2010 NASCAR MUSTANG: A NOT-SO-HUMOROUS "FUNNYCAR"
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Autoblog has posted the Ford Racing press release and initial photo of the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series "Mustang."

[Warning: the photograph at the following link may cause any number of side effects ranging from uncontrollable laughter to nausia and vomiting, depending upon how much you revere Mustangs and the discarded concept of "stock car" racing . . . ] See http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/28/ford-mustang-is-officially-nascar-bound-in-the-nationwide-seri/

Calling this "Nationwide" aesthetic abortion a "funny car" is an insult to proper NHRA funny cars. While John Force's "Mustangs" have a distorted, stretched, jacked and pulled look about them, at least they still remotely resemble a cartoon of a production Mustang.

But the 2010 Nationwide "Mustang" looks like it was designed by some Chinese "dollar toy" maker attempting to avoid a "trade dress" lawsuit or licensing fees. It's almost as if a handful of Mustang graphics were printed on a generic one-size-fits-all car cover and the mess was shrink-wrapped around a buck for NASCAR's common-template "Car of Tomorrow. Yuck!

Perhaps the reason it's scheduled for a "limited rollout" is that nobody can look at it long enough to build them full-time.

NASCAR's Mike Helton, of course, sees nothing wrong.

"We're excited about the new car in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, and particularly the new body styles such as the Ford Mustang," said NASCAR President Mike Helton. "It's going to be one good-looking race car."

Time for an eye exam, Mike. (Of course some will conclude that it's hard for Mike to see anything when his head is . . . . [fill in your own punchline])

Perhaps the old saw needs to be revised: Instead of "Race on Sunday, sell on Monday," it should "Race on Saturday, Spend all day Sunday trying to forget what horrors you saw, and sell on Monday (if you can get a "Cash for Clunkers" welfare voucher, that is) . . . ."

What a mess!