NASCAR was created in 1948, during the post-war era. Because new cars were few at the time, the founders were hesitant to use and abuse them in front of fans who were struggling to get around in their old, well-worn cars. Bill France as NASCAR president, opted for the less insulting idea of using only 'stock' cars. This meant that competing cars had to be bought from a regular dealer and driven by typical street drivers, and they could'n have major modifications, excepttuning up the engine, and seatbelts made from ropes or aircraft harnesses were common, but all window glass was intact, and few racers even added roll bars. That changed in 1952, when roll bars became the first safety device to be used. In the early years, rented cars were even used at times, for drivers who wanted to gain points but did not have cars to use for racing.
The first "high performance" parts to be used in the stock cars were specialized tires. In 1952, the Pure Oil Company developed a tire specifically for stock car racing. Because they were used to 'promote safety,' the change was allowed. It wasn't long before more modifications crept in as well. Since the cars had to use production-line parts, manufacturers began offering high performance, or 'severe usage,' products to their regular customers in order to make them usable and allowable in NASCAR races. Two-way radios, introduced to NASCAR at the 1952 Modified-Sportsman race on the beach/road course at Daytona Beach, soon became standard equipment. Other improvements implemented to give the cars performance gains were new engines, aluminum disc brakes, and iron roll-cages to improve handling. Today's 'stock' cars are quite different from their predecessors.
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