More downforce in new Nationwide car to make for a better ride compared to current Cup model
Penske Racing's Justin Allgaier will drive a Dodge Challenger in four NASCAR Nationwide Series races in 2010. // David Griffin, NASCAR Scene
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As the new Nationwide Series car gets rolled out for four races in 2010 before a full season in 2011, fans will likely hear feedback from veteran drivers who say the new Nationwide car handles better than the new Sprint Cup car.
And that is how it is supposed to be.
“The design and the rules package is meant to be that the trucks are the easiest to drive – they’ve got the most downforce, are the easiest to handle. Nationwide is second, and the Cup has got the least amount of downforce and the most horsepower,” NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton said during the new Nationwide car test at Talladega last week. “Those cars will always be a little more difficult to drive. It’s easy to say this [new car] drives better than the old Nationwide car because we’ve worked on that, but it’s also just a known fact that with much more downforce, it will drive better than a Cup car.
“We won’t take the things that we learn out of this and go right to the Cup car.”
What Pemberton would like to do is try to get some of the car brand identity that the new Nationwide car has and bring it to the Cup level. He said that could happen in a few years.
The new Nationwide car will be used next July at Daytona, August at Michigan, September at Richmond and October at Charlotte. Teams will be allowed on track a day early for those events to test the new car, Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash said.
The new Nationwide car is similar to, but definitely different from, the new Cup car, which was introduced for a partial schedule in 2007 and has been used full time beginning in 2008.
The chassis is virtually the same, as is the greenhouse area. But the suspension pieces are different, bump stops are not allowed, there is a spoiler instead of a wing at the rear, and the front of the car juts out more than two inches farther than the Cup car. The spoiler also is different than the current spoiler, having a 12-inch-by-2-inch extension at each of the ends. That extension will mean there will be no roof strip needed at the restrictor-plate tracks.
The hood heights in the Nationwide cars are different, as is the template that runs from center line of the front bumper wrapping around to the top of the front tire. The lower section is similar, but there are unique openings for the radiator.
The Nationwide Series will have its own “claw” inspection template that will be placed atop the cars, similar to the Sprint Cup Series template. The tolerances are still being evaluated as some Nationwide Series teams fear that they won’t have time to get cars turned around after one event to be legal for the next one. Balash said there could be some leeway for teams.
“It [will be] an interpretation of whether you see a donut on the side of the car because the guy is racing that car week to week versus somebody trying to [manipulate rules],” Balash said. “We’re working on the procedures right now as we’re finalizing the rules.”
Pemberton said that NASCAR is considering limiting the number of cars a team can have certified at any one time. He didn’t say what that number would be. There has been talk of teams looking at using only four or five cars, but it could take as many as eight or more just with the logistics of racing all over the country on a variety of tracks.
Some Sprint Cup teams are back up to 15 or more cars per driver even though NASCAR had hoped the new car would be more of a universal vehicle, adaptable to a variety of tracks.
“Next year, with only running four [new Nationwide car] races in four months, we’ll get a better feel what we can do to help them with their budgets and their car counts,” Pemberton said. “In the Cup garage, their [old cars were] 21-22 car fleets. They were down to 10-11 [with the new car] and they get so used to building cars, they’re constantly building new cars and turning things over. If they’re up to 15-16 cars, it’s not out of necessity; it’s about luxury.”
