CHARLOTTE, N.C. · Hold off on that backlash, traditionalists.
Hear me out on the coming of Toyota to NASCAR's top two series, made official here this week.
This is not a "foreign invasion." This is fair competition by a naturalized American corporate citizen, and a good one -- arguably a better one, at least lately, than the native-born citizens of Detroit.
While Ford Motor Co. and General Motors are in the process of cutting 30,000 jobs apiece, Toyota employs 400,000 Americans securely. The Camry sedan, on which Toyota will base its race cars, has been the best-selling car in America for eight of the past nine years and is built in Kentucky. Toyota builds pickup trucks in Texas.
I find it annoying even to have to state this technicality, but let's get it over with: When Toyota arrives in the Nextel Cup and Busch series in 2007, it will become the first "foreign" make to compete in NASCAR's top series since Jaguar dabbled briefly in the 1950s.
Toyota and other international car brands "have become part of the fabric of our society," said NASCAR Chairman Brian France.
To prove that, just check out the spectator parking lots at racetracks, where not only Toyotas but Hondas, Volkswagens, Hyundais, Nissans and Kias abound. And not at all uncommon are Mercedes, BMW, Lexus and Volvo, bringing in the new waves of affluent fans.
By the way, you might be surprised to learn that some of those good ol' "American" Chevrolet engine blocks in NASCAR over the decades were made in Australia.
Ford, for a while, made NASCAR engine blocks in Canada.
Remember the storied "Chevy Indy V8" that dominated the Indianapolis 500 in the 1980s and early '90s? It was British designed and British built, except for the electronics.
I long ago lost count of how many wheels, suspension parts, brake components, etc., were being imported by NASCAR teams -- beginning with the legendary Last American Hero, Junior Johnson, who dealt directly with McLaren International in England.
So for decades, you haven't necessarily been seeing "All-American" racing. You were just led to believe you were.
All these decades, while that illusion was being deftly propagated, Toyota first marketed here -- and then began to build here -- cars that many Americans found more sensible and affordable than what Detroit offered.
When Toyota arrives in the Nextel Cup and Busch series in 2007, it will mark the 50th anniversary of Toyota's presence in the United States. That's more than sufficient legal residency for citizenship.
And lest we forget, the traditionalist-beloved Dodge brand is owned by German-American DaimlerChrysler, so if you're xenophobic, the "foreigners" already are here.
By and large, current team owners welcome the Asian-American citizen.
"The more the merrier," said Rick Hendrick, Chevrolet's top team owner. "It's good for the sport."
"Y'all come," said Ford's biggest owner, Jack Roush.
The same day he said that so cheerfully here, some reporters got Roush over in a corner and got him to express some concern about whether NASCAR can control Toyota's spending and technological onslaught.
Well, you can get Roush fretting about anything if you pick at him enough. Second, NASCAR already has shown in its policing of Toyota's involvement in the truck series that it won't be pushed around.
Third and perhaps most important, Toyota's plan for '07 is to back only three teams. Two will be new to Cup racing -- Michael Waltrip's new organization and the Red Bull team. The only experienced Toyota Cup team, Bill Davis Racing, has a history of mediocrity.
"Brace yourselves -- Honda won't be far behind," said track-owning tycoon Bruton Smith, whose relationship with NASCAR has often been adversarial but who's totally on board on this decision. Smith clearly would welcome Honda and whoever else may follow from the global economy.
Despite their financial troubles, Ford and GM plan to stay in racing -- they just about have to, if they want to sell cars in the United States. As long as they exist, NASCAR is not an optional pursuit. But even in a doomsday scenario for Detroit, Brian France has ensured that his league will survive and even thrive, regardless of the world car market.
Further, France is setting a keynote for how American industries can cope with the runaway phenomenon called globalization -- a deluge from which, like it or not, there is no turning back.
I knew his grandfather, NASCAR founder Bill France Sr., fairly well. I'm certain he'd be pleased, because a) he loved the international aspects of racing, and b) his overriding wish for NASCAR was that cars on the track look like the most popular cars on the streets and highways.
The most common sight at any intersection today is the Toyota Camry. So NASCAR is, in a way, becoming more American than ever.
