As NASCAR makes its way past the halfway mark of the winter break and inches closer to Christmas Day, the community has been showered with the perfect holiday gifting collection by the drivers and teams! Whether it’s Dale Earnhardt Jr’s Sun Drop plush or Kyle Larson’s Chevy Colorado giveaway, there’s something for every fan!

However, this wasn’t the case back in the 70s and 80s, when the fans would have to make do with select goodies from NASCAR and their favorite teams only! But the ones that were real eye-catchers still intrigue most fans to this day. From slot-car sets to a NASCAR-branded microphone, the community could take home some hysterical pieces of racing memorabilia. Let’s take a closer look at some fan favorites from NASCAR’s heyday and contrast them with their modern counterparts.

What goodies would NASCAR spoil the fans with during the early 80s?

Kicking things off with the Indy 500 racer from Sears in 1963, the NASCAR gifting catalog featured a beautiful motorized racer for $3.79, which could also be raised on miniature jacks for a wheel change! Just pull back the car, and the motor will make it speed straight ahead. Things began to get more interesting in 1966 when the Parnelli Jones Slot Car Set was released by Montgomery-Ward, featuring multiple ovals and two different levels of the racetrack!

The slot-car sets became particularly popular, with the Roger Penske slot-car set from 1973 becoming a fan favorite. It featured a 4-lane raceway, a major step up from the standard two! It could also be reconfigured in three different layouts and came with eight cars, all for the price of $34.99. But if you’re not one for the toys, NASCAR also offered stunning jumpsuits, which ranged from $34.99 to $39.99!

In the 1980s, remote-controlled cars became a hot seller and soon made their way into the NASCAR world. Whether it was a 1/18 scale RC #3 Dale Earnhardt car from JC Penney to a 1/20 scale #7 Kyle Petty RC car from Sears, NASCAR had fans covered with all sorts of remote-controlled goodies.

Perhaps some of the greatest and most expensive things in NASCAR’s classic Christmas catalogs were the gas-powered go-karts, which sold for a whopping $999. They featured a Rick Mears and Pennzoil car, Cole Trickle’s car from Days of Thunder, as well as a Davey Allison car.

Taking a look at some of the coolest items from NASCAR’s classic catalogs, it’s safe to say that, while the community has a wider range of options today, the quality and variety of goodies that fans could pick up for Christmas during the 70s and 80s is nothing short of incredible.

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Speaking of the Christmas spirit, some of our favorite NASCAR drivers also recently shared their top Christmas movies. While some were classics, others immediately raised some fans’ eyebrows!

Drivers reveal their favorite Christmas movies!

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While the Grinch stole Tyler Reddick’s Christmas since he didn’t have a festive movie of choice other than die-hard, several drivers joined in to share some classics. Jeb Burton just couldn’t go wrong picking the Polar Express as his favorite, with approval from William Byron. On the other hand, Austin Cindric and Chris Buescher were right up Reddick’s ally, with The Grinch as his pick.

Moving on to the legend Richard Petty and his favorite, how could you ever go wrong with the Christmas Story? Ryan Preece and Jeffery Earnhardt seem to agree! Even Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Jingle All the Way made it to the list of drivers, including Frankie Muniz and Daniel Hemric. Christmas Vacation remained the top pick for Bubba Wallace, Zane Smith, Alex Bowman, and many others.

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It’s safe to say that everyone during the off-season is having a blast rewatching some of America’s favorite Christmas movies. But as we get closer to D-Day, let’s wait and find out how the 2024 season unfolds!