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How will the new wind tunnel affect teams?
Jul
18
CONCORD, N.C. – The new Haas-owned wind tunnel located within an hour of most NASCAR race shops already has had a visit from a Formula One team and expects Cup teams to spend time in the facility within the next month.
It is a pretty impressive operation, built by Haas Automation, the new partner of Tony Stewart as it will own half of Stewart-Haas Racing. Windshear will be the world’s first commercially available, full-scale, rolling-road wind tunnel of its type as it can simulate a car going 180 mph with a fan that can produce 5300 horsepower.
Haas Automation is a successful business, and the company leaders can see the dollar signs. It cost $40 million to build (the blades of the enormous 22-foot-diameter fan were shipped from France) but teams will be paying a lot of money (reportedly up to $4,000 per hour). Windshear officials say they are 90 percent full to run the wind tunnel for one shift per day through the end of the year.
Teams will be happy to spend that money for this information without having to transport a car to other wind tunnels. They also could bring multiple cars during a 10-hour session.
It will be interesting to see if having a wind tunnel this close to the shops will make a big difference in the racing. Of course, it will be interesting to see if it drives up costs – with it so close, will teams be able to contain themselves from spending a bunch of money every time it has an idea that might work on NASCAR’s new race car?
It is a pretty impressive operation, built by Haas Automation, the new partner of Tony Stewart as it will own half of Stewart-Haas Racing. Windshear will be the world’s first commercially available, full-scale, rolling-road wind tunnel of its type as it can simulate a car going 180 mph with a fan that can produce 5300 horsepower.
Haas Automation is a successful business, and the company leaders can see the dollar signs. It cost $40 million to build (the blades of the enormous 22-foot-diameter fan were shipped from France) but teams will be paying a lot of money (reportedly up to $4,000 per hour). Windshear officials say they are 90 percent full to run the wind tunnel for one shift per day through the end of the year.
Teams will be happy to spend that money for this information without having to transport a car to other wind tunnels. They also could bring multiple cars during a 10-hour session.
It will be interesting to see if having a wind tunnel this close to the shops will make a big difference in the racing. Of course, it will be interesting to see if it drives up costs – with it so close, will teams be able to contain themselves from spending a bunch of money every time it has an idea that might work on NASCAR’s new race car?
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