The 1996 TranSouth Financial 400 was the fifth stock car race of the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 40th iteration of the event.

With seven laps to go, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to take advantage of a disaster-stricken Dale Jarrett and pull away to take his 11th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second victory of the season.

This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that is effective at both ends.

Ward Burton, driving for Bill Davis Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 28.295 and an average speed of 173.797 miles per hour (279.699 km/h).

[4] Three drivers would fail to qualify: Chuck Bown, Randy MacDonald, and Robbie Faggart.