Chevy drivers still believe in financially troubled GM (cont'd)

That is what worries Jeff Burton the most. The driver of the No. 31 Chevy for RCR said Friday that GM's financial woes merely reflect that of the greater ills plaguing the entire country.

"Obviously, my biggest concern is that if the overall economy doesn't allow people to go look at vehicles and purchase them -- because that impacts us in a great many ways, just as it impacts General Motors in a great many ways," Burton said.

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We've got to get off of our wallets and get back to being Americans again and living our lives the way we're used to.

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TONY STEWART

Burton insisted that if only Americans will give the Chevy brand a chance, they will like what they see. But he readily admitted that isn't going to matter if the bigger picture of the ailing economy doesn't improve first.

"In my opinion, with Chevrolet in particular, if we can get people to go sit in 'em and drive 'em, they're going to buy 'em. They've made huge improvements," Burton said.

"My big concern as it relates to Chevrolet is freeing up credit, giving people the security they want if they want to buy a car, that they have a job and they can do it. The real key is what's the overall economy? Chevrolet has shown for years that they're very committed to racing, and that's not going to go away. But if the economy doesn't get jump-started, if credit doesn't get freed up, if people feel insecure about their jobs or don't have one, not only Chevrolet but a lot of manufacturers of all kinds of products are going to have a difficult time. I'm much more concerned about that."

Thursday's announcement that GM was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy was followed by more bleak economic news when it was announced that the unemployment rate in the U.S. has reached 8.1 percent -- the highest in 25 years. That is evidence that GM is far from alone in facing a difficult financial future, at least in the short term.

"I don't know that you can just pin it on General Motors," Harvick said. "I think if you want to go through the garage and really pin situations on just about any sponsor in the garage. You can just look around and see how bad it is for everybody.

Newman added: "There obviously is a sense of concern. I've gotten a little bit of information about what's going on, but nothing that's going to tell me what's going to happen or anything like that. It's a tough time for everybody out there, and Chevrolet is doing all they can to make sure they don't get caught in a situation like [having to file for bankruptcy]. It's kind of a wait-and-see situation for them, as well as everybody else out there."

It is bad enough out there right now to keep Harvick from turning on the television news programs at night.

"You turn on the news and I hate to say this in front of all you guys [in the media center], but I don't watch it," Harvick said. "It's so hard to turn the news on because everything is so negative. It's always the worst that is reported -- and I think from everything that everybody has talked about, I really believe that going forward, [GM is] going to end up being stronger than they have ever been."

Newman said all he can do is try to keep his No. 39 Chevy up toward the front on race days, and into Victory Lane if he can. He said he figures every little bit helps.

"We need to get through this cycle and see how everything goes," Newman said. "I'm doing everything I can as a Chevrolet driver to try to help them in all ways possible."

Stewart warned that the consequences would be harsh for NASCAR if one or more manufacturer isn't able to survive the current economic crisis.

"The fallout if we lose any of these manufacturers, it's going to be tremendous," Stewart said. "And I think it's at the stage now where we can't rely on our government to do it all for us. We have to take an active role ourselves -- and I'm not saying as drivers or as NASCAR. I'm saying as a whole country together. We've got to get off of our wallets and get back to being Americans again and living our lives the way we're used to.

"I know that's easier said than done. Every time you turn on the news, you're petrified. I sit there and watch the news and I beg to turn the channel to something else, to where I'm not so depressed. I know it's partially reality, but at the same time, the only way to get through it is to resume doing what we do again."

From CNN.com
• General Motors: What's at stake?