JUNE 2000 SHERWOOD PONTIAC display at dealership
This is a picture of a car on display at SHERWOOD PONTIAC in SHERWOOD AL. This picture was taken in June 2000.
Notice the straight NASCAR WINSTON CUP SERIES logos ahead of the front wheels. Also, there are no NASCAR 2000 stickers on the back side windows.
SEPTEMBER 2001. GRAND PRIX GATEHRING IN KANSAS CITY, MO.
This is a picture of one of the PACE CARS taken in SEPT 2001 at the GRAND PRIX GATHERING in Kansas City, MO.
This picture was taken by an unknown member of the MICHIGAN GRAND PRIX CLUB.
This car has the SWOOSH style NASCAR WINSTON CUP SERIES logos just ahead of the front wheels. The wheels on this car are the 16" FACTORY DAYTONA 500 PACE CAR EDITION wheels, as the 18" Concept Neeper SHADOW wheels used on the Pace Cars are removed prior to any cars being sold to the public. Most of the NEEPER shadow wheels were switched over to the 2001 Pace Cars.
This is the picture that made me think there may be more than two cars. I know for a fact that BOTH CARS USED IN THE RACE had the SWOOSH logos, and the NASCAR 2000 STICKERS on the back side windows. I know for sure it was a NASCAR RULE that every NASCAR RACE CAR and every operational PACE CAR HAD TO HAVE THE "NASCAR 2000" sticker prominantly dispalyed. The race cars had the sticker on the A pillar, the Grand Prix Pace Cars had the sticker on the back side windows, and the Monte Carlo Pace Cars had it on the sheetmetal behind the back side windows. I also believe (but am not 100% sure) that the rules required the NASCAR WINSTON CUP SERIES SWOOSH style logo, as I have seen that logo on every race car and pace car picture I have seen of cars IN THE 2000 DAYTONA 500. I know NASCAR had what they called CONTINGENCY stickers (meaning every car had to have them) and I know for sure the NASCAR 2000 sticker was a CONTINGENCY sticker, and I have seen the NASCAR WINSTON CUP SERIES SWOOSH logo stickers called CONTINGENCY stickers as well, though not directly from NASCAR. Other CONTINGENCY stickers for the race cars included GOODYEAR stickers, UNION 76 stickers, etc.
I also knew that the car in the JUNE 2000 show at SHERWOOD PONTIAC WAS NOT MY CAR, nor was it the same car that was at the 2001 Grand Prix Gathering. Those two cars had to be different cars. For there to have been only one other car besides mine, the other car would have had to have the following changes made to it:
February 2000 Race Day with the NASCAR WINSTON CUP SERIES SWOOSH style logos, and the DAYTONA 500 text on the doors.
June 2000 Straight style NASCAR WINSTON CUP SERIES logos, as shown at the SHERWOOD PONTIAC display.
September 2001 SWOOSH style logo at the Grand Prix Gathering in Kansas City, MO.
Fall 2005 Car sold on ebay with the STRAIGHT logo again.
It did not make sense to me that if there were ONLY TWO CARS, then the other car would have had the SWOOSH logo in the race; the STRAIGHT logo in June, 2001; then the SWOOSH logo again in Sept 2001; and finally BACK to the straight logo presently. I can't even imagine someone changing that logo once, let alone three times back and forth!
Not only that, but the door logo would have had to have been changed from the 2000 DAYTONA 500 text, to the 2000 DAYTONA 500 GRAPHICAL logo (on the GPG 2001 car), then back to the 2000 DAYTONA 500 text.
Also, if you look closely, you can see other differences. The diamonds on the cars ahead of the front wheels line up differently. On the GPG 2001 car, the yellow diamond closest to the front of the car has its left tip ABOVE the top crease (notice the creases in the bumper of the car). The diamond to the right of that has the left tip RIGHT ON the top crease.
The SHERWOOD PONTIAC dispaly car has the diamonds a little lower. The front diamond has the left tip RIGHT ON (not above) the top crease, and the 2nd diamond has the left tip BETWEEN the two creases (not on the top crease). The angle of the pictures makes it to hard to notice any little differences in the other stripes.
So I was pretty convinced then that there were more than two cars.
Well, the ebay car did not sell the first time, so it came up again, with a LETTER FROM PONTIAC HISTORIC SERVICES saying there were FOUR CARS. TWO display cars, and TWO CARS USED IN THE RACE. The letter only says that that particular car is one of the four total cars.
Jim Smith of Northern Wisconsin bought that car that was for sale on ebay. It looks exaclty like the car that was on display at SHERWOOD PONTIAC pictured above.
SO NOW WE ASK... WHO HAS THE OTHER CARS?
We are just really curious about who has the other cars. These cars are a very UNIQUE part of NASCAR HISTORY.
Here are some questions I would really love to get answered...
On February 17, 2001 DALE EARNHARDT SR gave TERRY BRADSHAW a ride around the track in a 2001 Grand Prix Pace Car. I have read newspaper articles (Tony Brolick - Atlanta) that stated that Dale Earnhardt gave Terry Bradshaw a ride in one car, and then hopped in a second Pace Car for a solo ride around the track. The article stated that it was another Grand Prix.
The original car dealer that ended up selling my car stated that my car WAS THE OTHER CAR. This was also stated to Scott Sears, PRESIDENT of the Chicago Grand Prix Club, and others that are in the Pontiac show scene. I know my GRAND PRIX PACE CAR WAS AT THE TRACK at the time, and was one used by the track for giving rides and other duties.
This would be really interesting to confirm, as it would mean that my car was ONE OF THE LAST CARS (if not THE LAST CAR) that DALE EARNHARDT EVER DROVE, besides the car he crashed in the next day. There was a center console cover stashed in the trunk of the car that has Dale Earnhardts signature as well (This is also cool, as I got Dale Jarrett to sign the passenger airbag cover in July 2005. I have photos of him in the car signing it).
If you have ANY INFORMATION to help answer any of these questions, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Email me at:
daytona500pacecars@hotmail.com
We are also looking for pictures of the Pace Cars at the track, and at DAYTONA USA. Track cars, display cars, anything. We want pictures. Pictures, video, anything.
Thanks so MUCH!!!!!