Ford Reveals 2013 Fusion NASCAR Sprint Cup Car, Looks More Like Production Model than Old One
Ford revealed the 2013 Fusion sedan at the Detroit auto show a few weeks ago, and now we’re getting a look at how the new design works as a race car. The big news is that the new 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Fusion looks a lot more like its production counterpart than did the car it replaces. Currently, thanks to NASCAR’s “Car of Tomorrow” uniform design, every stock car wears a body shell that’s nearly identical, with brand identification essentially consisting of a handful of headlight and grille decals. Beginning next season, NASCAR wants manufacturers to race Sprint Cup cars that wear more brand-differentiated bodywork.
To that end, the 2013 Fusion stock car borrows several cues from the car that will be available to consumers, including the Fusion’s sharp beltline crease, its daylight opening shape, and general surface treatment. The same wide-mouth grille and squinty headlights and taillights also are present, at least in sticker form.
We don’t imagine too many people will mistake the stock car for the production model, but at least it no longer looks like the same generic bar of soap as the rest of the manufacturers’ entries. Of course, the Fusion stock car also rides on a rear-wheel-drive tube-frame chassis and packs a naturally aspirated V-8 engine (despite the hilariously inaccurate EcoBoost stickers on the debut model). So it’s still a ways off from the old “Race on Sunday, sell on Monday” dynamic from NASCAR’s halcyon days, but it’s closer than we’ve seen in years. Given that, we dig.
