They fought it for years, but the 21st century finally arrived at NASCAR.
Episode Summary:
Motorsports is all about technological advancement one notable exception: NASCAR. No other sanctioning body has fought so hard to limit innovation as the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and for decades they were successful, creating some of the closest racing on the planet. The 21st century has finally arrived, and the sport will never be the same.
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Transcript of this week’s show:
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Now we don’t often talk about sports here at engineering.com, but auto racing is certain at the leading edge of engineering, with series like the FIAs Formula One, and IndyCar developing radical innovations in engines, chassis, materials and aerodynamics. The notable exception in big league auto racing is NASCAR. At least he used to be. The key to success for the National Association of Stock car auto racing has been to never let technological innovation get in the way of the show, and to that end fixed technical regulations have kept innovation to a minimum.
As the last major sanctioning body to operate 200 mile-per-hour race cars with solid rear axles, carburetors, bias ply tires and steel wheels, the competition has historically been very close, and entertaining. But like all motorsports sanctioning bodies, regulations intended to simplify things and reduce costs usually have the opposite effect, and in NASCAR, the sport has evolved slowly from the Chevrolet Junior Johnson won the Daytona 500 with in 1960, which was rolled out of the showroom and prepared in two weeks at a service station, to today’s high-tech race car factories, like Hendrick Motorsports. In operations like Hendrick, you’ll see the highest technologies, dedicated toward building relatively low-tech race cars. With such restrictive specifications, victory comes in the little things, and the tiniest advantage can mean the difference between a championship and a field filler.
But things have changed. NASCAR is introduced to their new generation car, and for the traditional NASCAR fan base, this may come as a shock. Bodies no longer steel, but are fibre reinforced plastic. Five lug wheels have been replaced by single centre nut, like the open wheel series. Wheels are no longer steel, they’re alloy and they’re 18 inches in diameter, wearing 1-inch wider tires. Gearboxes are no longer bolted to the bell housing, they’re sequential shift and in a rear transaxle, and include a power take off for the future addition of an electric motor. Rear suspension is now independent. The cars will use a rear vision camera for the drivers, and the entire field will be driving with a car full of cameras for extensive TV coverage. So, what does this mean?
It means that NASCAR is slowly converging to global touring car specifications, and the old tricks unique to NASCAR, like creating negative camber in a solid rear axle, or jacking weight into the suspension with a lug wrench, are over. With this change, the last pretense of stock, in stock-car racing disappears, and the cars become full on racing machines, and look it. It also means that years of experience developed by NASCAR teams goes completely out the window, especially with independent rear suspension.
The cars will be safer, at least as fast, and may be cheaper to operate, especially as the bodies and chassis will tolerate more contact than the current hand fabricated steel skinned machines. But what I’ll miss most is traditional NASCAR pit stops. Five lug nuts, glued to steel wheels and manual gas cans are a sight to behold in a four tire stop under green. Hopefully, NASCAR won’t turn into Formula One, but with the teams going to Daytona with completely new chassis and no idea what a race set up should look like, the 500 this February should be one for the ages. Get your popcorn.
