NASCAR limits teams on rear axle adjustment to prevent ’sideways’ cars
Quote selected text Published May 22nd, 2008 in NASCAR News
NASCAR sent a memo to Sprint Cup teams this week putting a limit on the amount of rear adjustment being made to create more sideforce.
Teams have been increasingly adjusting the rear housing in an attempt to close the gap on the No. 99 car of Roush Fenway Racing’s Carl Edwards, who has won three times on intermediate tracks this season.
The adjustment basically has the back tires turned to the right with a rear toe adjustment, allowing the car to enter the turns with more speed. It’s not visibly noticeable on the turns, but on the straightaways the car appears to be crabbing down the track sideways.
“The best way to describe it is a hook and ladder fire truck,” series director John Darby said on Friday at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. “You’re going straight down the road and that guy in the back turns the wheel to the right and the back of the fire truck goes over to the right. That’s essentially what’s going on.”
Darby said teams have been adjusting the rear end in excess of two degrees. NASCAR limited the adjustment to one degree.
The memo came two weeks after four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon said the governing body needed to take a closer look at how far teams were going.
“When cars can’t even get on the scales because they’re running sideways, it’s something they need to address,” Gordon said at the time.
“We don’t want to totally eliminate it, because it’s a valuable adjustment,” Darby said. “I’m sure everybody watched the 77 car [Penske Racing's Sam Hornish Jr.] run around here last week. He was in excess of two degrees. That gets to the obnoxious side.”
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Cool. I’m glad they nipped that in the bud before it got any more out of hand than it already was! At least they left the teams a little wiggle room back there, but clamped down on that silliness.
About time!
Little wiggle room is right, according to ESPN, NASCAR limited the adjustment to one degree.
Nevertheless, glad to see NASCAR made a rule change effective as of Dover.
Racedriven wrote:
Yeah, but I think most folks were in the 2deg neighborhood and the #77 was in excess of that, which is why he stuck out like a sore thumb. From the sound of it, they just took what most guys were doing and cut it in half, which seems about right to me. Gives them a little room to kick the end out, but don’t let them get crazy with it.
Man people complain when NASCAR makes too many rules, but then people praise NASCAR when they make rules…. you people are never happy…..
l0l
Jeff cries nascar reacts, thats bull, i don’t want IROC racing,give the teams some freedom, Lets go racing boys
I WONDER WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF GORDON HAD THIS DONE TO HIS CAR FIRST.THE OLD WINK WINK NOD WOULD HAVE HAPPENED AND NAPCAR WOULD HAVE SAID NOTHING WRONG.