On February 15, 1948, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) was founded and held its first race down Daytona Beach. But the first “Strictly Stock” race, which is now the NASCAR Cup Series, didn’t take place at Charlotte Fairgrounds Speedway until June 19, 1949, in the middle of the following year. COMMERCIAL Nine automakers competed in the race, including Lincoln, Hudson, Oldsmobile, Ford, Buick, Chrysler, Kaiser, Mercury, and Cadillac—some of which you would never imagine were ever affiliated with NASCAR. In actuality, NASCAR allowed a wide variety of automobiles to compete in its early races.Regular Jeeps were not approved, but Jeepster convertibles were. Most strayed from NASCAR over time, with Lincoln and Cadillac going on to
