Today I had to "educate" someone to the fact that cars racing in NASCAR have no relevance to cars in production. Because Sterling Marlin's Dodge won a race doesn't mean that a Dodge is (or isn't) a good car.

This got me to thinking: Is there ANY part in a NASCAR race car that is made by the "manufacturer" of the car (i.e, Ford, Chevrolet, Pontiac, or Dodge)? I am not talking about major components like engines or differentials; I am going right down to bolts, nuts, and washers, and I maintain that if you were to completely disassemble Sterling Marlin's "Dodge Intrepid", you could not come up with a single piece, not a nut, or a washer, or a piece of wire or a light bulb, that was the same part and used for the same purpose in a real Dodge Intrepid you can buy at the dealer.

Maybe, just maybe... the washers under the spark plugs might be the same. But I bet not -- they are probably using 14mm spark plugs in those 1960's style NASCAR engines, and modern engines for the most part are using 10mm plugs.

Can anybody document a part from a currently produced car that is used unmodified for the same purpose in a NASCAR racing car?

tanstaafl.