Exotic Springs On Way Out?
Jeff Gordon's broken wheel hub at Concord, and a similar problem on teammate Jimmie Johnson's car, is pushing NASCAR toward a new rule on suspension parts - a return to bump-stops, those $15 rubber knobs that limit spring travel and thus limit the critical nose height of the cars. NASCAR is also considering a stricter rule on spring design itself.
Such rules might not go over well in the NASCAR garage because it might make obsolete millions of dollars of high-tech inventory, because NASCAR teams today typically use exotic springs that can cost as much as $2,000 apiece, and teams have an inventory of such springs that runs well over $100,000. Still the soft-spring issue has become a major problem, Gordon and Robbie Loomis, his former crew chief, now at Petty Enterprises, both said.
Gordon said that the movement to extremely soft front springs on stock cars over the past two years has reached a point where stuff is breaking on the chassis. By going to bump-stops, NASCAR could effectively limit the types of springs that teams can use.
"It's a real problem coming on. We spend more on springs now than on chassis, and I never thought I'd see that. We'll spend up to $150,000 on springs, and we're just a small team. We need to get ownership of a spring company. The price of a spring used to be $50 to $100. Now it's from $1,200 to $2,000. But when NASCAR saw the problems teams were having at Charlotte, they've decided to do something. They need to do something for sure. These cars are driving really bad, and I think this (soft springs) has messed up the racing. We've had one successful race this season using that; but I really just don't like doing it."
NASCAR is expected to order bump-stops installed on its Trucks in the coming weeks; a similar rule for Nextel Cup cars is expected next season, though some Nextel Cup crews said that the rule could come sooner.(Journal Now)
Jeff Gordon's broken wheel hub at Concord, and a similar problem on teammate Jimmie Johnson's car, is pushing NASCAR toward a new rule on suspension parts - a return to bump-stops, those $15 rubber knobs that limit spring travel and thus limit the critical nose height of the cars. NASCAR is also considering a stricter rule on spring design itself.
Such rules might not go over well in the NASCAR garage because it might make obsolete millions of dollars of high-tech inventory, because NASCAR teams today typically use exotic springs that can cost as much as $2,000 apiece, and teams have an inventory of such springs that runs well over $100,000. Still the soft-spring issue has become a major problem, Gordon and Robbie Loomis, his former crew chief, now at Petty Enterprises, both said.
Gordon said that the movement to extremely soft front springs on stock cars over the past two years has reached a point where stuff is breaking on the chassis. By going to bump-stops, NASCAR could effectively limit the types of springs that teams can use.
"It's a real problem coming on. We spend more on springs now than on chassis, and I never thought I'd see that. We'll spend up to $150,000 on springs, and we're just a small team. We need to get ownership of a spring company. The price of a spring used to be $50 to $100. Now it's from $1,200 to $2,000. But when NASCAR saw the problems teams were having at Charlotte, they've decided to do something. They need to do something for sure. These cars are driving really bad, and I think this (soft springs) has messed up the racing. We've had one successful race this season using that; but I really just don't like doing it."
NASCAR is expected to order bump-stops installed on its Trucks in the coming weeks; a similar rule for Nextel Cup cars is expected next season, though some Nextel Cup crews said that the rule could come sooner.(Journal Now)