<Li> Don Simpson in a cameo as Aldo Bennedetti (patterned after Mario Andretti and using his twin brother Aldo Andretti's first name). </Li> <P> Richard Petty, Rusty Wallace, Neil Bonnett, Harry Gant, and Dr. Jerry Punch all appear in cameo roles as themselves . Bob Jenkins had a voice - over role as public address announcer . </P> <P> Principal photography took place in early 1990 in and around Charlotte and Daytona Beach . It was plagued with delays due to frequent arguments on set between Simpson and Bruckheimer, Scott, and sometimes Towne over how to set up a shot . Crew members sat idle for long hours; some later said they had accumulated enough overtime pay to go on vacation for a full four months after filming was completed . The completion date was pushed back many times, with filming being completed in early May, three months later than it had originally been scheduled . At one point, following the third revision of the shooting schedule in a single day, the unit production manager, who represents the studio on the set or location, confronted Simpson and Bruckheimer and was told bluntly that the schedule no longer mattered . </P> <P> In Daytona, Simpson and Bruckheimer spent $400,000 to have a vacant storefront in their hotel converted into their private gym, with a large neon sign reading "Days of Thunder ." Simpson also kept a closet full of Donna Karan dresses to offer the attractive women his assistants found on the beach, and held private parties with friends like rapper Tone Lōc . Towne also played a role in the film's increasing cost by scrapping more barn scenes when he didn't like either of two barns built to his specifications . The film's original budget of $35 million ($65.6 million in modern dollars) nearly doubled; at that level it would have had to make at least $100 million, a rare gross at that time, to break even . In addition, when Tom Cruise failed to win the Oscar for Born on the Fourth of July, some additional budget was cut . Despite the budget overruns and delays, reportedly it was only after shooting was finished that the filmmakers discovered they had neglected to film Cole Trickle's car crossing the finish line at Daytona . </P>

Where was the movie days of thunder filmed