Dale Earnhardt Jr has been synonymous with Chevrolet for a long time. From driving his entire NASCAR Cup Series career to owning multiple dealerships, he has never hidden his loyalty towards the manufacturer. However, a recent issue with his car caught the NASCAR community's attention, particularly Denny Hamlin's.

Dale Jr., who has been a longtime Chevrolet loyalist, recently shared an incident involving his 2017 Chevrolet Traverse, which unexpectedly failed. He took to his social media account to post about the same. He wrote,

"I was driving my 2017 Traverse today, and the transmission took a (faeces emoji). Had to call a tow truck."

Denny Hamlin was quick to comment under his X post, as he took a swipe at Chevrolet and Jr’s loyalty to them.

He wrote, "Losing a tranny after 9 years? Sounds like you’re driving the wrong brand of vehicle."

"It was a good run. But everything has to come to an end eventually," Junior responded.

Hamlin joked because Earnhardt Jr.'s association with Chevrolet goes far beyond his Hall of Fame driving career. Junior has raced exclusively with Chevrolet his entire NASCAR career, which is why Hamlin didn't spare a chance to take a dig at that loyalty.

This post quickly gained traction on social media as several of the fans shared their experience with the vehicle. Many of them claimed they had encountered similar transmission-related problems among several other issues with the vehicle. 

While Bozi Tatarevic, an IMSA pit crew member, suggested that it was probably the gearbox that caused the issue. Dale Jr gave details about the TC Codes being displayed as the car made a popping sound and came to a halt. 

 Despite the unexpected breakdown, Earnhardt Jr appeared to take the situation with good humor. His post not only drew a cheeky response from Hamlin but also gave the fans a platform to discuss their issues with the vehicle. 

The only time Dale Earnhardt Jr drove a Ford

The NASCAR Hall of Famer has been a steadfast Chevrolet loyalist throughout his career. However, there was just one race where he drove a Ford-powered car. 

During the 1996 Comdata 200 Late Model race at Nashville Fairground Speedway, Earnhardt Jr had just made his entry. He had an amazing car that displayed great amounts of speed during the practice session. 

However, he ended up wrecking his car on the backstretch with another car, which resulted in both cars burning down to ashes. 

This is where the four-time NASCAR champion Bobby Hamilton stepped in. He offered his No. 43 Ford Petty Blue car for Junior to race in. 

Dale Jr renumbered the car to No.3 and drove it in the race, making good progress. But the car’s transmission blew up with just 30 laps of the race remaining.

In an interview with NASCAR.com in 2018, Dale Earnhardt Jr revealed that Hamilton sold the car on the pit road itself. The new owner remains unknown. 

That was the first and the last time everyone saw Earnhardt Jr drive a Ford. Well, so far.

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Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco