Which car did NASCAR ban for being too fast? All you need to know

In 1970, the National Association for Stock Car Racing (NASCAR) banned two cars for being too fast — the Dodge Charger Daytona and the Plymouth Superbird. These two cars were new models, but due to their aerodynamic efficiency, they were regarded as too fast for the governing body to handle.

Aerodynamics has always been an integral part of Motorsports, and the 1970s were the early stages of this phase. At the time, the NASCAR cars were hardly aerodynamic, and they did not need supreme aerodynamic capability to stay on top of each other.

The Charger Daytona and Superbird arrived around the same time, and they were a step ahead of their competitors, so much so that the aforementioned cars turned out to be faster than the cars used at the time. Not only that, but NASCAR had to ban them from taking part in the sport.

It all started when Chrysler (the former owner of Dodge) sped onto the scene with the Dodge Charger Daytona, thanks to their engineer, Mercury Redstone. Redstone incorporated a sloping nosecone with a rear wing in order to balance the downforce.

As a result, a new beast was born in 1969, which won its debut race, as well as finished third. Seeing Dodge's success, Plymouth also wanted a piece of the pie. They took the aerodynamics to a whole new level and completely redefined the nosecone and body design, and that's how the Superbird was born.

It was faster than its predecessor, the Roadrunner, but was 3mph slower than the Daytona. However, its sleek body helped it generate more downforce than its Dodge rivals and put them on an even keel. While Dodge and Plymouth enjoyed their new creation, NASCAR had other things to worry about.

The governing body noticed that the tires and brakes of the cars were suffering at that speed, and it could prove disastrous if not limited. As a result, they introduced a new rule to limit car performances and reduced the engine displacement to 350cc. This meant that the Dodge Charger Daytona and the Plymouth Superbird no longer met the criteria, and were banned eventually.

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Which cars do NASCAR run in three of its national series currently?

NASCAR currently allows three manufacturers to run in the Cup, Xfinity, and Truck Series, and they are Toyota, Ford, and Chevrolet. However, there are rumors that Dodge might return to the scene along with Honda.

Toyota fields the Camry XSE for the Cup Series, the Supra for the Xfinity Series, and the Tundra for the Truck Series. Ford fields Mustang Dark Horse for the Cup Series, Mustang for the Xfinity, and F-150 for Truck Series.

Chevrolet, the third and currently most successful manufacturer, fields the Camaro ZL1 for the Cup, the Camaro SS for Xfinity, and the Silverado for the Truck Series.