iRacing Scans 2003 NASCAR Cup Cars

After previously launching the NASCAR Legends series featuring oval racers from 1987 a couple of years ago, it seems we might be going back to another era, as iRacing scans 2003 NASCAR Cup Cars, suggesting some future releases for the sim racing service.

Some images have been teased by iRacing executive director and third placed driver that year, Dale Earnhardt Jr, with scans of two cars shared so far.

Earnhardt Jr followed up with confirmation that the two cars captured are the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup Series winning Roush Racing Ford Taurus of Matt Kenseth and the Brickyard 400-winning Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Monte Carlo of Kevin Harvick. Which are more recognisable with their DeWalt and Goodwrench liveries.

This was the Generation 4 era of NASCAR, which ran from 1992 until 2007, and in ARCA until 2017, with highly modified bodywork and senstive aerodynamics, 6-litre V8s, and entries from Chrysler (Dodge), and Toyota and Ponatic alongside the Chevrolets and Fords of that era.

Another reason for adding these cars has been the popularity of the current NASCAR Gen 4 Cup running on iRacing. But this actually uses the ARCA Menards Chevrolet Impala after it accidentally received a big power increase by mistake in 2003, and so many people clamoured for it to remain, that it was kept alongside the correct version, with some updated physics to make it less likely to overheat and more like the real cars.

Having the real cars would also require the future release of the Dodge Intrepid and Pontiac Grand Prix to complete the specific 2003 season.

Personally, I’m a big fan of sim racing series using older classic and vintage cars. They tend to attract a slightly different set of racers, who want to enjoy reliving those eras as much as pushing for victories, so there’s a little less pressure to constantly go for the win. And while I’ve never become a NASCAR onsessive, hopefully any success for the series might encourage iRacing to also look at the current road racing series featuring older cars and given them some updates and overhauls to make them more interesting. I still dream they’ll introduce a multiclass classic British saloon championship with Mini Coopers or Sunbeam Imps sharing a circuit with Ford Mustangs and Falcons.

And one of the best things about sim racing, compared to real world motorsport, is the chance to try different cars and circuits from every era of motorsport without needing to spend millions on collecting vintage racing cars, rebuilding old tracks, and doing away with modern safety improvements.

You can sign up to iRacing, here (and credit your referral to ORD, which we’d appreciate!). And see all vehicles included in your basic subscription, or what you can access by paying more, in our full official iRacing car list, here. Or check out all of the included circuits, and the others you can buy, in our full official iRacing track list, here. And keep up with all the latest iRacing news, updates and eSports, here.