Things are getting ready to heat up in Talladega

dpkimmel2001

dpkimmel2001

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Can anyone say overheating? What challenges lie ahead this weekend in Talladega? Has anyone heard of additional changes to the cooling system for these cars? I was just looking at a few different weather forecasts for the weekend. Each one showed the high 80's for Fri, Sat and 90+ degrees for Sunday afternoon. What is the over/under on engine failures this weekend? :(
 
I believe NASCAR will allow the necessary adjustments to grill openings during practice if they see problems arise, other than the possible overheating situation Talladega has never been known for being hard on engines. Hopefully engine failure will not have an effect on the outcome of the race.
Poor strategy and lack of patience will.
 
Note to Fox: Infield camera please, need to see how half of the crowd copes.
 
FlFlash said:
I believe NASCAR will allow the necessary adjustments to grill openings during practice if they see problems arise, other than the possible overheating situation Talladega has never been known for being hard on engines. Hopefully engine failure will not have an effect on the outcome of the race.
Poor strategy and lack of patience will.
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The overheating situation is exactly what I'm talking about. This will be their first time at this track with the new configuration of the cooling system. Daytona isn't exactly know for engine failures either but there were three during that race and it wasn't nearly as hot as it will be this coming Sunday in Talladega. You're probably correct though, there will be changes made for the cooling of these cars I just haven't heard any statements on it yet. Leading up to Daytona it was a 'hot topic'.
 
I think the engine shops have probably made significant advances since February and that this won't be much of an issue. We shall see.
 
I think they will give them some more PSI in the system. Not a whole lot though. Also remember now for the restrictor plate races the opening is moved to the center of the bumper. Drivers who go tandem will definitely have to pay attention to the gauges. I'm sure we'll see some engine failures regardless anyway.
 
My worries about over heating were lessened when NASCAR made allowances for the temps at Daytona.
 
Matthew2470 said:
Obviously Jeff Gordon's engine will blow. Or his spoiler will fall off. Or his windshield will fly away. Something unfortunate.
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Yep! If it can happen it seems like it will this year. Already losing hope here. Thought last week with a good qualifying run he was gonna do good but he dropped anchor when they went green.
 
Qualifying at a destructor plate track is about as boring to watch as anything can be...

I think I'll go mow the lawn.
 
robbybee said:
Qualifying at a destructor plate track is about as boring to watch as anything can be..
I think I'll go mow the lawn.
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I never watch RP quals live. I always record and FF through nearly the entire thing. Takes about 20 minutes to watch all of it.
 
Well, it looks like the overheating issue did play a role in the race yesterday. I don't know how many of you out there were listening to your favorite drivers scanner feed. If you did, you probably heard the same thing that I was hearing, hot, hot, hot. The fans spoke up about tandem racing and NASCAR listened. They tried to break up the tandem and get back to more of the pack mentality. They did so and this is now the result. Sometimes we have to be careful what we ask for.
 
I was way off base when I assumed that the teams would have had this worked out by now. Overheating issues really messed up the "race".
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Well, it looks like the overheating issue did play a role in the race yesterday. I don't know how many of you out there were listening to your favorite drivers scanner feed. If you did, you probably heard the same thing that I was hearing, hot, hot, hot. The fans spoke up about tandem racing and NASCAR listened. They tried to break up the tandem and get back to more of the pack mentality. They did so and this is now the result. Sometimes we have to be careful what we ask for.
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NASCAR's big mistake was reducing coolant capacity so much, because there isn't much wiggle room when the weather is warm. It would be much wiser to go back to the old Rad and over flow capacity and control things with the pressure relief valve. Then it's a simple change to adjust for air temps by changing the relief valve. I don't think it would be hard for an engineer to figure out what pressure would result in the loss of coolant after 1 lap of pushing.
 
FenderBumper said:
NASCAR's big mistake was reducing coolant capacity so much, because there isn't much wiggle room when the weather is warm. It would be much wiser to go back to the old Rad and over flow capacity and control things with the pressure relief valve. Then it's a simple change to adjust for air temps.
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I think that will just move it closer to the tandem racing that many seem to dislike. It's pretty simple really..... Make it so the cars don't overheat as easily = tandem racing. I don't profess to know or have the answer on this one. It's been a little while since I slept in a Holiday Inn Express.

I really would have like to see them let the tandem racing work its way into whatever it turned out to be. Both Daytona and Talladega have obscene grip right now. Over time, with the track surface wearing out, and possibly the implementation of the new cars in 2013 we may have see a change that could have pleased many. Instead a new problem was created by trying to resolve a perceived one.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I think that will just move it closer to the tandem racing that many seem to dislike. It's pretty simple really..... Make it so the cars don't overheat as easily = tandem racing.
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Not as simple as you may think. The tandem pays off, until you have to switch. If you're blowing coolant before 1 lap of pushing, drivers will stay away from it until the end of the race. If NASCAR had a brain, they would make the grill opening match the rear bumper so air is shut off when a guy pushes. Hell, just put a large button bar on the front of the car that actuates an electric shutter to close off all of the air when it's depressed. Obviously, pushing someone would press the button. Then guys could pack race without burning up their engines. It would surely be cheaper than all this cooling science and blown engines.
 
FenderBumper said:
Not as simple as you may think. The tandem pays off, until you have to switch. If you're blowing coolant before 1 lap of pushing, drivers will stay away from it until the end of the race. If NASCAR had a brain, they would make the grill opening match the rear bumper so air is shut off when a guy pushes. Hell, just put a large button bar on the front of the car that actuates an electric shutter to close off all of the air when it's depressed. Obviously, pushing someone would press the button. Then guys could pack race without burning up their engines. It would surely be cheaper than all this cooling science and blown engines.
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I'll have to differ to your knowledge on that one.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I'll have to differ to your knowledge on that one.
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No real knowledge involved, just simple logic. Close the air off and you overheat. Couple this with a low pressure valve, and pushing would be an end of race option only, but true pack racing would be just fine. 3 feet between the cars isn't pack racing. We had a 178 lap parade with cars hurting their engines, then 10 laps of mayhem. No wonder Fox had 70% of their commercials in the final 50 laps.
 
FenderBumper said:
No real knowledge involved, just simple logic. Close the air off and you overheat. Couple this with a low pressure valve, and pushing would be an end of race option only, but true pack racing would be just fine. 3 feet between the cars isn't pack racing. We had a 178 lap parade with cars hurting their engines, then 10 laps of mayhem. No wonder Fox had 70% of their commercials in the final 50 laps.
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Next time I vote on NASCAR's Fan Council I put a remark in there for you that racing-forums has some untapped aero knowledge that could benefit them greatly. PM me your cell # and I'll try to get you a contact. SARCASM WITHOUT THE SMILEY.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Next time I vote on NASCAR's Fan Council I put a remark in there for you that racing-forums has some untapped aero knowledge that could benefit them greatly. PM me your cell # and I'll try to get you a contact. SARCASM WITHOUT THE SMILEY.
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lol You're mean!
 
..but it's NOT aero knowledge. It's a very simple 'plugged hole' concept, which most people learned at the age of 3 when they jammed an object up their nose.
 
FenderBumper said:
..but it's NOT aero knowledge. It's a very simple 'plugged hole' concept, which most people learned at the age of 3 when they jammed an object up their nose.
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See, now there ya go..... I never experienced that so I didn't gain that knowledge. :D
 
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