Teams preparing for unleaded fuel
By Bob Pockrass
Friday, July 14, 2006
LOUDON, N.H. - NASCAR officials have told Busch Series teams to make sure they dilute and burn off any remaining traces of leaded fuel during practices when they get to tracks where they will run unleaded fuel.
The Busch Series will use unleaded fuel for the first time July 29 at Gateway International Raceway, and then both the Busch and Craftsman Truck Series will use the unleaded fuel the following week at O'Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis.
The notice to the teams includes this information:
The unleaded fuel is green, while the current leaded fuel from Sunoco is blue.
Teams cannot mix unleaded fuel and leaded fuel.
Bladders, foam, fuel lines, dump cans, fill cans and filters that have been used for leaded fuel need to be flushed out. The foam portion of the fuel cell will be the most difficult for teams to "get the lead out."
The trucks will use unleaded fuel Aug. 12 at Nashville Superspeedway. The unleaded will return for both of those series starting Sept. 23.
NASCAR has pledged to use unleaded fuel in Nextel Cup by the start of the 2008 season but, if the Busch and truck tests are successful, it could be used as soon as next year.
