Ford won the race to unveil the 2013 model of its Sprint Cup car, showcasing its Fusion. The model was developed by Ford Racing with major input from the Ford Motor Co. Design Center and was showcased Tuesday at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

The Ford Fusion that will be used for NASCAR Sprint Cup competition in 2013 brings a new look more similar to cars that will be used on the street.

The design process included 40-percent and full-scale clay models to help assess the overall look and aerodynamics of the car. This will be the second version of the NASCAR Fusion, which debuted as Ford’s flagship model in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2006.
 

Ford engineers and executives have embraced the car's closer similarity to those that will be run on the street.

“Back in the day, designers influenced race cars because they were essentially stock cars,” said Jamie Allison, director, Ford Racing. “The more we went away from ‘stock car’ racing, the more the role of design diminished. However, the role of the aerodynamicist and the motorsports engineer increased because we were designing purpose-built race cars.”

How does the street model compare to the racing one? Judge for yourself.

“We started going back to our design community and nosed around with guys that have been with the company the longest and we can’t remember the last time designers have been involved with helping NASCAR,” said Ford Racing NASCAR Operations Manager Andy Slankard. “This time, we have had the luxury of support from the Ford Design Center to give us these sleek shapes and new look. Only designers could do that, not a bunch of engineers or race car guys.”

Ford Racing's 2013 Sprint Cup car features full redesign by Ford designers to mirror 2013 Fusion production car and return brand identity to the track. The new Fusion race car will debut at Daytona 500 in February, 2013.
 

Greg Biffle drives the 2013 Ford Fusion NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car during the NASCAR Media Tour in Concord, NC Tuesday.

Roush Fenway Racing's Greg Biffle drives the new 2013 NASCAR Ford Fusion race car at Charlotte Motor Speedway Tuesday.
 

Greg Biffle (right) and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (left) climb from their cars after taking some fast laps in Ford's future race car Tuesday.

Greg Biffle (right) climbs out of the 2013 Ford Fusion NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car after driving it out for its debut appearance with the sport's media Tuesday at Charlotte Motor Speedway.