RideLust

Small racetracks once populated the rural landscape of America. As a kid, I remember driving past a small dirt oval on the way down to my grandmother’s house. On a Friday night, the lights would be on and the stands would be packed with people there to watch locals duke it out in backyard-built stock cars. That track, New Egypt Speedway, is still around, but many others aren’t. Mountain View Motorsport Park, where I learned that even front-wheel-drive cars can oversteer, is gone. Second Creek Raceway, my favorite track to drive back in the day? It’s gone, too.

Dodge’s latest ad examines the fate of these tracks, and ties their demise to the death of performance cars. Who wants to turn a Dodge Neon, Chevy Cavalier or Ford Contour into a stock car? Where are the front-mounted V-8 engines powering the rear wheels? Dodge has an answer, but it’s not the car you think it is. Check out the video below to see what I’m talking about.