Tag: jr.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-March 5, 2022

By David G. Firestone

Ross Chastain #1 Casa Del Sol Tequila Chevy Camaro-It’s a smooth look, with a great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

Austin Cindric #2 Menards/Quaker State Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same C grade.

Austin Cindric #2 Autotrader Ford Mustang-This is a major update with the removal of the old Penske template. It looks great, and I can’t complain. A

Austin Cindric #2 Keystone Light Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Austin Dillon #3 Behr Dynasty Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Kevin Harvick #4 Subway Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same F grade.

Corey LaJoie #7 General Formulations/Mutoh Chevy Camaro-The green isn’t needed here, and the white is visually distracting. It’s not bad, so I’ll give it a B+

Tyler Reddick #8 Lenovo Chevy Camaro-Red and black is a great color scheme, and the design is well done, so this gets an A.

Aric Almirola #10 Rush/Mobil Delvac Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Ground Toyota Camry-Same scheme as FedEx Express, same A grade.

Daniel Hemric #16 Poppy Bank Chevy Camaro-I think that the stripes are over done, and that the white really isn’t needed. Still, it isn’t bad, so it gets a B.

Martin Truex Jr. #19 Reser’s Fine Foods Toyota Camry-It’s not terrible, but the blue and white isn’t needed, and takes an A scheme down to a B.

Joey Logano #22 Auto Trader Ford Mustang-This is a major update with the removal of the old Penske template. It looks great, and I can’t complain. A

Bubba Wallace #23 Wheaties Toyota Camry-It’s a smooth look, with a great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

Jacques Villeneueve #27 Woodie’s Wash Shack Ford Mustang-I like the color scheme, and the design scheme works well. This gets an A.

Todd Gilliland #38 Frontline Ford Mustang-The shades of gray, and orange don’t work here, and the car is much too over designed, so this gets an F.

Cole Custer #41 Production Alliance Group Ford Mustang-Red and black is a great color scheme, and the design is well done, so this gets an A.

Ty Dillon #42 Allegiant Chevy Camaro-I like the shade of blue, and the stripe looks good. I also love the wheel well motif. A

Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. #47 Honey Nut Cheerios Chevy Camaro-So JTG Daugherty Racing has the new template, and I like it with this design. It works well, and it gets an A.

The Driver Suit Blog-The Final Paint Scheme Grades of 2021-November 13, 2021

By David G. Firestone

Quin Houff #00 Creek Enterprises Inc. Chevy Camaro-Nothing really improved here, nothing made worse, it gets a B.

Austin Dillon #3 Behr Dynasty Chevy Camaro-I love the new motif, the splatter works, this looks awesome, and this gets an A.

Ryan Newman #6 Castrol GTX Full Synthetic Ford Mustang-I think the design is over done. I think the gray is pointless. It’s got a decent color scheme. I’ll give this a D.

Ryan Blaney #12 Menard’s/Jack Links Beef Jerky Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

David Starr #13 Bob Menery Ripper Magoo/Club Scottsdale Toyota Camry-A smooth look, and a great color scheme will always earn an A.

Garrett Smithley #15 Carpets of Arizona Chevy Camaro-The black isn’t needed, the yellow stripes are a bit over done, but it’s a decent scheme so it gets a B.

Anthony Alfredo #38 Boot Barn Ford Mustang–It’s a very well done patriotic motif, the scheme looks great, this gets an A.

Erik Jones #43 Rellevate Chevy Camaro-It’s a smooth look, with great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. #47 Honey Nut Cheerios Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Cody Ware #51 Nurtec ODT/80th Anniversary of the Attack on Pearl Harbor Camaro-It’s a smooth look, with great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

Justin Haley #77 Peacock Chevy Camaro-There is nothing really wrong with this scheme, but nothing really right either, so I’ll give this a C.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-May 1, 2021

By David G. Firestone

Quin Houff #00 Permatex Chevy Camaro-New look, same grade. Switching the orange and blue really doesn’t make the scheme better or worse, so it gets the same A- it got last year.

Kevin Harvick #4 Busch Dog Brew Ford Mustang-I like the color scheme, and the forest and dog motif works well. A

Ryan Newman #6 Castrol Ford Mustang-It’s an improvement, but it still is over designed, just not as much. C

Corey LaJoie #7 Fox Nation Chevy Camaro-I like a good American flag motif, and this works very well, and I have no complaints. A

Tyler Reddick #8 Roland Chevy Camaro-It’s very rare I can’t decide which scheme I hate more, last year’s scheme or this year’s. This year’s scheme might be the worse of the two, either way, it gets an F.

Denny Hamlin #11 SportClips Throwback Toyota Camry-It’s a nice throwback, very faithful and it looks great. A

Ryan Blaney #12 Menard’s/Sylvania Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Kaz Grala #16 Hyperice Chevrolet Chevy Camaro-I think the silver is pointless, and it’s visually distracting. It takes an A- scheme down to a B+.

Chris Buescher #17 AutoTempest Ford Mustang-I like the great color scheme, but I think the car is over designed. All things considered, this gets a C.

Kyle Busch #18 M&M’s 80s Anniversary Toyota Camry-I like this scheme a lot more, as it’s smoother, and I really like the plain black numbers. A

Ryan Preece #37 Kroger/Reese’s Chevy Camaro-This template sucks even when color coordinated. With the Reese’s clashing, this goes from a C to a D-

Ross Chastain #42 Caregility/Yorktel Chevy Camaro-Get rid of the stripes, and this is an A scheme. With the stripes, This gets a B+

Erik Jones #43 Tuskegee Airmen Tribute Chevy Camaro-This is an amazing scheme! It has a great look, and color scheme, so it gets an A.

Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. #47 NOS Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Alex Bowman #48 Ally Financial Throwback Chevy Camaro-I like the look, and it’s a great throwback. A

Matt Mills #55 Siebert Electric Ford Mustang-I like the look, and color scheme, and it gets an A.

Justin Haley #77 Fraternal Order of Eagles Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

BJ McLeod #78 Long-Lewis Ford Ford Mustang-This reminds me of the #21 Motorcraft Mustang, and that’s a good thing! This is a great scheme, and it gets an A.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-June 13, 2020

By David G. Firestone

Kevin Harvick #4 Busch Light For The Farmers Ford Mustang-I really like the farm design, and the car is well-designed. This is a good scheme, and it gets an A.

Ryan Newman #6 Progressive Insurance Ford Mustang-The car has a good color scheme, and the design scheme is smooth, and good. I can’t give this anything less than an A.

JJ Yeley #7 VCP/4URX Chevy Camaro-The car has a good color scheme, and the design scheme is smooth, and good. I can’t give this anything less than an A.

Clint Bowyer #14 Built Ford Proud Ford Mustang-My only complaint is that the white doesn’t really help, but it’s a very minor complaint. A-

Clint Bowyer #14 Peak Throwback Mustang-The throwback is faithful, the car looks good, I give this an A.

Clint Bowyer #14 Busch Light For The Farmers-I really like the farm design, and the car is well-designed. This is a good scheme, and it gets an A.

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

Matt DiBenedetto #21 Menard’s/Knauf Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same B+ grade.

Josh Bilicki #27 Insurance King Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same F grade.

Corey LaJoie #32 Built Bar Ford Mustang-I don’t really like this scheme, but I don’t hate it either. It’s just mediocre, and it earns a C

Darrell Wallace Jr. #43 McDonald’s Chevy Camaro-It’s amazing how much better the car looks without the white. This is a good look, and I give it an A.

Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. #47 NOS Chevy Camaro-I like the color scheme, and the smooth design scheme looks great. A

Joey Gase #51 Chevy Camaro-A smooth look, with a great color scheme will always earn an A.

Bayley Currey #53 Belmont Classic Cars Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Daniel Suarez #96 Coca-Cola Toyota Camry-This is a good look. The red works, and the design is smooth, and simple, and the scheme gets an A.

Daniel Suarez #96 Cherry Vanilla Coke Toyota Camry-The only thing I like about this scheme is the good color scheme. This scheme gets a D+.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-February 29, 2020

By David G. Firestone

Quin Houff #00 Victory Weekend Chevy Camaro-My only complaint is I think that the red stripe splitting in to two different stripes is pointless. Other than that, this is a good scheme. A-

Tyler Reddick #8 Tame the Beast Chevy Camaro-Same scheme as last year, same B+ grade.

Clint Bowyer #14 Blue Def Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same C grade.

Brennan Poole #15 GOETTL Chevy Camaro-I like the color scheme, the design scheme is great, and the car looks good. A

Kyle Busch #18 Snickers White Toyota Camry-I like the color scheme here but I think that the design scheme is a bit over designed. It’s not a bad scheme, so I will give it a B

Martin Truex, Jr. #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry-Even though I don’t like this shade of orange, the cleaner look makes this car look better. This gets a B.

Erik Jones #20 Irwin Tools Toyota Camry-This is another case of great color scheme with bad design scheme. They cancel each other out, so this scheme gets a C.

Ryan Preece #37 Natural Light Seltzer Chevy Camaro-It has a horrible color scheme, it’s badly designed, and it makes you sick when looking at it with a hangover. I’ll give this an F.

John Hunter Nemechek #38 Berry’s Bullets Ford Mustang-I can’t say anything bad about this. The color scheme is great, as is the design scheme. This gets an A.

Cole Custer #41 Production Alliance Group Ford Mustang-I like the color scheme here, but the red and white designs are over designed. The car has a very cluttered look as a result. Still, it isn’t horrible, so I’ll give it a B.

Darrell Wallace Jr. #43 Coca Cola Energy Chevy Camaro-New scheme for 2020, black with a series of tiny red stripes on sides. F

Another scheme that makes you dizzy when you look at it. There are too many lines, and the car looks horrible. F

Reed Sorenson #77 Chevy Camaro-It’s a smooth look, with a great color scheme, and that will always gets an A.

The Driver Suit Blog-Paint Scheme Grades-June 8, 2019

By David G. Firestone

Landon Cassill #00 Madison Group Chevy Camaro-The gray on white designs could be toned down.  That would be a great improvement.  It’s not a terrible design, but it has room for improvement. B

Brad Keselowski #2 Wabash National/Supreme Ford Mustang-Same scheme as last year, same A grade.

Kevin Harvick #4 Busch Light Fathers Day Ford Mustang-The cluttered rear quarter panel is a downgrade, and the car as a whole suffers as a result.  It’s still great, but the new design does take the scheme from an A to an A-

Ryan Newman #6 Oscar Meyer/Velveeta Throwback Ford Mustang-Full disclosure, I loved the old Mark Martin Valvoline design.  This new version with Oscar Meyer and Velveeta colors is not as great.  The red, white, and blue design works well.  Red, green and white doesn’t work as well.  It’s still decent, so I’ll give it a B+.

Daniel Hemric #8 Kalahari Resorts Chevy Camaro-This is getting a higher grade, because it’s a better scheme…by comparison.  It’s over designed, and I don’t like the shade of blue.  But compared to last year’s scheme, it’s an improvement.B+

Aric Almirola #10 Valley Tech Academy Ford Mustang-New sponsor for 2019, white front, fades to dark blue rear, red stripe on sides. B-

Aric Almirola #10 Smithfield Throwback Ford Mustang-For Tony Stewart’s Hall of Fame election, Stewart-Haas Racing’s cars are being painted in the colors of Tony’s Cup Championship schemes.  The first from 2002, is based on Tony’s Home Depot.  It’s a faithful replica, so that’s good, and I do like the Home Depot’s shade of orange.  All things considered, this gets an A.

Clint Bowyer #14 Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 Ford Mustang-This second Tony Stewart Throwback is based on his 2011 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevy.  Like the #10, it’s a faithful replica, with correct colors.  I liked the design back then, and I like this now, so this gets an A.

Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. #17 NOS Ford Mustang-NOS has had some schemes over the years that would not get a passing grade.  This isn’t one of them.  This is a good scheme.  The colors work well, the car is not over designed, and it has a smooth look.  All things considered, this gets an A.

Corey LaJoie #32 Visone RV/Wildcat Adventures Ford Mustang-It’s a smooth look, with a great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

Matt Tift #36 Surface Sunscreen Ford Mustang-It’s a smooth look, with a great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

David Ragan #38 Exploria Resorts Ford Mustang-Gray isn’t always the best base color for a race car.  Add in a pointlessly over designed mess of a scheme, and you get an F grade.

Daniel Suarez #41 Haas Throwback Ford Mustang-The third Tony Stewart Championship throwback scheme is based on his 2005 Home Depot scheme, which is the best of the three.  It’s faithful, and it has a great look, and that will always earn an A.

Darrell Wallace Jr. #43 Victory Junction Ford Mustang-My only complaint here is that the designs on the front are over designed.  Other than that, this is a good scheme. A-

J.J. Yeley #52 Steakhouse Elite/Weis Markets Chevy Camaro-It’s a smooth look, with a great color scheme, and that will always earn an A.

The Driver Suit Blog-Grading the 2013 All-Star Race

By David G. Firestone

Last week was the All-Star Showdown and the All-Star Race.  These two events are magnets for special paint schemes.  The top two finishers from the Showdown move to the All-Star Race.  I have graded both events, starting with the Showdown.  It is ranked from best to worst.

The Good:

1 David Reutimann #83 Burger King/Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry. Great classic design with a great color scheme that gets an A+

2 Travis Kvapil #93 Burger King/ Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry See Above, A+

3 David Gilliland #38 Long John Silvers Ford Fusion Good color scheme, and the basic design used with that scheme on this car just makes it stand out. I’m not a fan of yellow on race cars in most cases, but I’ll overlook it this time because it is just so good. A+

4 Jeff Burton #31 Cat Chevy SS The scheme is solid, has good colors, great number designs and a good pattern used. Final Grade: A

5 Martin Truex Jr. #56 NAPA Toyota Camry Simple, elegant with a great color scheme, great logos and great number design.  Final Grade: A

6 Aric Almirola #43 Smithfield Ford Fusion Lose the design on the doors and it would be perfect. Other than that this scheme is perfect and earns a solid A

7 Mike Bliss #19 Gentry Plastics Inc. Toyota Camry-Good color scheme and simple design work well here, A

8 Terry Labonte #32 Oxy Water Ford Fusion I don’t know why, but I like this scheme. Normally I wouldn’t like the color scheme and basic design but for whatever reason, I like this. A-

9 Juan Pablo Montoya #42 Target Chevy SS Great color, great number design, and the pattern used is a lot more subtle than last year’s scheme. The quarter-panels have too many associate sponsors and looks too cluttered, keeping the Final Grade at a B.

10 Bobby Labonte #47 House Autry House Foods Toyota Camry The design is simple, but good. The color scheme need some work. The red used is too bright, as is the blue. The logo group on the quarter-panel is awful. B-. If the color wasn’t so bright, I could grade it higher.

The So-So

11 Joe Nemechek #87 Royal Teak Toyota Camry Good color scheme, simplistic design, not much to say here, C

12 Landon Cassill #33 Bicycle NASCAR Playing Cards Chevy SS-Decent color scheme, but the design is all over the place, way too chaotic, C-

13 Paul Menard #27 Serta Chevy SS Basically the same scheme as his regular scheme, but different hood logo…nothing really to say here…C-

14 JJ Yeley #36 World TradeX Chevy SS– Not much to say here…other than make the logo bigger. D-

15 Dave Blaney #7 Sany Chevy SS Great color scheme ruined by bad door design and generic racing number design. The design is just disgusting to look at, and it gets a D-

16 Casey Mears #13 Geico Ford Fusion Eww…just eww. The color scheme is dreadful, and the designs on the side are painful to look at. It passed because of the logo and number design. Final Grade: D-

17 David Stremme #30 Lean 1 Toyota Camry The best way I can describe this scheme is that there is nothing good about it. Anything they could have messed up with this scheme, they did. It gets an F

18 Scott Riggs #44 No Label Watches Ford Fusion An awful scheme made much worse by a horrible color scheme that earns an F- grade.

19 Michael McDowell #95 Levine Family Racing Ford Fusion There is nothing right about this scheme. F-

20 Brian Keselowski #52 Supportmillitary.org Toyoa Camry-Eww…Too much going on, with the oversized camo in too many different colors, and the door design which is awful. F-

Now on to the All-Star Race.  Jamie McMurray, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. transferred in from their performances in the Showdown, and Danica Patrick was voted in.  As such, their grades will be mentioned here.

The Good

1 Brad Keselwoski #2 Miller Lite Fan Mosiac Ford Fusion.  It looks really good, and the pictures of the fans give it a condensation on the can effect that is really cool.  A+

2 David Ragan #34 CSX Play It Safe Ford Fusion This is a very solid scheme, with great colors, great design and an overall great look. CSX did this scheme very well and it gets an A+

3 Kyle Bush #18 Snickers Bites Toyota Camry A paint scheme that has a great color scheme, and illustrates the theory that less is more. Nothing bad about this Scheme-A+

4 Joey Logano #22 Pennzoil Ford Fusion Pennzoil has an amazing shade of yellow, and they really put it on display in this A+ scheme

5 Jeff Gordon Cromax Pro Chevy SS Another good DuPont inspired scheme with a great color scheme and great design-A+

6 Dale Earnhardt Jr. #88 National Guard Chevy SS Great scheme, nothing wrong, A+

7 Danica Patrick #10 Go Daddy Cares Chevy SS-The racing stripe makes the scheme look better, and the hood logo is good as well  A

8 Carl Edwards #99 Fastenal Ford Fusion The stripes work well here, and the color scheme is good. A

9 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. #17 Best Buy Ford Fusion  The number design, color scheme, and simplistic design give the car a good look. A

10 Kevin Harvick #29 Budweiser/Rheem Chevy SS-Good color scheme, and I like the two different designs on the side.  A-

11 Clint Bowyer #15 5 Hour Energy Toyota Camry Good color scheme, decent design, could use some work on the front. B+

12 Tony Stewart #14 National Wild Turkey Federation Chevy SS Good color scheme and overall design, but the major issue I have is with the NATIONAL WILD TURKEY being on a curve and not as visible It gets a B-

The So-So

13 Jamie McMurray #1 Bass Pro Shops/NWTF Chevy SS-Great Color Scheme, Awful design, C+

14 Denny Hamlin #11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry The front nose design and stripes are awful. The color scheme is great, but the stripes kill it. The best grade I can give is a C+

15 Greg Biffle #16 3M Filtrete Ford Fusion-Could you please pick a color scheme and stick with it?  Two different color schemes on the same car is just awful. But they are two good color schemes. C-

16 Ryan Newman #39 Aspen Dental Chevy SS-Good colors, but awful design…what does this have to do with teeth?  C-

17 Jimmie Johnson #48 Lowes Patriotic Chevy SS-Not the best scheme he has run all year, but I would love to see the car in that shade of red on the bottom C-

18 Matt Kenseth #20 Husky Toyota Camry Not much really to say, mediocre color scheme, no real design to comment on, the logos are plain Jane enough, it’s a bland scheme that earns a C grade. A mediocre grade for a mediocre scheme.

The Awful

19 Marcos Ambrose #9 Stanley/DeWalt Ford Fusion  Is it normal to get seasick while looking at a paint scheme?  The Petty Blue just does not work here, and the oval around the letters is pointless.  The car looks awful even though it has a great color scheme and great sponsor logos. D

20 Kurt Busch #78 Furniture Row Military Appreciation Night Chevy SS I love the matte black that Furniture Row usually uses, so this is kind of disappointing. That said, the color are good, but the hood design needs work. The MILITARY APPRECIATION banner is much to small and it is hard to see at speed. A good scheme that has been ruined and earns a D-

Before I leave, I have two more pieces of business.  First off, I would also like to extend congratulations to Tim Flock, Jack Ingram, Dale Jarrett, Maurice Petty, and Glen “Fireball” Roberts for being elected to the 2014 class of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Second off, RIP Dick Trickle.  You will be missed.