Bobby Labonte’s Cheerios-sponsored #43 2006 Dodge Charger represents a unique chapter of NASCAR history. More than that, it’s an extraordinary opportunity to campaign an iconic car in vintage racing. The Cheerios racer was recently for auction on eBay Motors.
Over a Decade
Over the course of his storied career, Labonte piloted countless race cars with the top teams in American motorsports. For a decade, he drove for Joe Gibbs Enterprises’ NASCAR team, winning the 2000 Cup Championship in a Pontiac Grand Prix. Following the impressive 11-year run with Gibbs, Labonte drove a Charger for Petty Enterprises in the 2006 through 2008 NASCAR Cup seasons. He told eBay Motors:
When I left Gibbs, Petty Enterprises was like the greener side of the grass. Petty courted me as they were revamping their program. So I went over there.
The first year with Petty was impressive, with three Top 5 finishes and a half-dozen Top 10 finishes. The highlights included two strong showings on short tracks:
- Third place in the Subway 500 on the half-mile at Martinsville
- Fifth place in the Food City 500 on the half-mile at Bristol
- Fifth place in the Bank of America 500 on the 1.5-mile superspeedway at Charlotte
Ready for Vintage Racing
The Cheerios #43 Charger is one of the last race cars prepared at Petty Enterprises’ historic shop in Level Cross, N.C. Its final race was at Homestead, where the car finished 23rd. Labonte said:
After the Homestead race, Kyle Petty and I pushed the car into the new shop that Petty rented in Mooresville.
The Petty Enterprises crew removed the 358-cubic-inch Dodge Generation 4 NASCAR-spec V-8 engine to use in the next chassis, and the team put the car into storage. The right side of Charger still wears the scars of that last race at Homestead, where Labonte scraped the wall.
Decades later, Labonte’s #43 Cheerios Charger is much more than a dusty barn find. It’s a historic roller in solid shape that could be race-ready—even on a tight budget. Labonte said:
You could drop a crate engine, put new springs and shocks on it, and race competitively in vintage racing.
There are opportunities to go vintage racing across the USA at some of the country’s greatest tracks. In 2024, the Historic Sportscar Racing’s NASCAR Classic series ran at Virginia International Raceway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and Watkins Glen. You don’t need an expensive grade #1 race car. But you need plenty of spare parts, a reliable crew, and a trusty hauler. Of course, you need to set up the car for the type of track you’re running.
Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday
Manufacturer participation in NASCAR relied on a “win on Sunday, sell on Monday” mantra. Stellantis’s chief design officer Ralph Gilles designed the rear-wheel-drive (RWD) 2006 to 2010 sixth-generation (LX) Charger. It replaced the front-wheel-drive (FWD) Intrepid, which left the Dodge roster after the 2004 model year.
Landing the right sponsorships is essential in motorsports, whether you’re a kid breaking into the game or an established driver building a career that lasts a lifetime. From Labonte’s first efforts to attract a go-kart sponsor through his long-time relationship with Interstate Batteries in the #18 car, his persistence has kept the machine on track.
You’re always trying to hustle to get money to get a ride. You gotta run a class you can afford. I’d rather be a big fish in a little pond than a little fish in a big pond.
Two NASCAR race car numbers stand out as the most memorable of all time: Richard Petty’s #43 and Dale Earnhardt’s #3. Remarkably, the #43 and the #3 shared a sponsorship, if only briefly. General Mills, the manufacturer of Cheerios, sponsored Petty Enterprises cars between 2000 and 2008.
Labonte, engineers, and the pit crew signed the hood of the Charger Cup car.
A Noble Quest
Dodge left NASCAR after the 2012 season. Only three manufacturers currently participate. But lately, there’s been a lot of buzz about whether a fourth manufacturer could join Chevrolet, Ford, and Toyota for 2026. Much of the chatter focuses on Honda and Dodge.
The eighth-generation 2025 Dodge Charger is now rolling off the production line. That, and the rumored return of the V-8 HEMI engine (supplementing the turbocharged Hurricane inline six), could herald the dawn of a new era of Dodge NASCAR effort.
Whether or not Dodge rejoins the NASCAR Cup series ranks, there’s one thing for sure. Bobby Labonte’s #43 Cheerios Charger is an ideal ride for a hands-on NASCAR fan with the need for speed.
Refurbishing Bobby Labonte’s #43 Charger for vintage racing would be a noble quest. The biggest question is which engine to slip between the fenders. Would you opt for a period-correct HEMI or a fresh Hellcat crate motor? Let us know in the comments below.
