When you think about themes that might make for a good racecar livery you might consider looking to sleek, fast things like birds of prey or a cheetah or lightning or wind or something like that. I suspect you’d have to go pretty far down your list of animals and the occasional natural phenomenon before you landed on a lobster. Lobsters are slow, clunky things that move and look like biological clockwork, and when they’re red, that means they’re dead and cooked, ready to be slathered in butter and painstakingly disassembled and eaten by you. And yet, somehow, when a red lobster livery was selected by, shockingly, Red Lobster in the 1980s. And it’s spectacular. Just look at it.
That car is a March 83G, built by a British engineering company and using the 3.5-liter engine from the BMW M1, the same car that Andy Warhol used as the canvas for his famous BMW Art Car. Later the team, led by Dave Cowart and Kenper Miller, switched to a 3.3-liter air-cooled turbo flat-six from the Porsche 935. More importantly for this particular little post you’re reading right now, though, is that the March 83G had a pair of huge pontoon fenders that were ideal for painting huge lobster claws on.
It just works, somehow! The simple graphic quality of the lobster is just right, with its flat red color and bounded by that aqua border, and the shape of the lobster just works so well with the car. The naturally mechanical look of a lobster means that the various vents and panels and intakes that the lobster is painted over don’t detract, but rather enhance the look.
Even Red Lobster’s mildly absurd Black Letter typographic logo works in this context.
It’s all so good I’m wondering why no carmaker is offering a lobster hood decal, like the Screaming Chickens of old. Someone with a big-hooded car should consider it, at least.
Jason, you described their 82g perfectly. In the 83 season it was uncompetitive, and Cowart and Miller bought an 83g with a Chevy V8 from Al Holbert. Al had won a few races with it. They did the Red Lobster livery on it. They got a few 2nds with it, and it was the best known of the two cars. I bought the car from them in about 2007, and vintage raced it at Monterey and elsewhere for about 6 years. I sold it in that Bring a Trailer ad shown to a guy in Colorado with a nice collection, and he occasionally races it.
this isn’t just good parsh
it’s DELICIOUS parsh
From the Cocaine era of IMSA.
And what car at the 1984 Riverside 24 hour race had creepier and crawlier livery? And actually won the race? Well, it would have to be this one.
I think this car may still be for sale, saw it several times at Laguna Seca at the Historics.
https://bringatrailer.com/2013/10/24/bat-exclusive-the-red-lobster-imsa-march-83g/
What car beat it in the 1984 Daytona 24?
A creepier crawlier March
I heard the designers were in quite a pinch until they came up with this.
I find it amusing that the eyes have Xs on them, emphasizing the deadness with the redness.
Don’t know about lobsters but crawfish (crayfish? crawdads? Nobody in my childhood town, which was a college town in the upper U.S. Southeast, could agree on nomenclature) are fiendishly fast, at least in reverse (maybe not such a good thing in automotive circles unless one’s Jim Rockford.)
Love me some boiled crawdads. They are tough little buggers to catch!
You mean crawfish? When I lived in Baton Rouge for a couple of years they were easy to catch. Every restaurant had them on the menu, including the Italian restaurant I worked at.
I hope they didn’t race that car in New England. Those people are obsessed with Lobster Rolls. That thing would be tumbling in the first lap.
I really like that! The border around the lobster is what I makes it work so well even though it’s not what you notice first.
Which came first, the graphics or the sponsorship? If it was the sponsorship, kudos to the designers. If it was the graphics, it was truly inspired.
Someone should do a liver and onions livery. It would be the most livery livery ever to livery.
Face palm meta !
I didn’t even mention it racing around the Liver building, in Liverpool, being flanked by graceful Liver birds.
Saw it in action many years ago at an IMSA race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway
The pairing of both the Red Lobster livery and the Budweiser sponsorship decal is just the most fantastic thing I’ve ever seen. I know that when I am enjoying second rate seafood, I love to wash it down with a second rate beer.
If you look closely you’ll get to enjoy a Camel after your done washing down that 5th rate beer!
I want to share with you the most horrible thing I’ve seen for sale recently.
Budweiser Zero.
All the “taste” of Bud, none of the alcohol.
Hey! For a light, crisp, non-sweet bubbly thirst-quenching guzzle, Budweiser “Zerio” (as my grandson called it) is perfect.
Of course, when I want flavor I’ll grab something else entirely. (For a great NA IPA, try Athletic Brewing’s “Run Wild” — excellent.)
Flick has a good take – beer flavored carbonated water isn’t a bad thing given that there are still regular beers.
I tried it once after a workout (as the ads strongly imply one should) and it was fine, though the psychosomatic effect made it feel very weird drinking it.
I just… I…
Gods, whyyyyyyyyyyy
If I wanted a bitter taste with no buzz, I’d just drink Dr. Pepper.
I’m questioning the target audience here.
I’ve always liked that sorta grass-roots feel that IMSA has, even now.
As in, “we don’t mean ‘sports car racing’ in the snooty way…we’ll take any and all sponsors!”
I recall the Mustang SVO sponsored by Miller Lite back in the ’80s.
Does it have a cheddar biscuit holder?
This is the real question (and the real reason anyone goes to Red Lobster, TBH).
Adrian is probably planning a kipper wrap for the Mondial already.
Ummmm don’t lobsters have 4 legs on each side, plus the claws? One would think the renowned marine life experts working at Red Lobster would know this.
Lost those in turn 2.
Darlington claims another victim.
“Rubbin’ is racin’! “
This is the kind of pedantry I come here for.
But it wasn’t a rock….it was a ROCK LOBSTER!
Aaaannnddd now that’s stuck in my head. Thank you very much.
Happy Friday!
Here’s a link to a video of Planet Claire to replace Rock Lobster.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOjAzI5zALo
beep-beep
beep
beep-beep
beep
Planet Claire has pink air. All the trees are red. No one ever dies there…no one has a heaaaaaaad
Freekin’ arthropod. Never won a race did it? Probably creeped out the pit crew.
Did the car also work better if you rubbed butter on it?
Why limit the marine life theme to lobsters? If you just have a big hood to decorate, may I suggested the Trans Clam.
Careful now, this is a family site.
Sure, definitely not the kind of place that would welcome off-color material. Anyway, back to that debate about whether I should rent my mouth to the internet or teleport my urine…
I just nearly spit my coffee out.
Bonus if the car has a pop-up hood scoop?
Brings to mind that Beetle with lady-bits painted on the hood.
Someone with a big-hooded car should consider it, at least.
I could see it on a Jag XJS
There is a 24 Hours of Lemons 3000GT that has this livery. It hella works.
Thank you: I was sure I’d seen a lobster-tribute in a Wrapup/LemonsWorld video at some point
Everybody get out of here, there’s a lobster in the loose!
Ooooohhh goddd he’s loose!
That’s the most delicious livery ever.
Pork is more delicious than lobster, especially if you include bacon.
So you’re saying Porsche has this beat already?
Pink Pig FTW!
We’re going to have to agree to disagree here.