Larry Carter, a 14-year veteran in NASCAR racing's highest level of competition, has joined Penske Racing South as crew chief for driver Rusty Wallace and his Miller Lite Dodge racing team.

Ken Schrader will return to the seat for a second consecutive season, but the team is still without sponsorship. Schrader's name came up with some other rides, but BAM returns for the full season. The team is said to be close to a couple sponsorship deals.

Jeff Burton will be back for a ninth season with Jack Roush, but the team is committed to running just 14 Nextel Cup races unless a full-time sponsor is found.

The team will have a different paint scheme for 2004, as Grainger is gone as primary sponsor of the team. The team will use multiple primary sponsors in 2004. Doug Richert, who was hired as crew chief late in the season, will continue in that role. More

Chris Andrews will be Robby Gordon's rookie crew chief in 2004. Kevin Hamlin, Gordon's crew chief in 2003, went over to the No. 30 team to work with Johnny Sauter. More

Bill Elliott is retiring as a full-time driver -- he will run 10-15 races in 2004. Kasey Kahne will pilot the No. 9 Dodge the entire year and will run for Rookie of the Year. No car number for Elliott has been announced. More

Big changes are in store for this team in 2004. The team is going with a rookie, Johnny Sauter, and Kevin Hamlin will serve as Sauter's crew chief. Hamlin helped Kevin Harvick win the Rookie of the Year title in 2001, and team owner Richard Childress is banking that Hamlin can do it again. More

The No. 1 team, which has not found a full-time sponsor for 2004, will only run in select races with John Andretti and Martin Truex Jr. Andretti, who finished the year for DEI in the No. 1, will run in the Daytona 500. More

Jeff Green, who finished out the 2003 season with Petty Enterprises, will drive the No. 43 Dodge full-time in 2004. Green, the defending Bud Pole winner of the Daytona 500, will enter the Bud Shootout in Petty's entry. More

MBV Motorsports announced it has signed Scott Riggs to a multi-year agreement to compete in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. MBV fields the No. 10 Pontiac, which was previously driven by Johnny Benson.

Robert Yates Racing said that Dale Jarrett signed a three-year extension to his current deal, which will keep him in the No. 88 Fords thru 2006. In November, the team also hired Mike Ford from Evernham Motorsports to be Jarrett's crew chief.

Evernham Motorsports signed Jeremy Mayfield extension to his current contract with the organization. The extension outlines plans for Mayfield to remain as the driver of the No. 19 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge through 2005.

Joe Nemechek will drive the No. 01 U.S. Army Pontiac in 2004. Jerry Nadeau, still recovering from injuries sustained in a crash last spring, will make a slow return to racing in a joint program between MB2, Hendrick and NEMCO Motorsports that could have him in Cup, Busch and ARCA races in 2004.

Brian Vickers will move up from Hendrick Motorsports' No. 5 Busch Series car to replace Joe Nemechek in Hendrick's No. 25 Cup team. Sponsor GMAC will make the move along with Vickers. Vickers will make a run at Rookie of the Year with the team in 2004.

Ward Burton will be behind the wheel of the No. O NetZero HiSpeed Pontiac during the 2004 Nextel Cup Series season. In a related move, Haas CNC Racing and NetZero will expand their partnership for 2004, with NetZero joining the team’s new Busch Series program for current NetZero driver Jason Leffler as an associate sponsor for all 2004 events and primary sponsor of the effort for three races.

Ward Burton and team owner Bill Davis divorced after nine seasons together. Davis inserted Scott Wimmer into his flagship car, and Wimmer will compete for Nextel Cup Rookie of the Year.