Firestone

Brad Keselowski #2 Auto Trader Ford Fusion-Same scheme as Joey Logano, same D- grade.

Kevin Harvick #4 Mobil 1 Chevy SS-Same scheme as Tony Stewart’s, same A+ grade.

Danica Patrick #10 Mobil 1 Chevy SS—Same basic scheme as Tony Stewart’s, same A+ grade.

Greg Biffle #16 KFC Nashville Hot Ford Fusion-KFC has a really good shade of red, and the whole design works well. I also like the flame motif at the back, and the stripes on the roof. All in all, I can’t give it any lower than an A+.

Carl Edwards #19 Subway Toyota Camry-The black car was bold look, but the shade of green here could use some tweaking. The box motif is a bit overdone as well. It’s not as bad as I thought it would be, it’s a B+ scheme.

Joey Logano #22 Auto Trader Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year, same D- grade.

Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowe’s/Superman Chevy SS-The Superman motif is really good, and it’s really well done. I like the detail in the suit too. It’s worth an A+.

Brian Scott #44 Albertsons’s Ford Fusion-It’s a simple, yet attractive scheme with a great color scheme. I give it an A+.

Martin Truex Jr. #78 Bass Pro Shops Chevy SS-Of all the schemes I have seen so far, this is the worst of them all. Orange can be a great color when used right, but this is just too much! The yellow clashes with it, the black works, and the camo looks out of place. It’s just a mess, and I give it an F.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 Nationwide/Batman Chevy SS-New scheme for 2016, designed to look like Batman’s armor. A+

Ty Dillon #95 Cheerios Chevy SS-Same basic scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Michael McDowell #95 Thrivent Financial Chevy SS-Bit of a downgrade from last year, the old template, which I really liked, was good, but the new scheme looks forced, and the color change doesn’t help. Still, it’s not horrible, and it’s worth a B+

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-January 16, 2016

By David G. Firestone

Kasey Kahne #5 Quicken Loans Chevy SS-It’s a downgrade from last year, Kasey fancies himself a designer, but most of his schemes look horrible. This one is saved by a good color scheme, so I’ll give it a C+.

Kasey Kahne #5 Panasonic Toughbook Chevy SS-It’s a distinctive look, and it looks really good. Blue, white, and black is a good color scheme. A+

Clint Bowyer #15 Five-Hour Energy Chevy SS-All my complaints about the 2015 scheme are gone with this scheme, and it looks really good. A+

Clint Bowyer #15 Peak Chevy SS-It’s a bold scheme, with a really good color scheme. It looks really good. A+

Kyle Busch #18 M&M’s Toyota Camry-M&M’s always has a good look, and since 2016 is the 75th anniversary of the introduction of M&M”s, they decided to add vintage M characters to modern M characters, to create a really good look. A+

Ryan Blaney #21 Motorcraft Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Chase Elliott #24 Kelly Blue Book Chevy SS– The lack of metallic gold is a downgrade, and the design went from smooth to more haphazard. It’s not horrible, but not great. Combined with the decent color scheme, I give it a C+.

Chris Buescher #34 Love’s Truck Stops Ford Fusion-New year, new driver, new scheme. It’s really good, Love’s uses a good shade of yellow, and the red rainbow design works well too. All said, I give it an A+.

Brian Scott #44 Twisted Tea Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Schem Grades-January 2, 2016

By David G. Firestone

Jamie McMurray #1 Cessna/Beechcraft Chevy SS-The color scheme is good, but the design scheme needs work. I think the stripes should be toned down. Still, it’s not a terrible scheme, certainly worth a B+.

Brad Keselowski #2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year same A+ grade.

Brad Keselowski #2 Wurth Ford Fusion-Same scheme as last year same A+ grade.

Brad Keselowski #2 Alliance Truck Parts Ford Fusion– Same scheme as last year same A+ grade.

Austin Dillon #3 Dow Chevy SS-Same basic scheme as last year, same B+ grade.

Austin Dillon #3 Cheerios Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Austin Dillon #3 American Ethanol Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same A- grade.

Kasey Kahne #5 Farmers Insurance Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same C+ grade.

Kasey Kahne #5 Great Clips Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same D+ grade.

Kasey Kahne #5 Liftmaster Chevy SS-When I heard that Liftmaster had a new scheme for 2016, I thought there would be some improvement. Sadly what we got could at best be described as “rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.” It’s still a cluttered mess, just a different kind of cluttered mess. I’ll give it a C

Alex Bowman #7 Road Rippers Chevy SS-Whenever I have to sum up a paint scheme by saying it’s a professionally designed scheme that looks like it was designed by a 5 year-old boy, it will earn an F.

Danica Patrick #10 Nature’s Pride Pumpkin Spice Chevy SS-It’s the same basic scheme as Nature’s Pride, and like Nature’s Pride, it has a good look, and a good color scheme. A+

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry–Same scheme as last year, though with a slight redesign, same A+ grade.

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry–Same scheme as last year, though with a slight redesign, same A+ grade.

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Ground Toyota Camry– Same scheme as last year, though with a slight redesign, same A+ grade.

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Office Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year, though with a slight redesign, same A+ grade.

Tony Stewart #14 Mobil 1 Chevy SS-It appears that Bass Pro Shops will not be back with Stewart Haas in 2016, so Mobil 1 will have a stand along scheme. The Pegasus wing is bold design, but it works quite well, and looks very good. Add in a great color scheme, and this scheme earns an A+.

Tony Stewart #14 Code 3 Associates/Mobil 1 Chevy SS–Same scheme as last year, though with a slight redesign, same A+ grade.

Tony Stewart #14 Rush Truck Stops/Mobil 1 Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, though with a slight redesign, same A+ grade.

Greg Bffle #16 Cheez-its Ford Fusion-I like what Cheez-It’s has done here. The look is still good, and the wider stripe doesn’t take away from it at all. A+

Kyle Busch #18 Interstate Batteries Chevy SS-Same basic scheme as last year, same A- grade.F

Kyle Busch #18 Skittles Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Carl Edwards #19 Stanley Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year same B+ grade.

Carl Edwards #19 Stanley Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year same A grade.

Matt Kenseth #20 Dollar General Toytota Camry-Removing the black stripe at the very bottom looks so much better. I wish I could give it a higher grade. A+

Matt Kenseth #20 DeWalt USA Toyota Camry-Same scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Chase Elliott #24 3M Chevy SS-The color scheme works very well, but the needless design on the sides isn’t a good look. Still, the car is as a whole is decent, and I’ll give it a B+

Paul Menard #27 Menard’s/Moen Chevy SS-If this is the route that Moen would take with the car, I would have preferred that the car be black, with yellow stripes, instead of the black front/yellow rear. It looks like two different people designed the car. The Menard’s template normally looks good, but I can’t stand this. I’ll give it a B-

Ryan Newman #31 Cat Chevy SS–Same basic scheme as last year, same A+ grade.

Ryan Newman #31 Granger Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same B + grade.

Kurt Busch #41 Monster Energy Chevy SS– Same scheme as last year same A+ grade.

Kurt Busch #41 Haas Automation Chevy SS-A great fade, a great color scheme, and a great design will earn an A+.

Aric Almirola #43 Smithfield Ford Fusion– The red roof number looks much better than the yellow one, and it takes a B+ grade up to an A-.

Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowe’s Chevy SS– Same scheme as last year, same C- grade.

Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Chevy SS– Same scheme as last year, same C- grade.

Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowe’s Pro Services Chevy SS-Same scheme as last year, same C- grade.

Kurt Busch #41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Chevy SS–A great fade, a great color scheme, and a great design will earn an A+.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 Axalta Chevy SS-Bold move going with a vertical fade. Axalta’s first car not driven by Jeff Gordon has a bold look for sure, and it has a good look. The color scheme is great, and the design looks great. A+

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The Driver Suit Blog-2015 Paint Scheme Leaderboard Part 4-The Grand Finale

By David G. Firestone

The Executive Paint Scheme Ranking Committee has had our final meeting. While I made the decisions, Alejandro slept on my lap and occasionally woke up and purred. All 49 teams are having their paint schemes ranked this week, so here we go:

1-FURNITURE ROW RACING #78 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:4th of 55-Black matte with orange numbers works. The ovarian cancer theme is very justifiable, as Truex’s wife is dealing with ovarian cancer. The #78 has earned the top spot.

2-FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS #35 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:28th of 55-Front Row’s new team started their existence with a slew of great schemes. All of them are smooth, simple and great.

3-RAB RACING #29 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:16th of 55-Only one scheme, and it was a great one!

4-WOOD BROTHERS RACING #21 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:1st of 55 I thought that the Snap On memories scheme wasn’t as good as it could be,but other than that, The Wood Brothers had a great season.

5-JTG DAUGHTERY RACING #47 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year: 15th of 55-A lot of great looks, but Bush’s kept them out of the top five in The Leaderboard.

6-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #24 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year: 36th of 55-Jeff’s last season in NASCAR was one of his best looking. The Penn State Scheme kept Jeff from taking the top spot, but a solid season nonetheless.

7-STEWART-HAAS RACING #4 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:5th of 55-Kevin had a great season, though the disaster that is Hunt Brothers Pizza dragged his ranking from 2nd, possibly first to Fourth in the Chevy Leaderboard.

8-JOE GIBBS RACING #11 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:24th of 55-Four brand new, amazing FedEx schemes, a mediocre SportClips scheme, and one mediocre SportClips throwback scheme.

9-JOE GIBBS RACING #20 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:33rd of 55-SportClips didn’t do the really good set of schemes any favors.

10-PHIL PARSONS RACING/PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #98-Rank Last Year:31st of 55-Due to the midseason switch, the #98 will be ranked in Chevy, Ford AND Toyota. Ran a lot of good schemes, except the Xyience scheme, and the modified scheme with sponsors.

11-TEAM PENSKE #2 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:6th of 55 Detroit Gasket drags down what could easily have been the top pick for 2015. Other than that, no complaints.

12-MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING #15 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:44th of 55-I was much too harsh on the 15 last year, and looking at the schemes this year, they are all defendable. I did give extra credit for the hand-painted Buddy Baker scheme.

13-PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #62-Rank Last Year:N/A-Due to the midseason switch, the #98 will be ranked in Chevy, and Ford-A lot of solid schemes, though Vydrox and Low T Central were a bit too much.

14-FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS #38 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:32nd of 55 While there weren’t a lot of new schemes, the new ones, as well as the camo schemes were not great.

15-LEVINE FAMILY RACING #95 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:13th of 55-Another top contender ruined by one scheme, this one Larry the Lobster. Other than Larry, the schemes are great.

16-FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS #34 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:20th of 55-Front Row uses a template that usually works well, but modifying for Bully Hill didn’t work, and no escape was a disaster.

17-MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING #55 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:3rd of 55-New Aaron’s scheme isn’t that great. The Throwback is amazing!

18-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #25 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:N/A-Chase Elliott, who is taking over for Jeff Gordon in 2016, used the #25 to get some Cup experience. The NAPA scheme by itself is not bad, but the fauxback Bill Elliott scheme is a disaster.

19-CIRCLE SPORT RACING #33 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:38th of 55-Science Logic and Pinkwashing derailed what was otherwise a great looking year for Circle Sport.

20-RICHARD PETTY MOTORSPORTS #43 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:11th of 55-The Nathan’s color scheme does not work well with the Petty color scheme, and the Fresh From Florida scheme is awful. The majority of schemes are good though.

21-TMG RACING #30 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:N/A-Smokey Mountain Snuff is awful, plain car with no sponsor is great.

22-JOE GIBBS RACING #19 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:N/A-Nothing really horrible here, though there are many mediocre schemes here.

23-HSCOTT MOTORSPORTS #51 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:30th of 55-If the car is running a Brandt scheme it looks good, anything else looks terrible.

24-HILLMAN-SMITH MOTORSPORTS #40 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:27th of 55-The schemes were all over the place this year, but this team has had a lot of good looks.

25-CHIP GANASSI RACING TEAM #42 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:18th of 55-The plaid, Energizer, camo and Clorox sank them this season, otherwise they looked really good.

26-RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING #27 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:36th of 55-Part of the problem of using a template is that it can backfire on you, and that is exactly what has happened here. The Menard’s template works well with some color schemes, but terribly with others. The Pittsburgh Paints scheme is horrible by itself.

27-RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING #33 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:38th of 55-White Tail Lodge, Spongebob, and Kraft dragged down an otherwise great season.

28-HSCOTT MOTORSPORTS #46 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:N/A-A lot of good schemes and a lot of bad schemes is the story of the #46 season.

29-BK RACING #83 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:25th of 55-Many new schemes and sponsors, and they were all over the place. When taking everything into account, I can say that they aren’t horrible.

30-BK RACING #23 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:8th of 55-VooDoo, Overture, and Pinkwashing take a decent grade down to a mediocre grade. Otherwise there is a lot of decent schemes here.

31-RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING #3 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:49th of 55-Some great schemes, but the bad schemes dragged down the final grade.

32-ROUSH-FENWAY RACING #16 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:54th of 55-3M leaving was the best thing that happened to Greg Biffle, especially on this list, though Pinkwashing, Safety Kleen, and Jardiance do drag it down.

33-ROUSH-FENWAY RACING #17 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:35th of 55-Zest and EcoBoost are awful, and dragged Ricky out of a top spot.

34-ROUSH-FENWAY RACING #6 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:10th of 55-Camo and Pinkwashing kill a great rank, including one of my favorite throwbacks outside of Jeff Gordon’s.

35-JOE GIBBS RACING #18 TOYOTA CAMRY-Rank last year:4th of 55-A lot of changes in paint schemes, some good, some awful, many mediocre.

36-CHIP GANASSI RACING TEAM #1 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:12th of 55-McDonalds was either great or awful. Add a pinkwashing scheme, Bass Pro Shops, and Bad Boy Buggies, and they are ranked much lower than they should be.

37-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #5 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:51st of 55-When Kasey has a good scheme, it is still mediocre, and he didn’t have a great scheme all year.

38-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #48 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:2nd of 55-Completely changing their look dragged down Jimmie’s grade. On a separate note, I do think the yellow tribute numbers should stay, since they look better than the white numbers.

39-GO GREEN RACING #32 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:46th of 55-The most different paint schemes of any team in 2015, they ranged from amazing, a great throwback, to vomit inducing.

40-RICHARD PETTY MOTORSPORTS #9 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:41st of 55-Like Go Green, the #9 ran a lot of paint schemes, some were great, but many were awful. I really hope whoever drives the #9 next year helps tone it down.

41-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #88 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:17th of 55-With the exception of Dewshine, everything that Mountain Dew ran was average to awful. Nationwide is decent, but Halo was awful.

42-STEWART-HAAS RACING #14 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:47th of 55-Not much change in terms of sponsors. In terms of car design, there were a lot of changes this year. But with the exception of Rush’s, they were all mediocre to awful.

43-TOMMY BALDWIN RACING #7 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year: 48th of 55-The car looks so much better without a sponsor on average, it isn’t even funny.

44-TEAM XTREME RACING #44 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:53rd of 55-Not even the addition of Golden Corral could save Team Xtreme Racing. I’m glad I don’t have to see that Phoenix Warehouse scheme anymore!

45-TEAM PENSKE #22 FORD FUSION-Rank Last Year:42nd of 55-The Mario Andretti throwback, and the Helio Castroneves mockup were great, but sadly, those were the only highlights of the season for the 22 crew.

46-STEWART-HAAS RACING #10 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year: 52nd of 55-Hideous design, awful color choices, and pinkwashing…need I say more?

47-PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #66-Rank Last Year:N/A-Another example of when a car looks so much better without a sponsor on average, it isn’t even funny.

48-GERMAIN RACING #13 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:50th of 55-No redeeming schemes at all here.

49-STEWART-HAAS RACING #41 CHEVY SS-Rank Last Year:9th of 55-Due to the driver’s actions toward his then girlfriend at Dover, the #41 has earned the bottom ranking.ICHAEL WALTRIP RACING,TMG RACING, BK RACING,

The Driver Suit Blog-2015 Paint Scheme Leaderboard Part 3-Toyota

By David G. Firestone

The Executive Paint Scheme Ranking Committee(I should pick a different committee name next year) has met for another round of meetings to determine the Toyota Leaderboard for 2015. While Alejandro looked at me sarcastically when I asked his opinion, we got the job done. Here are Toyota’s rankings for 2015.

1-RAB RACING #29-Rank last year: 5th of 13-Only one scheme, and it was a great one!

2-JOE GIBBS RACING #11-Rank last year:6th of 13-Four brand new, amazing FedEx schemes, a-mediocre SportClips scheme, and one mediocre SportClips throwback scheme.

3-JOE GIBBS RACING #20-Rank last year:8th of 13-SportClips didn’t do the really good set of schemes any favors.

4-MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING #15-Rank last year:12th of 13-I was much too harsh on the 15 last year, and looking at the schemes this year, they are all defendable. I did give extra credit for the hand-painted Buddy Baker scheme.

5-MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING #55-Rank last year:1st of 13-New Aaron’s scheme isn’t that great. The Throwback is amazing!

6-TMG RACING #30-Rank last year:N/A-Smokey Mountain Snuff is awful, plain car with no sponsor is great.

7-JOE GIBBS RACING #19-Rank last year:N/A-Nothing really horrible here, though there are many mediocre schemes here.

8-BK RACING #83-Rank last year:7th of 13-Many new schemes and sponsors, and they were all over the place. When taking everything into account, I can say that they aren’t horrible.

9-BK RACING #23-Rank last year:3rd of 13-VooDoo, Overture, and Pinkwashing take a decent grade down to a mediocre grade. Otherwise there is a lot of decent schemes here.

10-BK RACING #26-Rank last year:4th of 13-The many awful schemes here take them to back of the pack. Not even the great schemes can save it.

11-JOE GIBBS RACING #18-Rank last year:2nd of 13-A lot of changes in paint schemes, some good, some awful, many mediocre.

12-BK RACING #26-Rank last year:4th of 13-The many awful schemes here take them to back of the pack. Not even the great schemes can save it.

13-PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #66-Rank last year:13th of 13-Awful last year, awful this year.

Next week, All 49 schemes will be ranked in the Grand Finale!

The Driver Suit Blog-2015 Paint Scheme Leaderboard Part 2-Ford

By David G. Firestone

The Executive Paint Scheme Ranking Committee has met for a second time. Alejandro decided to sleep through the proceedings, since he has to sleep for 18 hours a day. Anyway, this week the Committee has voted on Ford’s rankings for 2015, and here they are.

1-FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS #35-Rank Last Year:8th of 17-Front Row’s new team started their existence with a slew of great schemes. All of them are smooth, simple and great.

2-WOOD BROTHERS RACING #21-Rank Last Year:1st of 17-I thought that the Snap On memories scheme wasn’t as good as it could be,but other than that, The Wood Brothers had a great season.

3-PHIL PARSONS RACING/PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #98-Rank Last Year:10th of 17-Due to the midseason switch, the #98 will be ranked in Chevy, Ford AND Toyota. Ran a lot of good schemes, except the Xyience scheme, and the modified scheme with sponsors.

4-TEAM PENSKE #2-Rank Last Year:2nd of 17-Detroit Gasket drags down what could easily have been the top pick for 2015. Other than that, no complaints.

5-PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #62-Rank Last Year:N/A-Due to the midseason switch, the #98 will be ranked in Chevy, and Ford-A lot of solid schemes, though Vydrox and Low T Central were a bit too much.

6-FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS #38-Rank Last Year:11th of 17-While there weren’t a lot of new schemes, the new ones, as well as the camo schemes were not great.

7-LEVINE FAMILY RACING #95-Rank Last Year:5th of 17-Another top contender ruined by one scheme, this one Larry the Lobster. Other than Larry, the schemes are great.

8-FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS #34-Rank Last Year:6th of 17-Front Row uses a template that usually works well, but modifying for Bully Hill didn’t work, and no escape was a disaster.

9-RICHARD PETTY MOTORSPORTS #43-Rank Last Year:4th of 17-The Nathan’s color scheme does not work well with the Petty color scheme, and the Fresh From Florida scheme is awful. The majority of schemes are good though.

10-ROUSH-FENWAY RACING #16-Rank Last Year:17th of 17-3M leaving was the best thing that happened to Greg Biffle, especially on this list, though Pinkwashing, Safety Kleen, and Jardiance do drag it down.

11-ROUSH-FENWAY RACING #17-Rank Last Year:12th of 17-Zest and EcoBoost are awful, and dragged Ricky out of a top spot.

12-ROUSH-FENWAY RACING #6-Rank Last Year:N/A-Camo and Pinkwashing kill a great rank, including one of my favorite throwbacks outside of Jeff Gordon’s.

13-GO GREEN RACING #32-Rank Last Year:16th of 17-The most different paint schemes of any team in 2015, they ranged from amazing, a great throwback, to vomit inducing.

14-RICHARD PETTY MOTORSPORTS #9-Rank Last Year:13th of 17-Like Go Green, the #9 ran a lot of paint schemes, some were great, but many were awful. I really hope whoever drives the #9 next year helps tone it down.

15-TEAM PENSKE #22-Rank Last Year:14th of 17-The Mario Andretti throwback, and the Helio Castroneves mockup were great, but sadly, those were the only highlights of the season for the 22 crew.

Next week, The Toyota Leaderboard! See you soon!

The Driver Suit Blog-2015 Paint Scheme Leaderboard Part 1-Chevy

By David G. Firestone

It’s that time of year, so, here we are again, ranking the Chevy paint schemes. The Executive Paint Scheme Ranking Committee, consisting of myself and my cat Alejandro have ranked all 24 of Chevy’s paint schemes. Alejandro was of little use, having found a catnip toy. Anyway, with no further ado, the Chevy Paint Scheme Leaderboard for 2015

1-FURNITURE ROW RACING #78-Rank Last Year:5th of 25-Black matte with orange numbers works. The ovarian cancer theme is very justifiable, as Truex’s wife is dealing with ovarian cancer. The #78 has earned the top spot.

2-JTG DAUGHTERY RACING #47-Rank Last Year: 10th of 25-A lot of great looks, but Bush’s kept them out of the top spot in Chevy.

3-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #24-Rank Last Year: 11th of 25-Jeff’s last season in NASCAR was one of his best looking. The Penn State Scheme kept Jeff from taking the top spot, but a solid season nonetheless.

4-STEWART-HAAS RACING #4-Rank Last Year:2nd of 25-Kevin had a great season, though the disaster that is Hunt Brothers Pizza dragged his ranking from 2nd, possibly first to Fourth in the Chevy Leaderboard.

5-PHIL PARSONS RACING/PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #98-Rank Last Year: N/A-Due to the midseason switch, the #98 will be ranked in Chevy, Ford AND Toyota. Ran a lot of good schemes, except the Xyience scheme, and the modified scheme with sponsors.

6-PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #62-Rank Last Year:N/A-Due to the midseason switch, the #98 will be ranked in Chevy, and Ford-A lot of solid schemes, though Vydrox and Low T Central were a bit too much.

7-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #25-Rank Last Year: N/A-Chase Elliott, who is taking over for Jeff Gordon in 2016, used the #25 to get some Cup experience. The NAPA scheme by itself is not bad, but the fauxback Bill Elliott scheme is a disaster.

8-CIRCLE SPORT RACING #33-Rank Last Year:16th of 25-Science Logic and Pinkwashing derailed what was otherwise a great looking year for Circle Sport.

9-HSCOTT MOTORSPORTS #51-Rank Last Year:5th of 25-If the car is running a Brandt scheme it looks good, anything else looks terrible.

10-HILLMAN-SMITH MOTORSPORTS #40-Rank Last Year:14th of 25-The schemes were all over the place this year, but this team has had a lot of good looks.

11-CHIP GANASSI RACING TEAM #42-Rank Last Year:8th of 25-The plaid, Energizer, camo and Clorox sank them this season, otherwise they looked really good.

12-RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING #27-Rank Last Year:15th of 25-Part of the problem of using a template is that it can backfire on you, and that is exactly what has happened here. The Menard’s template works well with some color schemes, but terribly with others. The Pittsburgh Paints scheme is horrible by itself.

13-RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING #33-Rank Last Year:16th of 25-White Tail Lodge, Spongebob, and Kraft dragged down an otherwise great season.

14-HSCOTT MOTORSPORTS #46-Rank Last Year:N/A-A lot of good schemes and a lot of bad schemes is the story of the #46 season.

15-RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING #3-Rank Last Year:21st of 25- Some great schemes, but the bad schemes dragged down the final grade.

16-CHIP GANASSI RACING TEAM #1-Rank Last Year:5th of 25-McDonalds was either great or awful. Add a pinkwashing scheme, Bass Pro Shops, and Bad Boy Buggies, and they are ranked much lower than they should be.

17-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #5-Rank Last Year:23rd of 25-When Kasey has a good scheme, it is still mediocre, and he didn’t have a great scheme all year.

18-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #48-Rank Last Year:1st of 25-Completely changing their look dragged down Jimmie’s grade. On a separate note, I do think the yellow tribute numbers should stay, since they look better than the white numbers.

19-HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS #88-Rank Last Year:7th of 25-With the exception of Dewshine, everything that Mountain Dew ran was average to awful. Nationwide is decent, but Halo was awful.

20-STEWART-HAAS RACING #14-Rank Last Year:19th of 25-Not much change in terms of sponsors. In terms of car design, there were a lot of changes this year. But with the exception of Rush’s, they were all mediocre to awful.

21-TOMMY BALDWIN RACING #7-Rank Last Year: 20th of 25-The car looks so much better without a sponsor on average, it isn’t even funny.

22-TEAM XTREME RACING #44-Rank Last Year:25th of 25-Not even the addition of Golden Corral could save Team Xtreme Racing. I’m glad I don’t have to see that Phoenix Warehouse scheme anymore!

23-STEWART-HAAS RACING #10-Rank Last Year: 24th of 25-Hideous design, awful color choices, and pinkwashing…need I say more?

24-PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS #66-Rank Last Year:N/A-Another example of when a car looks so much better without a sponsor on average, it isn’t even funny.

25-GERMAIN RACING #13-Rank Last Year:22nd of 25- No redeeming schemes at all here.

26-STEWART-HAAS RACING #41-Rank Last Year:3rd of 25-Due to the driver’s actions toward his then girlfriend at Dover, the #41 has earned the bottom ranking.

Next Week, We do The Ford Leaderboard… See you then!

FURNITURE ROW RACING,JTG DAUGHTERY RACING,HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS,STEWART-HAAS RACING,PHIL PARSONS RACING,PREMIUM MOTORSPORTS,CIRCLE SPORT RACING,HSCOTT MOTORSPORTS,HILLMAN-SMITH MOTORSPORTS,CHIP GANASSI RACING TEAM, RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING, TOMMY BALDWIN RACING,TEAM XTREME RACING,GERMAIN RACING,

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-November 28, 2015

By David G. Firestone

Kyle Larson #42 Target Plain Chevy SS-I really hope the plaid thing is done with, because these cars are brutal to look at. D-

Ryan Preece #98 Mowhawk/East West Marine Chevy SS-The sponsorship destroys an otherwise solid scheme, taking it from an A to a B+.

With that, my winter sabbatical begins. I will occasionally update the tracker and grades, but for the most part, I’m going to decompress, and enjoy the holiday season. The paint scheme leaderboard will go ahead as planned. I want to thank you for another successful year, and see you in 2016!