Engines
Why NASCAR Engines are Not Spec Engines
NASCAR mandates a 750-hp package and a 550-hp package. That’s led a lot of people to suggest that this is really no better than a spec engine. Here’s why that’s far from true. […]
Car Parts
Cooling
Does Qualifying Matter at Talladega?
50% of races won at Talladega are won by drivers starting from the first two rows. Can you win if you don’t qualify well? […]
Aerodynamics
NASCAR: Caps, Limits and Level Playing Fields
Every sport faces it: One, or a few, teams pull ahead because they can spend more money than anyone else. Those teams and their fans are fine, but it means the league has failed to […]
Aerodynamics
Brad Keselowski: The Smartest Driver in NASCAR
Brad Keselowski may not have an engineering degree or years and years of experience, but I’m ready to nominate him as the Smartest Driver in NASCAR. He is a man with a plan and it’s […]
Aerodynamic Forces
Will You Be Able to Tell if NASCAR Cars are Slower in 2019?
When is the answer to better racing slower cars? It just might be for NASCAR. Note: This post analyzes the change in speed due to the new rules package. Please don’t interpret it as my […]
Aerodynamics
The 2019 Rules Package: The Tapered Spacer
NASCAR announced the 2019 rules package last week. Reactions from fans ranged from wait-and-see to despair to a surprising amount of anger. […]
Climate Change
In-Car Fire Suppression Systems
NASCAR has made significant advances in protecting drivers from crashes, but fire is more of a challenge. Let’s take a look at how fire suppression systems have evolved. A Brief History of Fire Suppression Systems […]
Data Science
Data Sharing: Fact and Fiction
New for 2018: Data Sharing NASCAR announced (in a somewhat roundabout way) they would share the data collected by each car during races, qualifying and practice with all teams in the 2018 season. This produced […]
Air Pollution
NASCAR and Electric Cars, Part II
It’s not quite January, but it’s close enough. The month is named for Greek God Janus, who has two faces: one looks to the past and one that looks to the future. The off-season is a […]
Building Cars
Toyota’s New Cloaking Device
Did Toyota Really Just Patent a Cloaking Device? The headlines sure suggest they did. Toyota patent reveals ‘Cloaking Device’ for cars Toyota Just Patented a “Cloaking Device” Other outlets were a little more, ahem, transparent […]