Best Paint Schemes of 2023

For many fans, paint schemes are one of the best things about NASCAR. Iconic paint schemes still sit comfortably in the minds of fans from all generations. The classic STP 43, Dale Earnhardt’s black Goodwrench car, and Jeff Gordon’s rainbow scheme all come to mind as prime examples. As the 2023 season has ended, the crew at Pit Pass Network wanted to highlight the best paint schemes across the three series. After reading through this list, leave a comment below about your favorite paint schemes from 2023.

The Throwbacks

Everyone loves a great throw back. This year, fans were spoiled with them at more than Darlington in the spring. A lot of the throwback paint schemes were Kevin Harvick inspired due to his retirement tour. Here are the favorites from the Pit Pass Network crew.

From Andy: I loved seeing this scheme in person. It brought back memories of Jeff Gordon. It was very well done. 

Talladega Nights (plus Brad)

Stewart-Haas Racing cooked up something special for the second race at Talladega. Ryan Preece’s and Chase Briscoe’s car were transformed into the Wonder Bread and Old Spice machines from Talladega Nights. Briscoe went all out, shaving his facial hair to match John C Reily’s Cal Naughton Jr. Plus, Brad Keselowski rolled out a pretty neat scheme as well.

From Jane: This scheme was just awesome. The fans ate it up and I feel like it brought some good attention to the sport. And I love how much Briscoe leaned into the role. 

Patriotic Schemes

NASCAR fans love their paint schemes with the red, white, and blue on them. That or schemes that honor the troops. Pit Pass Network is no different. Here is a look at the patriotic schemes that were selected.

From Tiffany: The Coke 600 scheme looked so dang good up close. The green variation was done so well. 

Race Winning Schemes

Certain paint schemes look better after getting showered in confetti. A couple of race winning schemes were selected by the PPN team.

Food & Drink on the Car

NASCAR has a long history of the food industry being featured on the car. From fast food restaurants to entire grocery stores, the 2023 season had plenty of food/drink based schemes on track. These are some favorites.

From Griffin: Fire Department Coffee brought some great paint schemes to Kaz Grala’s 26 car. With the kraken featured heavily on the front, Grala’s Charlotte scheme won out over the others. 

From Mark: The combination of the two shades of blue (dark and sky) compliments each other very smoothly. Stenhouse’s dog Ruby being featured on the side of the car also adds a unique element to it.

From Greg: This was cool paint scheme as it reminded me of older video games where the driver name was put on the car instead of the Alcohol Sponsor. Furthermore, it also reminded me of the Talladega Nights themed SHR did earlier at Talladega. If they had just painted a cougar on the car, they’d have won.

Best of the Other Paint Schemes

The remaining paint schemes did not fit neatly into any categories, but they were still great nonetheless.