The NASCAR "pull-out" frenzy continues.
Detroit. Several Internet sites picked up our story about the potential possibility of one of the Detroit automakers pulling out of NASCAR, which set off shock waves in NASCAR Nation. Autoweek even weighed into the fray (while intentionally not identifying us) by contacting representatives from the Detroit Three's NASCAR programs, and they all denied having any knowledge of the fact that any discussions of this type were even going on. Which is true, because they wouldn't know. These discussions are ongoing and are confined at the very top of one of the companies - and the people currently involved in the stewardship of this particular company's NASCAR program are specifically being kept out of the loop for fear they are too close to the NASCAR solar system and can't be objective on the issue. That's why it's business as usual for the people assigned to the company's NASCAR program, because even preliminary knowledge or the hint of these kinds of discussions taking place would cause tremendous problems. But the discussions are real - and they're dead serious.
The NASCAR love-fest seems to have run its course with this one particular automaker. One high-level executive who understandably refused to have his identity revealed had this to say, "There's a growing feeling that the popularity of NASCAR is having less and less benefit for us when it comes down to what we need to accomplish in the marketplace. It remains a promotional and entertainment vehicle for our dealers, but that's about it. The timing of these discussions is not the greatest because outsiders will think we've come to this point because of the imminent arrival of Toyota in the series, but that has nothing to do with it...at all."
It's no secret that NASCAR's booming popularity with the television networks hungry for original programming and with advertisers on an endless quest for the "hot" thing has yielded huge profits for the France family-run empire in Daytona Beach. But NASCAR "boom" hasn't exactly done much for Detroit's prospects in the market, and there seems to be a feeling in Detroit that the automakers' participation is viewed as a "given" by NASCAR instead of something that has to be courted and catered to.
"We get the fact that it's a personality-driven series, that's not exactly news," the executive added. "But we sense that there's an attitude at NASCAR that our participation is automatic. That we wouldn't dream of pulling out because the visibility of the series is too great and we'd be missing out on too much if we did. But in reality, what once was an absolute 'no-brainer' in terms of us signing up for it, year after year...has recently come under considerable question and fire."
NASCAR is insisting that its infamous "Car of Tomorrow" will have more brand identification, not less. That remains to be seen, but what else would they say? When asked about that, the executive commented, "Some of our people tell us that, too, but that's irrelevant. We're spending a ton of money in NASCAR and other than reading about the big TV viewing numbers, we're just getting less and less for our investment. We need to connect potential customers with our products, that's the bottom line. We need to get the people who don't even consider our products to give them a serious look. And the question right now for us is this: Is NASCAR the best way to do that? That answer used to be a slam-dunk 'yes.' Not anymore."
I've said this before, and I'll say it again, but NASCAR doesn't need the major manufacturers' involvement. They have boxed themselves into a corner by creating a "spec" series that in reality has little connection to the NASCAR of old, where the Ford vs. Chevy vs. Dodge vs. Plymouth vs. Pontiac battles generated rabid fan support and set family loyalties for generations. That's history now. Would people really care if it became a Toyota vs. Honda vs. Hyundai series? How about an all-Toyota-branded series? The old-school NASCAR fans who still cling to the notion that NASCAR is still what it once was would care, but how many others would? NASCAR would be wise to move to the "NASCAR Special" branding of their cars, before the manufacturers make the decision for them.
I wrote a controversial column last year about the NASCAR "Bubble" and how it will reach Detroit and the boardrooms of corporate America soon enough. Now, more than ever, I firmly believe that the oversaturation of NASCAR is contributing to the growing malaise in Detroit and to the burgeoning belief that the domestic manufacturers are getting lost in the cacophony of the endless ad messages, the relentless selling of "the show" and everything else associated with the constant marketing barrage that NASCAR has become. Detroit is looking for ways to make new inroads in the marketplace. To their credit, they're looking for answers, ideas and solutions outside the usual avenues they have pursued for the last 35 years - and their traditional entanglement with NASCAR is looming as one area that will be (and should be) seriously reevaluated.
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