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Chevy might've pulled out of NASCAR if it weren't for new Gen 6 car

We've been on the fence with NASCAR for some time now. On one hand, it's some of the closest racing anywhere in motorsports, with actual passing and door-handle-to-door-handle action as a matter of course. But on the other, it's become template racing - a personality-driven sport more about the drivers than any sort of loyalty to a particular automaker. The Car Of Tomorrow format really rammed that message home, with a racecar's identity coming down to little more than headlamp stickers slapped on the nose. That's not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but we've wondered for some time what's in it for the automakers, who pay big money to stay in a series that has had little increasingly little do with street car sales, let alone innovation.
Apparently General Motors was beginning to wonder the same thing. In a new ESPN report, Rick Hendrick, team owner of Hendrick Motorsports, suggests that GM would have seriously considered leaving NASCAR if it wasn't for the move away from the COT to the new Gen 6 racer. According to Hendrick, GM North America boss Mark Reuss spearheaded the charge away from the 2007 COT and toward a racecar with clearer automaker ties - cars like the new Chevrolet SS racer shown above. Learn more about the fight for a closer-to-production look in the ESPN story at the link.
Now, if we could just get more rear-wheel drive V8 coupes into showrooms....

Here are all the cars GM is axing as part of its restructuring

GM plans to kill off a couple of great and a few meh cars as part of its restructuring. Here's a rundown of all the cars being phased out of production. None of the vehicles GM axed were SUVs or crossovers. Instead, it was an action reminiscent of what Ford recently decided to do by discontinuing U.S. sales every Blue Oval sedan. GM just didn't explicitly say, "We're killing our cars," like Ford did — probably a smart move by GM. Keep scrolling down to see the full list of deceased GM models. Chevrolet Volt This one was the most surprising of all the cars GM decided to can, primarily because cars with plugs are supposed to be our future. However, maybe consumer demand just isn't quite there yet for a plug-in like the Volt. We came up with all sorts of ideas for what was to blame for the untimely demise of the Volt, so go check that out for a full breakdown of the situation. Cadillac CT6 Here's another car we'll be sad to see go. Cadillac's flagship sedan was such a joy to drive, and it served as the conduit to deliver GM's semi-autonomous Super Cruise system, which still hasn't been surpassed by any other company's technology in our books, even Tesla's Autopilot. That being said, GM does plan to produce the CT6 until March, with the last cars coming off the line set to be twin-turbo V8 V-Series models. If it's going to go, this seems like a pretty great way to make an exit. We'll be patiently awaiting the next flagship Cadillac once this one finally fades away. Chevrolet Impala The Impala is actually a pretty good car. It doesn't sell terribly, and we think it's a completely satisfactory car to drive. However, people would rather have a Traverse or Equinox these days, making the Impala one of the vehicles to find itself on this list. Chevrolet is keeping its smaller brother, the Malibu, but a big, full-size sedan just isn't what people are ordering up these days. It's unfortunate to see it go, but we won't be broken up over it. Chevrolet Cruze We wouldn't rank the Cruze at the top of the compact car class, but if you were looking for a small, cheap American car, it was either this or the Focus. The Cruze had the potential to be a true small performance car if Chevy had ever wanted to make it into one. But sadly, we're seeing it bow out before Chevy ever tried to slot a hot engine and suspension in there to make it competitive with other hot hatches. A Cruze SS would have made enthusiasts take notice.

Looking back at the Citation IV concept that likely shaped the GM EV1

Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it. We're not sure how that applies to the GM EV1, but we'd still like to share something from Autoline Daily, an online automotive new show with our friend John McElroy. He's been covering the business for decades now and recently found something interesting: pictures of the 1984 Chevrolet Citation IV concept, seen above. Displayed half a decade before the first electric concept that would become the EV1 (inset), McElroy says it's now clear that the elegant, aerodynamic EV1 took a lot of styling cues from the Citation IV, which was developed in part thanks to GM's new-at-the-time Aerodynamics Laboratory. We agree with him that the spats over the rear wheels, the flush glass, and the covered headlights all bear a certain kind of similarity between the two cars. That the colors almost match is a nice coincidence. The Impact (the concept version of the EV1) looked "frumpier," McElroy says, because it wasn't as long as the Citation. You can read a lot more about the Citation IV here and check out McElroy's thoughts in the video below. Find the Citation starting at around 3:45. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.