Car of Tomorrow
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The Car of Tomorrow is a new car body style for NASCAR's NEXTEL Cup that was first implemented at the 2007 Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 25 of that year. The race was won by Kyle Busch.
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[edit] Design
On January 12, 2006, NASCAR announced a universal car named "Car of Tomorrow" (or "CoT" for short) after a five-year design program sparked mostly due to the death of Dale Earnhardt, one of the sport's premier superstars in a tragic final lap crash during the 2001 Daytona 500. [1] The then-current cars were based on Holman Moody's 1966 Ford Fairlane. [2] The primary design considerations were "safety innovations, performance and competition, and cost efficiency for teams." [3]
All cars are required to fit the same set of templates, using a high-tech device that has been named "the claw" that is designed to fit over the new cars. In the first two races at Bristol and Martinsville, the garages were opened one day early and the inspections took up to ten hours so that everyone (teams, officials, etc.) could get a better grip on the new unified template. NASCAR's old rules had a different set of templates for each manufacturer (Ford, Chevy, Dodge, and Toyota). NASCAR has frequently adjusted the rules to ensure that different car manufacturers have relatively equal cars. The universal body of the Car of Tomorrow will eliminate these problems, but could cause many more unforeseen problems.
The car has improved handling and reduced dependence on aerodynamics, and features a detachable wing, which is issued by NASCAR akin to the restrictor plate, which has not been used since the Dodge Charger Daytona and Plymouth Superbird in the 1970s. [4] The windshield is more upright, which increases drag. The air intake is below the front bumper of the car, which eliminates overheating caused by clogged grills. The front bumper is more box-like, which catches more air and creates more downforce, while also slowing the car. There are also a couple of new car designs being tested in hidden locations by famous stunt drivers like Tamara Flett and several others.
The CoT has improved safety features over the current car. [1] The driver's seat has been moved four inches to the right, the roll cage has been shifted three inches to the rear, and the car is two inches taller and four inches wider. [1] More "crush-ability" is built into the car on both sides, ensuring even more protection. The car's exhaust runs through the body, and exits on the right side, which diverts heat away from the driver. [1] The fuel cell is stronger, and has a smaller capacity (17¾ gallons, down from 22 gallons, which as of 2007 has become standard in all cars).
[edit] Testing
The Car of Tomorrow was first tested at the 2.5 mile Daytona International Speedway, then on NASCAR's two shortest tracks, Bristol (0.533 mi) and Martinsville Speedway (0.526 mi.), the 1.5 mile Lowe's Motor Speedway, the 2.66 mile Talladega Superspeedway, and 2.0 mile Michigan International Speedway. Former NASCAR driver, current Nextel Cup pace car driver and Director of Cost Research Brett Bodine has tested the prototype car against cars prepared by current NASCAR teams.
Drivers have tested the CoT concurrently with the present car at some NASCAR tests and at special NASCAR-authorized tests. Some teams have tested the cars at the half-mile Greenville-Pickens Speedway and the one mile North Carolina Speedway, both of which are not NEXTEL Cup tracks, and therefore are tests which do not fall under NASCAR's restrictions.
[edit] Schedule
The Car of Tomorrow was first raced at the 2007 spring race at Bristol, the season's fifth race. The car will be used at sixteen events in 2007, consisting of all tracks less than a mile and a half in length, the road courses, and the fall Talladega race. This group also includes Phoenix International Raceway, Martinsville, Richmond International Raceway, Dover International Speedway, New Hampshire International Speedway, Darlington Raceway, and the road course races at Infineon Raceway and Watkins Glen International.
In 2008, implementation plans call for the CoT to be used at 26 events, starting with both races at Daytona, including the season-opening Daytona 500, California Speedway, Pocono Raceway, Michigan, the spring Talladega race, and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Based on the success of the February 28th test at Bristol (which was extended to a third session that night due to an impending rainstorm), NASCAR is considering running the full schedule in 2008 in order to avoid applying two sets of rules, adding events at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Lowe's Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway one year earlier than scheduled.[1] If those plans do not come to fruition, those seven tracks mentioned will be added in 2009.
[edit] Debut
On Sunday March 25th, 2007, the Car of Tomorrow debuted in its first NASCAR points race. Kyle Busch won the race, the first win by a Chevrolet Impala since 1963.
Reactions to the CoT's performance were mixed. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., after finishing 7th, said, "It wasn't a disaster like everybody anticipated. It worked out, I reckon. Racing was about the same." [1] Drivers were also impressed with the car's ability to bump other competitors without causing a spin, and NASCAR officials were pleased with the improvements in safety.
Several drivers and pundits expressed distaste for the car and what they perceived as a less exciting style of racing created by it. Kyle Busch, despite winning at Bristol, commented that it "sucks." Retired driver and TV analyst Rusty Wallace stated on ESPN that the car created a boring, single-file racing environment with little of the passing, action, or crashing that has made NASCAR popular. However, drivers who placed well at Bristol, Jeff Gordon and Jeff Burton, noted that the car allowed the use of a second passing lane not usually present at Bristol. [2]
[edit] Car models
Chevrolet teams will continue to call their current cars Monte Carlo SS, and they will call their Car of Tomorrow the Impala SS. Chevrolet is discontinuing the Monte Carlo so they will be switching full time to the Impala after this season. Dodge will call the Car of Tomorrow the Avenger while still calling their current car the Charger. Ford and Toyota will use the names Fusion and Camry for both cars, respectively.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e Jenna Fryer (February 28, 2007). NASCAR may move COT to full schedule in 2008. Associated Press. Retrieved on 2007-03-01.
- ^ Biography of Holman Moody at the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America; Retrieved March 8, 2007
- ^ http://www.nascar.com/2006/news/headlines/cup/04/04/cot_martinsville/index.html
- ^ http://www.truckseries.com/cgi-script/NCTS_06/articles/000061/006135.htm
- "Car of Tomorrow on track for Bristol debut", written February 1, 2007, nascar.com, Retrieved March 16, 2007
- NASCAR.com article, includes photographs
- NASCAR.com article on the first test at Daytona
- 2000 article about a UniTemplate car
- Benefits of Car of Tomorrow
- Newton, David. "[3]One race in, Car of Tomorrow does its job well." ESPN.com, 2007-03-25. Retrieved March 26, 2007.
