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An Inside Look At The Nissan Skyline

Not commonly found in the United States, the Nissan Skyline is a Japanese sports automobile with a lot of history. Dating back 45 years, the Nissan Skyline has received lots of awards & has earned the nickname “Godzilla.” While it’s far from being the monster machine that it’s nickname implies, this Japanese original is larger than life.

After an absence in production for 10 years, Nissan announced that it would release a new GT-R Skyline model in 1989. It was set to compete in the Japan Touring automobile Group A racing series & lead the field in an undefeated first season. For the next 5 years, the GT-R Nissan Skyline was awarded the Japan Touring automobile Group A championship.

In 1994, in honor of it’s spectacular achievements, the Nissan Skyline was given it’s own series, which was called the Japan GT automobile series. For the years ahead, the Nissan Skyline proved to be a dominating force in Japanese racing. Ultimately, there was seldom a Skyline GT-R made to comply with standards set forth by the United States. However, Motorex imports & modifies the Nissan Skyline GT-R in order to meet requirements so that the cars may be sold in the united states.

The Nissan Skyline automobiles are popular among the younger generation, as well. Ok, so maybe they don’t have a license to drive, but they can certainly burn some rubber on video games & that’s exactly what they are doing. Throughout the years, racing video games have become very popular among children of all ages – both young & elderly.

The Nissan Skyline has been shown in numerous video games after being recognized for it’s speed and sleek sporty design. Along those same lines, the Nissan Skyline has been recognized in plenty of of the biggest motion pictures to feature a racing theme. Clearly, the motto for these cars are outlined in their sleek design & sports automobile appearance.

The Nissan Skyline is an mid-size automobile, which is originally manufactured in Japan before being exported to other countries. it is sold as either a coupe or sedan style automobile and has been produced, in various models, since the 1950s. In 2008, the next generation of Nissan Skyline GT-R automobiles may be sold in the United States. Until that time, these luxury style sports cars can be converted to local standards by various manufacturers who agree to sale the automobiles. Only time will tell what the Nissan Skyline has in store but, with its rich racing history, you can bet they will race out of stock.

Earnhardt Jr left Number 8

The economic recession continues its unyielding assail on NASCAR racing. Last month, Yates Racing shut down the number 28 team driven by Travis Kvapil because there was not enough sponsorship. Co-owners Doug Yates and Max Jones simply could not afford to keep that team running without additional funding from a corporate sponsor or sponsors. While the team will compete in future races only if they get enough sponsors, the employees are in limbo right now. It was only weeks before the Daytona 500, the number 38 team which was led by David Gilliland disbanded simply because there was a lack of promotional backing. NASCAR racing is supported by advertising.

Is this a NASCAR racing trend? This is a recession, you know. Racing is a highly competitive sport that requires a lot of sponsors and advertising, to achieve financial stability. Come on already, this is a sport with a giant carbon footprint. In these times of global climate change, more and more companies are becoming aware of how “green” they are perceived to be.

It is true that a large percentage of NASCAR racing fans are aware that it was only two years ago, the number 8 was the most celebrated and recognizable numbers in NASCAR, possibly all of motor sports. The incredibly popular Dale Earnhardt Jr piloted the number 8 Budweiser Chevrolet from 2000 to 2007, and a few races in 1999. Did you know that Earnhardt Jr won seventeen races in the red number 8? That includes the 2004 Daytona 500. In addition, he won the 2000 All-Star race while he was still a new recruit. Dale Jr. became even more popular after his father’s death in February of 2001. He became a household name, as well as a marketing dream.

When Dale Earnhardt Sr. died in 2001, NASCAR racing fans latched onto Jr. and catapulted him to popular fame status. Even people who never watched NASCAR racing followed Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the sports pages. The company ran into some management difficulties and Dale Earnhardt Jr. moved on with Hendrick Motorsports and number 88. Fans surmise that his absence had a significant impact on the loss of sponsorship for number 8.

subsequent to Dale Earnhardt Jr’s departure with the United States Army as the sponsor.| Aric Almirola and Mark Martin both shared car number 8 after Dale Earnhardt Jr left and took the US Army sponsorship with him. |The US Army sponsorship went with Dale Earnhardt Jr . That left Aric Almirola and Mark Martin behind with car number 8 and no benefactor. Mark Martin’s status as an accomplished veteran is a plus but his popularity with the fans dims in comparison with that of Earnhardt Jr. After the 2008 season, Mark Martin went over to Hendrick Motorsports. Aric Alriola was read for number 8. |Aric Alriola stepped into car number 8 following Mark Martin’s departure at the end of the 2008 season. |When Mark Martin accepted a full-time ride with Hendrick Motorsports following the 2008 season, the lesser known Aric Almirola was standing by. That was another blow for number 8 among NASCAR racing fans. The United States Army sponsorship left the team and went to Ryan Newman at Stewart Haas Racing.

It seemed out of nowhere there came Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. It happened when Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates started working together. Even with that effort, they came up short of the money needed to keep Almirola competing in all 36 races.

Who knows, if they had Bobby Labonte on their team they might have found more sponsors. But Labonte chose to go with Hall of Fame Racing and Yates Racing instead. As the 2000 Winston Cup champion he had guaranteed sponsors from Academy Sports and Outdoors and Ask.com. Almirola is a talented young driver but companies tend to steer clear of unproven drivers. So Car Number 8 is suffering right now and NASCAR racing fans feel it.

The sentimental value of the number 8 is significant for the Earnhardt family. In the 1950’s and 1960’s when Ralph Earnhardt was racing he used the number 8. Dale Earnhardt Sr. drove car number 8 to his Winston Cup debut in 1975.NASCAR racing continues but it is Farewell Number 8, For Now.