Four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon and five-time champ Jimmie Johnson might earn their living in gas-guzzling V8 Chevy Impalas, but on the roads it's a different story.
In contrast to the champions' high-octane lifestyles, on a day off you're more likely to see them cruising around silently in a brace of 2011 Chevrolet Volts.
Cynical marketing perhaps, but both champs seem to enjoy their daily drivers. Johnson describes the range-extended electric car as "A cool car... it's an efficient car, and it works". Jimmie's fans don't just approach him for autographs either, with many asking him about the Volt. "I find that I'm also a PR person for the Volt, of sorts", he quips.
Gordon describes the Volt's seamless acceleration, saying "It takes off and puts you back in your seat... it's a great feeling". We can't help feeling that's a little tongue-in-cheek given the 800-odd horsepower of his NASCAR Impala, but having driven the Volt we do know what he's talking about.
The Hendrick drivers aren't the only Volt advocates on the NASCAR grid, either. We already know rival Sprint Cup driver and self-confessed "fuel junkie" Juan Pablo Montoya is a Volt owner, appreciating the car's technology.
NASCAR fans will be glad to know the sport won't be "going green" just yet, but if two of its most successful drivers in recent history are fans of the plug-in Chevy, who are we to argue? Maybe their backing will introduce a whole new generation of fans to the Volt experience?...
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