Jayski's® NASCAR Silly Season Site - Restrictor Plate Chart

RESTRICTOR PLATE HISTORY CHART

Daytona 2/2011 29/32nd then 57/64
Talladerga 11/2010 15/16th
Daytona 7/2010 1 1/3rd

Changes for restrictor plate racing at Preseason-Testing: Preseason Thunder Testing for the Sprint Cup Series is Jan. 12-13-14 at Daytona International Speedway for final preparations for 2012 Speedweeks, in particular, the running of the 54th annual Daytona 500 – Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012. Rules package is a result of information gathered during recent tests at Talladega (October) and Daytona (November) the new rules package includes:
Smaller radiator - Maximum of 2 gallon capacity
Smaller overflow tank - Maximum capacity of ½ gallon
Radiator inlet is moved up closer into the front center bumper area
Rate reduction in the springs – softer springs
Smaller rear spoiler
Base line restrictor plate of 29/32 inch (1/64 inch larger than plate size for the 2011 Daytona 500)(NASCAR)
AND NASCAR has issued a new technical bulletin to its Sprint Cup teams, detailing major changes to cooling systems for 2012 Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway in an effort to better regulate tandem drafting. According to Chris Paulson, president and owner of C&R Racing Inc. -- which manufactures nearly all of the radiators used in NASCAR's premier series -- the sanctioning body will be significantly reducing the size of the radiators and changing the location of the grille openings before the cars return for Daytona testing in January. "[Sprint Cup Series director] John Darby is implementing a two-gallon maximum radiator size," Paulson said. "So in other words, the big, huge five-gallon radiators everybody's running will be down to two. And that accumulator can was a one-gallon max volume. It's going down to a half-gallon-sized can." The idea is to make the cooling systems less efficient, Paulson said, forcing the cars to run in open air to keep water temperatures down. "We'll probably see some result from that, but it's not going to be huge, mainly because they've got these things figured out now," Paulson said. "But it's still going to have an effect. The bigger effect is going to be moving the grille opening up to the bumper fascia area. Because now when they're tucked up behind another car, they're really going to kill all the air. So I think they're on the right track with that. They'll get the result that way."(NASCAR.com)(12-16-2011)

NASCAR Tweaks rules to limit drafting UPDATE plate smaller: NASCAR officials announced two technical changes Sunday evening aimed at preventing the sustained two-car drafts that dominated Saturday night's Budweiser Shootout at Daytona. Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president of competition, said the body issued a bulletin to race teams with the following specifications:
• The maximum size for the air inlet for the cooling system will be 2½ inches tall by 20 inches wide.
• The pressure release valve on the water system will be set at 33 pounds per square inch.
The intent is to set up the cars so they can't push each other in two-car tandems for extended runs without overheating. Teams try to line up drafting partners at Daytona and Talladega so they can overcome the limitations of the restrictor plates used to keep speeds down at those two tracks. "That will bring down the temperatures so the teams can't run at 290 or 300 degrees [without overheating] on the extended push of 30 or 40 laps," Pemberton said. "This will put [the water temperature in the engines] back in the 250-degree range." Several drivers, crew chiefs and team executives expected NASCAR to control the pressure relief valve. Jamie McMurray, who finished second to Kurt Busch in the Shootout, said many cars had valves that allowed the temperature up to 300 degrees before boiling over. That allowed the second car in the two-car draft to push longer without overheating -- some for more than a dozen laps -- under Saturday's cooler outdoor temperatures. The weather is expected to be warmer for Thursday's qualifying races and the Daytona 500.(see full story at ESPN.com)(2-13-2011)
UPDATE - NASCAR makes change to restrictor plate: NASCAR announced Wednesday morning that the Sprint Cup teams will now use a 57/64 inch restrictor plate at Daytona for the Gatorade Duel and Daytona 500. The 1/64" plate is smaller then the 29/32nd inch plate that was being used. The change will reduce horsepower 12-13 hp and slow the cars down a bit.(SPEED coverage of rain delayed practice)(2-16-2011)

NASCAR goes to smaller plate at Daytona: NASCAR reportedly will down-size restrictor plate holes for next week’s Sprint Cup Goodyear tire test at Daytona International Speedway. The new size will be 29/32 of an inch. The old size was 30/32 of an inch. The result will be less power and, presumably, slower speeds. The track surface at Daytona was repaved since last year’s summer race. In earlier tests [January], the new surface, which is smoother and stickier, produced higher speeds [197mph].(RaceToday)(1-13-2011)

Bigger restrictor plate for Daytona in July: NASCAR has announced that NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will use carburetor restrictor-plate openings of 1 1/32 inches for the July 3 event at Daytona International Speedway. The previous plate at Daytona last February was 63/64-inch. Monday’s announcement pertains only to next month’s Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola – the last NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event on the current Daytona asphalt. The 2.5-mile, high-banked superspeedway will be repaved prior to the 2011 Daytona 500. Each restrictor plate contains four openings which restrict air flow to the engine, thus slowing cars. Larger openings mean more air, and more speed. "We think this will be a needed boost due to the additional drag we've picked up since switching from a rear wing to a rear spoiler," said NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton. Rule changes, announced Jan. 21, mandated switching from a wing mounted on the rear deck lid of NASCAR’s new car, back to a more traditional stock-car spoiler. The March event at Martinsville Speedway marked the first race for the new spoiler. Carburetor restrictor plates are used only at Daytona and 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway. The 1 1/32-inch size openings will be the largest since the one-inch mandate in 1988, the first year the horsepower-reducing plates were mandated for yearly use in NASCAR Sprint Cup competition at Daytona. Teams used openings of 15/16-inch for this season’s spring race (April 25) at Talladega. That size was determined following a March 16 test at Talladega that helped answer several mechanical questions, among them, spoiler height and the restrictor-plate openings.(NASCAR)(6-7-2010)

A quick primer on the plates: The restrictor plate is a thin, square aluminum piece with four holes that restrict airflow from the carburetor to the engine, resulting in less horsepower and a reduction in speed. It is located between the engine’s carburetor and intake manifold. Restrictor plates are used at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.

Date	Track	Plate Size	Pole Winner	Pole Speed	Winner	Notes
Feb-87	Daytona	none	Bill Elliott	210.364	Bill Elliott	no restrictions
May-87	Talladega	none	Bill Elliott	212.809	Davey Allison	no restrictions
Jul-87	Daytona	none	Davey Allison	198.085	Bobby Allison	A 390 CFM carburetor was used
Jul-87	Talladega	none	Bill Elliott	203.827	Bill Elliott	A 390 CFM carburetor was used
Feb-88	Daytona	1 inch	Ken Schrader	193.823	Bobby Allison	First Use of a restrictor plate
Apr-88	Talladega	1 inch	Davey Allison	198.969	Phil Parsons
Jul-88	Daytona	1 inch	Darrell Waltrip	193.819	Bill Elliott
Jul-88	Talladega	1 inch	Darrell Waltrip	196.274	Ken Schrader
Feb-89	Daytona	1 inch	Ken Schrader	196.996	Darrell Waltrip
May-89	Talladega	15/16 inches	Mark Martin	193.061	Davey Allison
Jul-89	Daytona	15/16 inches	Mark Martin	191.861	Davey Allison
Jul-89	Talladega	15/16 inches	Mark Martin	194.800	Terry Labonte
Feb-90	Daytona	15/16 inches	Ken Schrader	196.515	Derrike Cope
May-90	Talladega	15/16 inches	Bill Elliott	199.388	Dale Earnhardt
Jul-90	Daytona	15/16 inches	Greg Sacks	195.533	Dale Earnhardt
Jul-90	Talladega	29/32 inches	Dale Earnhardt	192.513	Dale Earnhardt
Feb-91	Daytona	29/32 inches	Davey Allison	195.955	Ernie Irvan
May-91	Talladega	7/8 inches	Ernie Irvan	195.186	Harry Gant
Jul-91	Daytona	7/8 inches	Sterling Marlin	190.331	Bill Elliott
Jul-91	Talladega	7/8 inches	Sterling Marlin	192.085	Dale Earnhardt
Feb-92	Daytona	7/8 inches	Sterling Marlin	192.213	Davey Allison	35 degree spoiler was used
May-92	Talladega	7/8 inches	Ernie Irvan	192.831	Davey Allison
Jul-92	Daytona	7/8 inches	Sterling Marlin	189.366	Ernie Irvan	45 degree spoiler was used
Jul-92	Talladega	7/8 inches	Sterling Marlin	190.586	Ernie Irvan
Feb-93	Daytona	7/8 inches	Kyle Petty	189.426	Dale Jarrett
May-93	Talladega	7/8 inches	Dale Earnhardt	192.355	Ernie Irvan
Jul-93	Daytona	7/8 inches	Ernie Irvan	190.327	Dale Earnhardt
Jul-93	Talladega	7/8 inches	Bill Elliott	192.397	Dale Earnhardt
Feb-94	Daytona	7/8 inches	Loy Allen	190.158	Sterling Marlin
May-94	Talladega	7/8 inches	Ernie Irvan	193.298	Dale Earnhardt
Jul-94	Daytona	7/8 inches	Dale Earnhardt	191.339	Jimmy Spencer
Jul-94	Talladega	7/8 inches	Dale Earnhardt	193.470	Jimmy Spencer
Feb-95	Daytona	7/8 inches	Dale Jarrett	196.498	Sterling Marlin
Apr-95	Talladega	7/8 inches	Terry Labonte	196.532	Mark Martin
Jul-95	Daytona	7/8 inches	Dale Earnhardt	191.355	Jeff Gordon
Jul-95	Talladega	7/8 inches	Sterling Marlin	194.212	Sterling Marlin
Feb-96	Daytona	29/32 inches	Dale Earnhardt	189.510	Dale Jarrett	14:1 compression ratio
Apr-96	Talladega	29/32 inches	Ernie Irvan	192.855	Sterling Marlin
Jul-96	Daytona	29/32 inches	Jeff Gordon	188.869	Sterling Marlin
Jul-96	Talladega	29/32 inches	Jeremy Mayfield	192.370	Jeff Gordon
Feb-97	Daytona	29/32 inches	Mike Skinner	189.813	Jeff Gordon
May-97	Talladega(a)	29/32 inches	John Andretti	193.627	Mark Martin
Jul-97	Daytona	29/32 inches	Mike Skinner	189.777	John Andretti
Oct-97	Talladega	29/32 inches	Ernie Irvan	193.271	Terry Labonte
Feb-98	Daytona	29/32 inches	Bobby Labonte	192.415	Dale Earnhardt	12:5 to 1 compression ratio
Apr-98	Talladega	29/32 inches	Bobby Labonte	195.728	Bobby Labonte
Oct-98	Talladega	29/32 inches	Ken Schrader	196.153	Dale Jarrett
Oct-98	Daytona(b)	29/32 inches	Bobby Labonte	193.611	Jeff Gordon
Feb-99	Daytona	29/32 inches	Jeff Gordon	195.067	Jeff Gordon
Apr-99	Talladega	29/32 inches	Ken Schrader	197.765	Dale Earnhardt
Jul-99	Daytona	29/32 inches	Joe Nemechek	194.860	Dale Jarrett
Oct-99	Talladega	29/32 inches	Joe Nemechek	193.331	Dale Earnhardt
Feb-00	Daytona	29/32 inches	Dale Jarrett	191.091	Dale Jarrett	NASCAR issued front and rear shocks required; minimum rear spring rate of 345 pounds
Apr-00	Talladega	7/8 inches	Jeremy Mayfield	186.969	Jeff Gordon	Restrictions on front shocks removed
Jul-00	Daytona	7/8 inches	Dale Jarrett	187.547	Jeff Burton
Sep-00	New Hampshire	1 inch	Bobby Labonte	127.632	Jeff Burton	Used to slow cars down, in response to deaths of Irwin and Petty. Track Record is 132.089mph
Oct-00	Talladega	15/16 inches	Joe Nemechek	190.279	Dale Earnhardt	To give some power back to the drivers, aerodynamics used to slow down the cars. aero changes: 1) rear spoiler angle from 45deg to 70deg, with a 1in, forward-facing flange at top of spoiler; 2) front air dam of 4in up from 3.5in; 3) addition of a roof spoiler, 1 3/8in high by 40in wide, 10 inches behind the top of the windshield. 4) Fords and Pontiacs rear spoilers 59in wide, up from 57, Chevy stays at 57in. On Sat Oct 14th before Happy Hour Practice, NASCAR changed the plates to a 15/16th inch plate as practice speeds were too high
Feb-01	Daytona	15/16 inches	Bill Elliott	183.565	Michael Waltrip	Same package as Talladega in Oct 2000, Dale Earnhardt killed in accident during race
Apr-01	Talladega	15/16 inches	Stacy Compton	184.621	Bobby Hamilton	Same Package as Daytona 01 and Talladega last July. Ford was allowed 2 less inches of spoiler width. Race had NO cautions.
July-01	Daytona	15/16 inches	Sterling Marlin	183.778	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Same package as Talladega, no changes
Oct-01	Talladega	15/16 inches	Stacy Compton	185.240	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Ford teams rear spoilers reduced from 57 inches to 55½ inches. Pontiac reduction on the size of the roof blade, trimmed one-eighth of an inch to 1¼ inches. Ford, Chevy and Dodge will continue to use 1 3/8-inch blades
Feb-02	Daytona	7/8 inches	Jimmie Johnson	185.831	Ward Burton	Spoiler package 55-degree spoiler angle rather than the 70-degree spoiler angle used at Talladega in 2001. Spoiler maximum width of 57”. Spoiler heights as follow: Chevy and Dodge 6 1/4”, Ford 5 3/4”, and Pontiac 6 1/2“. The size of the restrictor-plate is 7/8". The roof air deflectors and forward-facing flange on top of the spoiler used during restrictor plate races since last October will be removed.
Apr-02	Talladega	7/8 inches	Jimmie Johnson	186.532	Dale Earnhardt Jr	NASCAR announced a ¼-inch increase for the rear spoiler height on the Ford Taurus to be used in the Talladega 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Measurements for the rear spoilers on the Ford Taurus will now read at 6 inches tall by 57 inches wide. The Chevrolet and Dodge teams rear spoiler will remain at 6 ¼ inches tall, while the Pontiac teams will measure at 6 ½ inches tall by 57 inches wide. ALSO: the one engine rule in effect.
July-02	Daytona	7/8 inches	Kevin Harvick	185.041	Michael Waltrip	Officials also reduced the spoiler size on the Ford Taurus from 6 inches to 5-7/8 inches for the 2002 Pepsi 400 at Daytona. During the Daytona 500 in February, the Ford's rear spoiler was 5 ¾ inches tall and in April at Talladega, Ford's measurements were 6 inches tall. The Chevrolet and Dodge teams rear spoiler will remain at 6 ¼ inches tall, while the Pontiac teams will measure at 6 ½ inches tall by 57 inches wide
Oct-02	Talladega	7/8 inches	Jimmie Johnson	Points/rain	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Same as Daytona 7/2002 and smaller fuel-box size will be reduced to 20 by 17 by 9.75, giving a capacity of 12.5gal.
Feb-03	Daytona	7/8 inches	Jeff Green	186.606	Michael Waltrip	Using smaller fuel-box. All manufacturers will have the same 1.5-inch nose "kickout," or the extension of the front air dam below the bumper. All four makes, which have to mount their bodies on the same reference point, will also use the identical rear spoiler package -- 6.25” high by 57” wide at a 55-degree angle. Have heard nothing about changes in the restrictor plate size. Also total rear weight of the right rear and the left rear to not exceed 50-percent of a car's minimum weight.
Apr-03	Talladega	7/8 inches	Jeremy Mayfield	186.489	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Rules same as Daytona: Those rules (for 2003 model cars): rear spoilers must by 6¼ inches tall and 57 inches wide; rear spoiler angles must be minimum of 55 degrees and maximum of 65 degrees; restrictor plate openings must be 7/8 inch. There is one slight modification: rear spoilers must have a minimum thickness of 3/16 inch. Also, the approximate 13.5-gallon fuel cell will again be used
July-03	Daytona	7/8 inches	Steve Park	184.752	Greg Biffle	Same rules as Daytona 500 and Talladega AND added a rear roof air deflector to the left side of the rear window
Sept-03	Talladega	29/32	Elliott Sadler	189.943	Michael Waltrip	Increase the height of the rear spoilers from 6 1/4” to 6 3/4”, 57 inches wide; open the restrictor plate from 7/8” to 29/32”
Feb-04	Daytona 500	29/32	Greg Biffle	188.387	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Same as Talladega in Sept 2003
Apr-04	Talladega	29/32	Ricky Rudd	191.180	Jeff Gordon	Same as Talladega in Sept 2003
July-04	Daytona	29/32	Jeff Gordon	188.660	Jeff Gordon	Same as Talladega in Sept 2003
Oct-04	Talladega	29/32	Joe Nemechek	190.749	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	NASCAR hands out 375lb rear springs that are mandatory
Feb-05	Daytona 500	57/64	Dale Jarrett	188.312	Jeff Gordon	Restrictor plate down 1/64”, spoilers at 55 degrees, same spring rule.
Apr-05	Talladega	57/64	Kevin Harvick	189.804	Jeff Gordon	Same as Daytona
July-05	Daytona	57/64	Tony Stewart	185.582	Tony Stewart	Same as Talladega in April
Oct-05	Talladega	57/64	Elliott Sadler	189.260	Dale Jarrett	Same as Daytona in July
Feb-06	Daytona 500	57/64	Jeff Burton	189.151	Jimme Johnson	Same as Talladega in Oct
May-06	Talladega	57/64	Elliott Sadler	188.511	Jimmie Johnson	Same as Daytona in Feb
July-06	Daytona	57/64	Boris Said	186.143	Tony Stewart	Same as Talladega in May
Oct-06	Talladega	7/8	David Gilliland	191.712	Brian Vickers	After practice speeds on the new surface were over 198mph, NASCAR dropped the plate size from 57/64 to 7/8
Feb-07	Daytona 500	7/8	David Gilliland	186.320	Kevin Harvick	Same as Talladega
Apr-07	Talladega	7/8	Jeff Gordon	192.069	Jeff Gordon	Same as Daytona
July-07	Daytona	7/8	Jeff Gordon	Points/rain	Jamie McMurray	Same as Talladega
Oct-07	Talladega	31/32	Michael Waltrip	189.070	Jeff Gordon	First for the COT car, plate size opened a tad
Feb-08	Daytona 500	31/32	Jimmie Johnson	187.075	Ryan Newman	Same as Talladega in Oct 2007
Apr-08	Talladega	15/16				Plate size dropped to 15/16ths of an inch
July-08	Daytona
Oct-08	Talladega

(a) rain delayed 2 weeks
(b) wildfires postponed race from July 1998

RESTRICTOR PLATE HISTORY CHART

Some Past News

This page designed by Jayski LLC, 1996-2013© All Rights Reserved.
Jayski's® is a registered trademark of Jayski LLC
Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form without permission or credit.

RESTRICTOR PLATE HISTORY CHART

Some Past News

This page designed by Jayski LLC, 1996-2013© All Rights Reserved. Jayski's® is a registered trademark of Jayski LLC Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form without permission or credit.

This page designed by Jayski LLC, 1996-2013© All Rights Reserved.
Jayski's® is a registered trademark of Jayski LLC
Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form without permission or credit.