Hickory, North Carolina
Dale Earnhardt may not have won, but his Day Glo Red Paint Scheme featuring Taz from the Looney Tunes is something NASCAR fans remember fondly.
During the 2000 Daytona 500, Earnhardt’s team shifted away from the usual black Goodwrench Plus design, opting for a striking red look and adding Taz on the hood of his Chevrolet Monte Carlo. At the time, Taz was a part of a GM Goodwrench ad campaign, quickly becoming a favorite among fans, with merchandise featuring this character flying off the shelves.
Earnhardt performed well in the Taz-themed car during Daytona, racing for about 30 laps alongside his son, who was driving the Budweiser No. 8. The Taz car was cut from chassis No. 58, and toy company Hasbro later snagged it, breaking it into pieces to include in their winner’s circle diecast.
A year later, Earnhardt tragically died in a crash that transformed NASCAR at the Daytona 500 in 2001, and the Taz car disappeared from view.
Until last weekend.
The Zmax Cars Tour, a late model stock car series co-owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr., held one of its biggest races of the season at the historic Hickory Motor Speedway in western North Carolina. Dubbed “the biggest night in the history of Pavement Late Model Racing,” the Throwback Classic offered substantial prizes.
What made the event even cooler was the encouragement for drivers to pay tribute to legendary cars and past sports figures with throwback paint schemes. For instance, Connor Jones honored Jimmy Johnson with a white No. 48 car featuring Lowe’s ads, while Blaine Harrison and Dawson Sutton opted for Darrell Waltrip designs. Other legends like Jeff Gordon and Rusty Wallace were also commemorated.
Doug Burns Jr. knew exactly what he wanted for his car when he got the chance to participate: a Taz scheme.
“I saw everyone else’s throwbacks and thought, ‘If I’m going to do this, I want the Tasmanian Devil’s car,’” Burns shared. He decided to paint the car red to save costs. “It was my favorite car,” he added.
So, there was Taz at Hickory Motor Speedway. Although rain delayed the race to Sunday, Burns did well, finishing fifth among his competitors.
A 27-year-old from Harford County, Maryland, Burns has only a few memories of watching Earnhardt races as a child but developed a passion for the sport through merchandise. “I might not have been attracted by diecasts specifically, but I can tell you all about Dale Earnhardt’s paint schemes,” he mentioned. “I’ve always been a junior fan too.”
Burns wasn’t concerned about potential red tape regarding the scheme. “It’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission,” he joked. He shared a picture of the car with Dale Jr., who thought it looked great. “By the time I showed it to him, we were already committed,” Burns noted. “We’re just glad to have it all come together.”
Finishing fifth marked one of his best performances this year, placing him in the top five on the tour while securing seventh spot in ten races overall.
This time around, the Taz cars aren’t being turned into collectibles. Instead, Burns plans to keep the car in his garage in Florida, possibly cutting out the door for signatures from the team and crew.
