2010 Nationwide Series New Car - Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site

Nationwide Series New Car News

2010 Nationwide Series New Car Schedule:

Daytona – July 2
Michigan – August 14
Richmond – September 10
Charlotte – October 15

Chevy still has no plans for Camaro in Nationwide: Despite buzz around the Nationwide Series’ addition of the Challenger and Mustang, Chevy officials said Sunday there are no plans to bring the Camaro into NASCAR’s second-tier circuit. The new cars, which feature front ends more similar to their production counterparts, made their debuts at Daytona last month and returned Saturday at Michigan. The next-generation model will be used full time next year. Ford (Mustang) and Dodge (Challenger) elected to introduce their muscle car brands, and both manufacturers are considering elevating them into the Sprint Cup Series in the future. NASCAR encouraged Chevy to bring the Camaro to Nationwide in tandem with the new car, but the company decided the racing version wouldn’t be similar enough to the street model. Much like the next-generation Sprint Cup car, the new Nationwide car has many standardized features that are designed to streamline rule enforcement and enhance safety but also can preclude brand identity. “The reason we stuck with the Impala is we have two cars within the Chevy lineup that have iconic lines: the Camaro and Corvette,” GM Racing director Mark Kent said. “We didn’t want to take away from forcing that car into a (stock) car that didn’t meet our requirements. Dodge did a very good job from the front (of the Challenger). But once you get away from the front, it loses all its character. We didn’t want to lose the character of the side of the Camaro. That’s why we stuck with the Impala, and we continue to work with NASCAR on future models to try to figure out to get more manufacturer identity. They’re a very good partner, but based on what we have this year with Nationwide, we’re likely to stick with the Impala.” Kent said the company would consider using the Camaro if the Nationwide car were allowed more leeway with the proportions of its greenhouse and sides.(USA Today)(8-15-2010)
Second Nationwide new car race: The NASCAR Nationwide Series new car is back for more of its limited four-race engagement, this time at Michigan International Speedway. It’s the second race for the new car, featuring a different track distance and layout than its debut at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway. It may not have the storybook outcome of the historic July 2 race — an emotional win by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the #3 Wrangler Chevy — but it does have the same air of excitement aimed at the new models for Dodge (Challenger), Ford (Mustang) and the sportier looks of Chevy (Impala) and Toyota (Camry). Also, this will be the first day race for the new car. The inaugural race was at night. “Now that we’re at our second race, we’re looking to make sure we standardize our processes and procedures,” said series director Joe Balash. “We want teams to be familiar with our level of expectation for them. As we move forward after Michigan, we hope to stop talking about the newness of it and get into the fabric of what we are.” Teams will have an extended practice at MIS Thursday from 9 a.m.–noon and 1–4 p.m. The new car will race twice more this year, Sept. 10 at Richmond International Raceway and Oct. 15 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, before being introduced fulltime in 2011.(NASCAR)(8-10-2010)
Nationwide Series New Car Makes Historic Debut At Daytona: During the first on-track test for the new car at Richmond International Raceway in 2007, NASCAR Nationwide Series director Joe Balash was told he looked like a “proud papa.” Now, his look can best be described as watching one of his kids graduate from college and preparing to head out on their own. “We’re all anxiously anticipating a great first event,” Balash said of the historic official points race for the new car, Friday night at Daytona International Speedway. “We’ve had numerous tests on various-sized tracks. We’ve had a lot of great participation from the teams and manufacturers. That tells us the project is headed in the right direction.” The debut also will show off some iconic models as Dodge brings its Challenger and Ford will showcase its Mustang. Chevrolet introduces a new model to the series with its Impala while Toyota’s standard Camry model has a sporty new look.”With our first race at Daytona, we’re starting with a track that the owners — the ‘shareholders’ of our series, if you will — selected,” Balash said. “They gave us the direction of what four events to start with this year.” The new car also will be on track later this season at Michigan International Speedway (Aug. 14), at Richmond (Sept. 10) and at Charlotte Motor Speedway (Oct. 15) before being fully integrated in 2011, starting at Daytona next February.(NASCAR PR), see more on the News & Notes section of the Daytona race page.(6-28-2010)
Test Speeds & Notes:
Wednesday NASCAR Notes
Wednesday Afternoon Single Car Speeds
Wednesday Morning Session
Tuesday NASCAR Notes
Tuesday Afternoon Drafting Session
Tuesday Morning Session
NNS New Car test next week at Daytona: UPDATE: Tuesday and Wednesday, May 18-19, the NASCAR Nationwide Series will conduct a verification tire test for its new car at Daytona. It’s the final test before the new car competes in its first points race on July 2, also at DIS. Thursday, May 20, is set aside as a rain date. As many as 15 teams and 25 drivers are listed to participate during the two-day test. Drivers scheduled to test include reigning series champion Kyle Busch, current standings leader Brad Keselowski, Justin Allgaier, the top series-only regular in the standings (fifth) and Brian Scott, the Raybestos Rookie standings leader. The garage opens both days at 8 a.m., with testing from 9 a.m.-noon and 1-5 p.m. each day. NASCAR Nationwide Series director Joe Balash and Allgaier will provide a new car “Tech Talk” for media and fans in the Sprint FANZONE.(NASCAR PR), see more information on the new Nationwide car on my Nationwide COT page.(5-14-2010)
UPDATE: Drivers schedule to participate include: Joey Logano (May 19 only); Kyle Busch; Steve Wallace; Brendan Gaughan; Kevin Harvick; Brad Keselowski; Justin Allgaier; Ricky Stenhouse Jr.; Paul Menard; Carl Edwards (May 19 only); Erik Darnell (May 18 only); Michael Annett; Shelby Howard; Reed Sorenson; Brian Scott; Jason Leffler; Clint Bowyer (May 19 only); Austin Dillon (May 18 only); Scott Wimmer; Landon Cassill; Steve Arpin; Tony Raines; Jason Keller (tentative).(NASCAR PR)(5-17-2010)
NASCAR announces tire test; rules changes: NASCAR announced the addition of a verification tire test for the NASCAR Nationwide Series new car on, May 18-19 at Daytona International Speedway, in addition to some key rule changes for the 2010 season. The test will verify the type of tire Goodyear will provide for the Nationwide Series new car for its first race, set for July 2 at Daytona. That will be the first of four events for the new car this season. Others include Aug. 14 at Michigan International Speedway, Sept. 10 at Richmond International Raceway and Oct. 23 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The new car is targeted for full integration into the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2011. “Since this is an open test, there will be plenty of opportunities for the teams to get the information necessary to dial their cars in for the upcoming new car events,” said Joe Balash, director of the NASCAR Nationwide Series. “This also will be a final verification of our shock, spring and engine packages for the new car.” The new car previously has tested at Talladega Superspeedway, Richmond and Charlotte. A rain date, if necessary, will be May 20. The tire lease program will remain the same in 2010 for the NASCAR Nationwide Series with these new options available to teams: Tires will continue to be transferred between events with the same D-codes as recommended by Goodyear; The transfer of tires between the different national series at combination events with the same D-codes will be permitted; At track, Goodyear will provide surplus tires. Goodyear will notify teams weeks in advance of availability.
AND: Additionally, NASCAR announced that beginning with the 2010 season-opening race at Daytona on Feb. 13, the NASCAR Nationwide Series will institute crew member limits similar to the program the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series utilized last season. Teams will be limited to 15 crew members for each event, including the driver, crew chief, spotter and seven over-the-wall team members each race weekend throughout the season. Teams also will not be required to provide a scorer. “The crew limits are a direct result of the continuing dialogue we have with our series owners to reduce at-track costs,” Balash said. “The program was successful in the truck series and we anticipate that same result.” Another change involves the sealed-engine rule. This year, a team will run no more than two consecutive races without using an engine previously sealed by NASCAR officials. This excludes events at Daytona and Talladega. Last year, teams were to run no more than three consecutive races without using a sealed engine.(NASCAR PR)(1-5-2010)
More details on new Nationwide car: As the new Nationwide Series car gets rolled out for four races in 2010 before a full season in 2011, fans will likely hear feedback from veteran drivers who say the new Nationwide car handles better than the new Sprint Cup car. And that is how it is supposed to be. “The design and the rules package is meant to be that the trucks are the easiest to drive – they’ve got the most downforce, are the easiest to handle. Nationwide is second, and the Cup has got the least amount of downforce and the most horsepower,” NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton said during the new Nationwide car test at Talladega last week. “Those cars will always be a little more difficult to drive. It’s easy to say this [new car] drives better than the old Nationwide car because we’ve worked on that, but it’s also just a known fact that with much more downforce, it will drive better than a Cup car. The new Nationwide car will be used next July at Daytona, August at Michigan, September at Richmond and October at Charlotte. Teams will be allowed on track a day early for those events to test the new car, Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash said. The chassis is virtually the same, as is the greenhouse area. But the suspension pieces are different, bump stops are not allowed, there is a spoiler instead of a wing at the rear, and the front of the car juts out more than two inches farther than the Cup car. The spoiler also is different than the current spoiler, having a 12-inch-by-2-inch extension at each of the ends. That extension will mean there will be no roof strip needed at the restrictor-plate tracks. The hood heights in the Nationwide cars are different, as is the template that runs from center line of the front bumper wrapping around to the top of the front tire. The lower section is similar, but there are unique openings for the radiator. The Nationwide Series will have its own “claw” inspection template that will be placed atop the cars, similar to the Sprint Cup Series template. The tolerances are still being evaluated as some Nationwide Series teams fear that they won’t have time to get cars turned around after one event to be legal for the next one. Balash said there could be some leeway for teams. Pemberton said that NASCAR is considering limiting the number of cars a team can have certified at any one time. He didn’t say what that number would be. There has been talk of teams looking at using only four or five cars, but it could take as many as eight or more just with the logistics of racing all over the country on a variety of tracks.(SceneDaily)(11-12-2009)
Nationwide COT test at Homestead? UPDATE: Though rumors continue to swirl that NASCAR will conduct another Nationwide new car test at Homestead on Monday Nov. 23, [Nationwide Series Director Joe] Balash declined to confirm any test dates. He said tracks will open one day early for practice next year during the five weekends when the new cars will be in competition.(Racin Today)(11-4-2009)
UPDATE: Hearing there is NOT a Nationwide Series new car test scheduled for Homestead on Monday Nov. 23. This date also conflicts with the NNS awards banquet.(11-5-2009), for all the information on the new Nationwide Car, see my Nationwide new car news page.
Nationwide New Car test on Monday: UPDATES: The first superspeedway test for the NASCAR Nationwide Series new car will be held Monday, November 2 from 11am-5pm at Talladega Superspeedway. The new car previously tested in 2008 at Richmond International Raceway and Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Drivers scheduled to participate include: #12Justin Allgaier (Dodge); #16-Colin Braun (Ford); #17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (Ford); #29-Jeff Burton (Chevy); #33-Kevin Harvick (Chevy); #88-Kelly Bires (Chevy); #99-Trevor Bayne (Toyota).(NASCAR PR)(10-31-2009)
UPDATE: One more Chevy in the mix at NNS new car test: James Buescher in the #1 for Phoenix Racing(NASCAR)(11-2-2009)
UPDATE 2: According to Robin Pemberton, NASCAR’s vice president of competition, the purpose of today’s six-hour test was to gather information relative to the size of the tapered spacer that the car will need in order to achieve its desired speed at tracks such as Talladega and Daytona International Speedway – where the new car will make its points-racing debut in July, 2010. Additionally, the test helped to better identify the proper gear ratio that the new car will need to generate the proper RPM. The first few hours of the test were spent in single runs, followed by drafting during the afternoon. Following its debut next summer at Daytona, the NASCAR Nationwide Series new car also will compete in points races at Michigan International Speedway in August, at Richmond in September and at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in October. Full integration for the new car into the series is targeted for 2011.(NASCAR PR), see images of all the COT cars on my 2010 paint schemes pages.(11-2-2009)
Dodge introduces Challenger to Nationwide Series; Penske announces 2010 plans: Dodge Motorsports revealed the Dodge Challenger as the “New Car” for the Nationwide Series and announced an expansion of its partnership with Penske Racing beginning in 2010. Dodge will provide support for Penske Racing’s two-car operation in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, in addition to Penske’s three teams in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Penske Racing will field two teams, both running the full-season schedule. The Dodge Challenger will be used at the four “New Car” races. Joining #12-Justin Allgaier will be Brad Keselowski in the #22 Discount Tire Dodge. He also will compete in the Dodge Challenger for the four designated races and in a Charger for the remainder of the schedule.(Dodge PR), see an image of the car on the 2010 #12 team paint scheme page. Penske also announced that they will field a part time team next season for ARCA driver Parker Kligerman.(10-30-2009)
Chevy COT: A couple images of the Chevy Impala COT have also been posted on the Chevy COT schemes page.(10-30-2009)
At least 6 teams for COT test: At least six cars are expected for the test of NASCAR’s new Nationwide Series car next Monday at Talladega Superspeedway. Each manufacturer will be represented. Richard Childress Racing’s Jeff Burton and JR Motorsports’ Kelly Bires will drive Chevys, Roush Fenway Racing’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Colin Braun will be in Fords, Penske Racing’s Justin Allgaier will be in a Dodge and Michael Waltrip Racing’s Trevor Bayne will represent Toyota. The one-day test Monday will last about six hours.(SceneDaily)(10-27-2009)
Roush to unveil Nationwide Mustang COT: UPDATE Image: The first computer rendering released earlier this year caused quite a stir. Now, race fans who have been anxious to see what it will really look like will finally get their chance as Ford and Roush Fenway Racing unveil the new 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Mustang on Tuesday, Oct. 13.This is the first public unveiling of the new 2010 Nationwide Mustang, and the first time media and public will see the car that will compete in limited races next year.(NASCAR PR), see the rendering on the Ford COT schemes page.(10-7-2009)
UPDATE: Three major events were rolled into one today as Ford teamed up with Roush Fenway Racing and Con-way Freight to unveil the #16 Con-way Freight Mustang with driver Colin Braun at Roush Fenway Racing headquarters in Concord, N.C. Ford announced in July that Mustang, the iconic pony car that has raced for all 45 years of its existence, would compete in the NASCAR Nationwide Series beginning in July 2010 when a limited rollout of NASCAR’s new car begins at Daytona International Speedway. Today marked the first time the NASCAR Mustang was seen in public. Braun will make the move from the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, where he was the 2008 Raybestos Rookie of the Year, to a full-time Nationwide program next season, along with Con-way Freight, which has been his sponsor for the last two years. Roush Fenway and Con-way Freight recently agreed on a contract extension to remain as a primary sponsor for 18 Nationwide races within the organization.(Ford PR)
IMAGE: see an image of the car on the #16 2010 paint scheme page.(10-13-2009)
NASCAR Announces Plans for COT: NASCAR announced its plans for the introduction of the new car in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The new car will compete in four points races during the 2010 season beginning with the July 2 race at Daytona International Speedway followed by the Aug. 14 event at Michigan International Speedway, the Sept. 10 race at Richmond International Raceway and at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Oct. 15. Full integration of the new car into the NASCAR Nationwide schedule is targeted for the 2011 season. The 2010 roll-out schedule follows a meeting in late July with series team owners and crew chiefs with NASCAR officials at the Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C. “There was a lot of good dialogue shared with the teams during that meeting,” said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR’s vice president of competition. “We’ve taken the time to review the information that was shared in the meeting and develop a schedule that we believe will provide the teams with the best possible opportunity to prepare for the rollout of the new car. “This four-race schedule gives the teams experience on a wide variety of ovals, in addition to a superspeedway.” “This is another major step as we continue to give the series a unique look and enhance the competitive racing we already have on the track,” said Joe Balash, NASCAR Nationwide Series director.(NASCAR PR)(10-9-2009)
NASCAR confirms COT schedule: NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton confirmed Friday what the other races with the new Nationwide Series car will be in 2010. In addition to the previously announced July 2 race at Daytona International Speedway, the Nationwide car of tomorrow will be used at Michigan International Speedway on Aug. 14, Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 10 and Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Oct. 15. Nationwide teams had told NASCAR they wanted a rollout of one race a month, and NASCAR consented. The car is scheduled to be used full time in 2011. NASCAR plans on holding a test of the new car after the Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway in early November. Pemberton said the test next year will likely be limited to bringing teams in a day early for the Daytona, Michigan, Richmond and Charlotte venues.(SceneDaily)(9-25-2009)
Nationwide COT to be run 4 times in 2010: NASCAR Nationwide Series teams will run the new car in four events in 2010, beginning with the July race at Daytona International Speedway and then race it about once a month in a slow debut for the model. Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash says that series officials handed teams the rule book for building the new car following a recent series of meetings with owners and fabricators. Balash said those meetings helped the sanctioning body finalize some steps of the process, while others are still in the works. The series will use tapered spacers at all events, abandoning the usage of restrictor plates to harness horsepower at superspeedways. A tapered spacer serves the same purpose as a restrictor plate, but it is a thicker device. “We still have to finalize a couple of things on the overall schedule before we can announce what tracks we’ll be on, but our goal is to have the teams race the new car once a month for four months and then we’ll stay away from that last month with the last three races leading into the championship for the Nationwide Series,” he said. Balash added that the four events will all be on ovals, but that it will be a diverse group to help the teams.(SceneDaily)(8-28-2009)
GM plans to run Impala as Nationwide COT, not Camaro: Dodge and Ford will race the Challenger and Mustang, respectively, in the NASCAR Nationwide Series next year, as the series transitions to the “Car of Tomorrow” platform. And as [Auto Week] also reported, Chevy will not race the Camaro, opting to continue with the Impala. [Auto Week] asked Mark Kent, head of General Motors racing programs, why. “We’ve looked at racing the Camaro, and one thing we do not want to do is to force the car where it shouldn’t be,” Kent said. “We looked at NASCAR, for example–took a very hard look at running the Camaro in the Nationwide series. That was a request made of us by NASCAR, and we have had a tremendous partnership with NASCAR, so we took a very hard look at it.At the end of the day, because of the quest for very close competition and the need to have templated bodies in that series, we felt that by forcing the Camaro into the Nationwide templates that we were compromising the body lines of an iconic car. So at the end of the day we just could not get the Camaro in the Nationwide series to satisfy our requirements.(Auto Week)(8-5-2009)
NASCAR to run Nationwide COT at Daytona in July; Ford to run Mustang; IMAGE; UPDATES: It appears the Nationwide Series version of the Car of Tomorrow will not make its debut until next July at Daytona. NASCAR had hoped to roll out the new car for the series next February, however after meeting Tuesday with Nationwide Series owners at NASCAR’s Technical Center in Concord, North Carolina, team owner Rusty Wallace said it was a timing issue. The former Sprint Cup Series champion said, “Most of the teams were concerned about how soon the car would come out and how much would it cost. As the meeting went on it became apparent it won’t come out in Daytona (February) as thought…it’s just too soon.” Wallace felt the majority of the owners thought the car should roll out next July at Daytona and probably no road courses will be involved in 2010. The delay is all about money. “The economy is really killing us right now,” said Wallace. “A lot of it is about cash flow too….it’s all about bringing this thing out at the right time where the teams can afford it and we’ve got time to be prepared.” Wallace suspects the new car could be raced on speedways like Phoenix or Charlotte, however NASCAR has yet to decide where testing will take place. Meanwhile, team owner Kevin Harvick came away from the meeting with a positive feeling. Harvick said, “I think they were open and listened to everyone’s opinion. Obviously NASCAR is in a spot where they have to make a decision for a multitude of scenarios and situations and try to make the best decision for the sport. Obviously from a safety standpoint I think the new cars are good and listening to some of the cup owners talk about what the car has done for them, once they zeroed in on where they needed to be with chassis and things like that, it sounds like the production process is a little bit bette, a little more streamlined than it was before. It’s going to take some time to put that process in place but it looks like they’ve thought it through and we’ll see where it goes.(PRN Garage Pass)
AND: Mustang is already the most successful single nameplate brand in professional racing history, but it hasn’t competed in NASCAR – until now. Brian Wolfe, director of Ford North America Motorsports, made the announcement today that Mustang will debut as part of NASCAR’s “new car” limited rollout in the 2010 Nationwide Series. Ford Racing has gone through the official NASCAR submission and approval process for the new car, and, once templates are finalized, production of Mustang parts will start so teams can build the first cars for testing later this fall.(Ford PR), see an image of the car on the 2010 Ford COT page.
AND: Ford Racing Communications Manager Kevin Kennedy told Sirius Speedway Tuesday that the new NASCAR Mustang will be more stock-appearing than the Sprint Cup Ford Fusion, adding that the appearance of the car was at the top of FoMoCo’s wish list. While declining to comment on the direction Chevrolet, Dodge and Toyota might make with their versions of the new Nationwide car, Kennedy confirmed that NASCAR would like to make the series a pony-car/musclecar-based platform.(Sirius-Speedway(7-28-2009)
UPDATE: Statement from Robin Pemberton, NASCAR Vice President, Competition: “We had a very productive meeting this morning (Tuesday, July 28) with the team owners from the NASCAR Nationwide Series about the rollout schedule for that series’ new race car. “In the days ahead, we will digest what was discussed today and make a final decision on the rollout for next season with full anticipation of integrating the new car for the entire 2011 schedule.”(NASCAR PR)(7-28-2009)
UPDATE 2: The new Nationwide Series model could be a limited edition. Vice president of competition Robin Pemberton says NASCAR is exploring a car limit for its next-generation car, which will be phased in next season before a full-time rollout in 2011. During a meeting with Nationwide teams Tuesday in Concord, N.C., Pemberton said some teams asked NASCAR to consider capping the number of cars that each team can have certified. “It’s gaining momentum to limit a team to maybe eight cars,” said Pemberton, who added that NASCAR easily can monitor teams’ chassis with microchip tracking devices. The move could be a cost-saving measure for Nationwide teams, which must absorb the expense of overhauling their cars during a time when sponsorship is scarce. Pemberton said NASCAR also is considering incorporating tests into race weekends to minimize travel costs.(USA Today)(7-29-2009)
NASCAR to run Nationwide COT at Daytona in July; Ford to run Mustang; Image posted UPDATES: It appears the Nationwide Series version of the Car of Tomorrow will not make its debut until next July at Daytona. NASCAR had hoped to roll out the new car for the series next February, however after meeting Tuesday with Nationwide Series owners at NASCAR’s Technical Center in Concord, North Carolina, team owner Rusty Wallace said it was a timing issue. The former Sprint Cup Series champion said, “Most of the teams were concerned about how soon the car would come out and how much would it cost. As the meeting went on it became apparent it won’t come out in Daytona (February) as thought…it’s just too soon.” Wallace felt the majority of the owners thought the car should roll out next July at Daytona and probably no road courses will be involved in 2010. The delay is all about money. “The economy is really killing us right now,” said Wallace. “A lot of it is about cash flow too….it’s all about bringing this thing out at the right time where the teams can afford it and we’ve got time to be prepared.” Wallace suspects the new car could be raced on speedways like Phoenix or Charlotte, however NASCAR has yet to decide where testing will take place. Meanwhile, team owner Kevin Harvick came away from the meeting with a positive feeling. Harvick said, “I think they were open and listened to everyone’s opinion. Obviously NASCAR is in a spot where they have to make a decision for a multitude of scenarios and situations and try to make the best decision for the sport. Obviously from a safety standpoint I think the new cars are good and listening to some of the cup owners talk about what the car has done for them, once they zeroed in on where they needed to be with chassis and things like that, it sounds like the production process is a little bit bette, a little more streamlined than it was before. It’s going to take some time to put that process in place but it looks like they’ve thought it through and we’ll see where it goes.(PRN Garage Pass)
AND: Mustang is already the most successful single nameplate brand in professional racing history, but it hasn’t competed in NASCAR – until now. Brian Wolfe, director of Ford North America Motorsports, made the announcement today that Mustang will debut as part of NASCAR’s “new car” limited rollout in the 2010 Nationwide Series. Ford Racing has gone through the official NASCAR submission and approval process for the new car, and, once templates are finalized, production of Mustang parts will start so teams can build the first cars for testing later this fall.(Ford PR), see an image of the car on the 2010 Ford COT page.
AND: Ford Racing Communications Manager Kevin Kennedy told Sirius Speedway Tuesday that the new NASCAR Mustang will be more stock-appearing than the Sprint Cup Ford Fusion, adding that the appearance of the car was at the top of FoMoCo’s wish list. While declining to comment on the direction Chevrolet, Dodge and Toyota might make with their versions of the new Nationwide car, Kennedy confirmed that NASCAR would like to make the series a pony-car/musclecar-based platform.(Sirius-Speedway(7-28-2009)
UPDATE: Statement from Robin Pemberton, NASCAR Vice President, Competition: “We had a very productive meeting this morning (Tuesday, July 28) with the team owners from the NASCAR Nationwide Series about the rollout schedule for that series’ new race car. “In the days ahead, we will digest what was discussed today and make a final decision on the rollout for next season with full anticipation of integrating the new car for the entire 2011 schedule.”(NASCAR PR)(7-28-2009)
UPDATE 2: The new Nationwide Series model could be a limited edition. Vice president of competition Robin Pemberton says NASCAR is exploring a car limit for its next-generation car, which will be phased in next season before a full-time rollout in 2011. During a meeting with Nationwide teams Tuesday in Concord, N.C., Pemberton said some teams asked NASCAR to consider capping the number of cars that each team can have certified. “It’s gaining momentum to limit a team to maybe eight cars,” said Pemberton, who added that NASCAR easily can monitor teams’ chassis with microchip tracking devices. The move could be a cost-saving measure for Nationwide teams, which must absorb the expense of overhauling their cars during a time when sponsorship is scarce. Pemberton said NASCAR also is considering incorporating tests into race weekends to minimize travel costs.(USA Today)(7-29-2009)
NASCAR to meet with NNS teams about COT: NASCAR will host Nationwide Series owners and drivers at a meeting at its research and development center in Concord, N.C., on July 28 to inform them of plans to roll out the car of tomorrow for the 2010 season, series director Joe Balash confirmed Saturday. NASCAR already has informally told teams the new car will be used on restrictor-plate tracks and road courses next year. The July 28 meeting will officially detail the use of the car. Track testing is likely to take place after the October Sprint Cup race at Talladega, despite NASCAR’s testing ban this season. The car has been track tested twice, at Richmond and Charlotte last year, but only by a few teams. Most Nationwide teams don’t have a COT, and some teams will likely buy old Cup chassis and convert the bodies to Nationwide specs.(SceneDaily)(7-18-2009)
GM resisting ‘muscle car’ marketing for Nationwide COT: NASCAR executives are trying to turn the Nationwide series into something of a ‘pony-car,’ ‘muscle-car’ tour, which is a brilliant idea, with potentially new demographics and more marketing punch. And those who have seen the new NASCAR-designed Nationwide car-of-tomorrow say it’s a good-looker…though conceding it will be a major expense, for teams that are already deep in a hole. Ford and Dodge have signed on to that ‘muscle car’ marketing concept, but General Motors’ officials are continuing to resist putting their new Camaro into the on-track mix. Okay, why? The new Camaro is already a well-marketed NASCAR pace car this season, and it’s a spiffy muscle car, which would match up well with the Mustang. So why would GM resist NASCAR push to include it in next season’s Nationwide tour? Simple – GM is resisting putting the Camaro under NASCAR’s ‘common template’ body rules. GM’s Chevyt division wants to hold to the Camaro’s distinctive new styling, rather than have to slap decals on a race car that would be all but identical to a common template Mustang and Charger. (mikemulhern.net)(7-3-2009)
Final restrictor plate race for current Nationwide car: You want to buy Kenny Wallace’s car from the NASCAR Nationwide Series Subway Jalapeno 250 after tonight’s race? Wallace says you can have the Jay Robinson Racing car for $5,000. NASCAR is expected to announce that the Nationwide Series will use its version of the “car of tomorrow” for the restrictor-plate tracks and road courses in 2010. That means the race today at Daytona International Speedway will be the final one for the current cars on restrictor-plate tracks. Not being able to use the current car again in the future, a driver could be willing to take more chances in the race tonight. “It will probably be a wilder race,” Wallace said. “I drive accordingly with my team. I can’t wreck. If I wreck one of my cars, it’s a devastation for my team. I still don’t want to wreck because I want the best finish I can get, but we don’t have to save this car for next year, I’ll tell you that.”(SceneDaily)(7-3-2009)
Series could use COT next year on road courses, restrictor plate events: NASCAR is considering introducing the Nationwide Series car of tomorrow at restrictor-plate races and road-course races in 2010, series director Joe Balash confirmed Friday at the Milwaukee Mile. The rule book for the car is close to being finished, Balash said. All four manufacturers have had their cars’ aerodynamic profiles approved by NASCAR. Many Nationwide team owners did not want the COT to be introduced until 2011, citing the prohibitive cost of building new cars. Using the new car at five races – two at Daytona and one each at Talladega, Montreal and Watkins Glen – could appease some of the concerns of car owners. A town-hall type of meeting like NASCAR had recently with its Sprint Cup teams is a possibility with Nationwide teams, Balash said. Once NASCAR finishes its discussions with competitors and an agreement is made, Balash said the sanctioning body can release the rules so teams can start building cars.(Scene Daily)(6-19-2009)
Pony cars coming with Nationwide COT: NASCAR is bringing sexy back — and in the case of race cars, it’s long overdue. If the Car of Tomorrow comes to fruition in the Nationwide Series in 2010, the vehicle list will include “pony cars” from the manufacturers that choose to use the series to market those models to the public. That includes the iconic Mustang — the quintessential pony car. Ten-fold better than a Cup car,” the official said of the designs, which must be submitted for approval by June 26 according to the NASCAR Rule Book. The new cars are expected to be closer to stock than any vehicle that the sanctioning body has run in the top two series since the dreaded term “aero-matching” rolled off spin-doctor tongues in 2000. Currently, only Ford and Dodge will compete with models that differ from Cup. Despite Chevy rolling out the new Camaro to dealers, there doesn’t seem to be an urgency to promote that brand or the Malibu in NASCAR other than for pace cars at this time. Toyota has discontinued its two-door Solara, so expect the Camry nameplate in NNS.(FoxSports)(6-14-2009)
Nationwide COT could be pushed back to 2011: Work on the NASCAR Nationwide Series car of tomorrow is proceeding, though the sanctioning body’s ban on nearly all testing for 2009 could push the introduction of the new car back to 2011. Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash said Saturday at Nashville Superspeedway that Toyota’s version of the car, the Camry, will return to the wind tunnel for testing this week. The other three manufacturers who take part in the series have all had their versions certified aerodynamically. The car has been officially tested on the race track twice, but both tests were last year. And given the struggling U.S. economy, many in the Nationwide garage want NASCAR to hold off another year before rolling the car out. Balash said the sanctioning body will listen to opinions of teams before making a decision. The original introduction was planned for August of this year, but that was pushed back to 2010. Now the car could be held off until 2011.(Scene Daily)(4-13-2009)
Goodyear’s bigger tire won’t impact introduction of NNS COT: Goodyear’s plan for a bigger tire won’t necessarily alter NASCAR’s phase-in plan for a new model car for the Nationwide Series, series Director Joe Balash says. NASCAR already has delayed the introduction of the car from sometime this year to at least 2010 or beyond. Now that Goodyear has said it hopes to have a bigger tire ready to race sometime in 2010, that could throw another curve into the introduction of NASCAR’s new Nationwide car since a change in the size of the tire would require teams to change the chassis. Goodyear says the new tire might be an inch or two taller and wider in order to handle the high right-side loads of the new car, but Balash says the series may move ahead with the new model anyway.(Scene Daily)(2-20-2009)
Ford wants to run Mustang as COT: Director of Ford Racing Technology Brian Wolfe told Sirius NASCAR Radio’s Sirius Speedway Tuesday that when NASCAR’s new Nationwide Series Car Of Tomorrow returns to the front burner, both Ford and NASCAR would like to see the Ford Mustang approved for competition. “We would like to see it, and we are doing aero work and working hard with NASCAR on that possibility. It would also be very popular with the fans, I believe.”(Sirius NASCAR Radio)(12-16-2008)
Nationwide COT in holding pattern: The Nationwide Series car of tomorrow is in a bit of a holding pattern as the series heads into the offseason, especially after the sanctioning body banned most testing for 2009. The car, originally slated to begin running at the start of the 2010 season, has been officially tested on the track twice, the last being at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in October. Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash said manufacturers Chevrolet and Toyota have some more work to do on the noses of their version of the car, and NASCAR officials would likely test their vehicles in the wind tunnel in January. Balash isn’t sure when the car will be tested again on the track, though it does need more work on the engineering and mechanical pieces. “Whether the economics tell us to do something different, that’s going to be a lot of conversation with team owners throughout all of 2009,” Balash said. “Six months ago, we were talking about more testing with the teams, not less. So we’ve got to keep our fingers in the pulse of what’s happening business-wise.” That doesn’t necessarily mean NASCAR could delay the cars debut later than the beginning of the 2010 season.(Scene Daily)(11-30-2008)
Nationwide COT officially on hold until 2010: NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton said Monday at Lowe’s Motor Speedway that the Nationwide Series car of tomorrow would not be rolled out until 2010, setting a firm introduction of the new car for the first time. NASCAR had originally discussed introducing the car as early as August 2009, but teams in the Nationwide Series complained about the cost of switching over to the new car and running the current version at the same time. “We will not roll this thing out in 2009,” Pemberton said. “In talking with the teams, we think it’s better for development to have a series of tests during 2009. We’ll continue to talk with them and to get it out there as early as possible. But as we run through the middle course of the summer, it appears that 2010 for the full season, starting in Daytona, will be the best option for us.”(Scene Daily)(10-13-2008)
Goodyear may have to build different tires for Cup and Nationwide COTs: Goodyear could be forced to build different tires for NASCAR’s Sprint Cup and Nationwide series in 2010 when the Nationwide car of tomorrow is rolled out, a top official from the sanctioning body says. Currently, Goodyear uses the same tire when both series run on the same weekend, even thought the Cup series is using a new-model car. But NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton said differences in the 2010 models for both series will be substantial, and that could mean a different tire for each. When the Nationwide car is introduced in 2010, it will have less horsepower and more downforce than the Cup version. NASCAR wants to make the cars “significantly different” for drivers, Pemberton said. Some in the Nationwide Series have asked for different tires than the Cup series to help differentiate the series and make sure Cup drivers don’t simply use the Nationwide Series as a test bed.(Scene Daily)(10-14-2008) Comment here
Gibbs, five other teams to test COT at Charlotte UPDATE 3: Images added Joe Gibbs Racing plans to test a Nationwide Series car of tomorrow next week at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, NASCAR and track officials confirmed Thursday. In addition to the JGR Toyota, five other teams plan to test in what is the second official test of the Nationwide COT. Michael Waltrip Racing will test a Toyota, Roush Fenway Racing will test a Ford, Chip Ganassi Racing will test a Dodge and Richard Childress Racing and Davis Motorsports will test a Chevy. All but JGR participated in the first official test of the Nationwide COT at Richmond International Raceway last weekend.(Scene Daily)(10-9-2008)
UPDATE: Next week marks the final open week of the season for the Nationwide Series. But for seven teams, an extended stay at Lowe’s Motor Speedway following the Dollar General 300 comes before any leisure time. The second and final test of 2008 for the NASCAR Nationwide Series new car is scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 13-14, at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Wednesday, Oct. 15 will be a rain date. Drivers scheduled to participate are Bryan Clauson for CGRFS; Joey Logano and Kyle Busch for JGR; Morgan Shepherd for JDM, series standings leader Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, two-time series champion Kevin Harvick and Scott Wimmer for RCR; Colin Braun, reigning series champion Carl Edwards and David Ragan for RFR, while David Reutimann and Josh Wise will drive for MWR.(NASCAR PR)(10-10-2008)
UPDATE 2: Jeremy Clements will also be on hand testing a Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Monday afternoon and all day Tuesday.(Clements PR)(10-13-2008)
UPDATE 3: The progression has begun for the NASCAR Nationwide Series’ new car. Last month, the car made its test debut on the .75-mile track at Richmond International Raceway. Monday, it made its move to Lowe’s Motor Speedway, one of eight 1.5-mile tracks that plays host to the series.(NASCAR PR), see images on the Lowes Motor Speedway COT testing page.(10-14-2008)
Nationwide COT on hold: UPDATE: Yahoo! Sports has learned that NASCAR officials have notified team owners in the Nationwide Series that they will delay the introduction of the next generation Nationwide Series race car by one year. According to NASCAR spokesperson Ramsey Poston, the reason for the change is because testing and development is still needed before the car is approved for competition. The underlying reason for the decision however, is that the economic impact of having to build new cars at this time would be a hardship for all of the independent teams of the Nationwide Series. The decision was, in part, based on NASCAR officials meeting individually with smaller team owners to gauge their reaction. An official announcement is expected in two weeks.(Yahoo Sports)(7-4-2008)
UPDATE: Wind-tunnel testing on NASCAR’s car of tomorrow for the Nationwide Series is heading into its final stages, as two manufacturers have been certified aerodynamically, series director Joe Balash said Friday at Gateway International Raceway. The Dodge and Ford versions of the COT have met NASCAR’s wind-tunnel targets, while the Chevy and Toyota still have work to do. “We’re taking Chevy and Toyota back to the wind tunnel,” Balash said. “We still have a little more tweaking to do to hit the target numbers that we have out there.” Balash said NASCAR still hopes to introduce the new car in late 2009, but that could change, depending on what team owners in the series want. Many owners have indicated they would like the car to be rolled out in 2010.(SceneDaily.com)(7-19-2008)
More on the Nationwide COT: UPDATE: “We are working very hard on the COT,” [Nationwide Series Director Joe] Balash explains. “We’ll utilize the NASCAR 110-inch wheelbase certified chassis, and it will be interchangeable between the Sprint Cup and Nationwide garages. [But] we’re going to do something unique with the bodies to give the Series its own look as opposed to the past.” The last point is a reminder of the dangers posed by creating a Nationwide car too much like their Sprint Cup cousins; and when you talk to Balash, you sense his focus at ensuring the next generation of Nationwide vehicles create a unique driving style all their own. “We want [the new car] to drive somewhere between a Truck and Cup car,” he says. “And we’ve been working with drag and downforce to be somewhere in between. We want the car to drive a little easier than a Sprint Cup car; [and while] there are some components of the body that are the same, we’ve relocated them. For example, we’ve moved the rear deck lid forward, and the same distance we moved it forward, we’ve moved the front of the body forward, helping the car turn just a little bit better in the corner. It’s been great to see from concept to the car in the wind tunnel.” When that concept becomes reality, the timeframe is still very much TBD. “My hope is to introduce the new car next year,” says the series director. “We’re looking at an August timeframe based on the conversations we’ve had with owners and others in the garage.”(Frontstretch.com)(5-2-2008)
UPDATE: Nationwide Series car of tomorrow may have made its last wind tunnel test for the four manufacturers’ identity pieces, series director Joe Balash indicated Friday at Kentucky Speedway. Balash said NASCAR and representatives from Chevy, Dodge, Ford and Toyota participated in a wind-tunnel test Wednesday, and NASCAR engineers are analyzing the data. The wind tunnel work was performed on the NASCAR-built car, with each manufacturer adding its own pieces to the nose and tail. Once the aerodynamic package of the car is finalized, NASCAR will test it on the track later this year. NASCAR hopes to unveil the car for competition next year, perhaps as early as August. But several team owners have balked at that idea, hoping NASCAR pushes its introduction back to 2010.(SceneDaily.com)(6-14-2008)
Nationwide COT coming mid-2009: The NASCAR Nationwide Series likely will go with its own version of the “car of tomorrow” in 2009, but not at the start of the year as had been originally targeted by NASCAR officials. The rollout of the new Nationwide car most likely will be around midway through 2009, NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton said Saturday at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. “It will probably be in the middle of next year sometime,” Pemberton said. “We will try to do something that’s more user-friendly than the roll-out schedule that they had in the Cup Series. “We probably will go later in the year but more races in a row. We haven’t determined that but we’ll look at sometime after mid-year.” Once it starts, it likely will be a clean break with the new car used in all events except for road courses where NASCAR will revert back to the old car, Pemberton said.(SceneDaily.com)(4-19-2008)
Chevy won’t use Camaro as Nationwide COT: UPDATE: Chevy will not use the Camaro brand when the Nationwide Series goes to the car of tomorrow, sources said Thursday at Daytona. Richard Childress Racing built the new car for General Motors that has been tested in the wind tunnel. The current version is an Impala – the same as the Sprint Cup car – but that could change to a Malibu. NASCAR hopes to go to a COT for the series in 2009 but has yet to announce definite plans. Only Dodge, which will use the Challenger, has announced its Nationwide brand for the COT.(SceneDaily.com)(2-14-2008)
UPDATE: There still is an ongoing dialogue between the four manufacturers and NASCAR as to which models will be used on the Nationwide cars when they debut in 2009. After hundreds of thousands of dollars spent in wind tunnel development by Chevy and Ford, the latest word is that both have abandoned the muscle car in favor of a more marketing department-friendly choice. As a result, all signs point to Chevy using the Malibu nameplate for its Nationwide effort. Speculation is that Ford marketing execs have suggested reintroducing the Taurus. The Taurus nameplate, which was the model used by Ford in both Nationwide and Cup competition from 1998 until 2005, recently resurfaced on the street version of the somewhat redesigned Ford 500. When quizzed about which model eventually would be used, [Ford’s Dan] Davis said that Ford was not prepared to announce it as of yet, and he hinted that it could end up being an altogether different car, one that has yet to be introduced to the American public. And despite his refusal to acknowledge that Dodge is moving forward with its plans to use the Challenger, [Dodge’s Mike] Accavitti did admit that when it came to making the decision which model Dodge would use, as a former marketing executive, he was empowered to make the decision.(Yahoo Sports)(2-16-2008)
Nationwide Series Still Working on COT: Work continues on the Nationwide car of tomorrow program, with the four manufacturers helping to push up the timeline for development of the new car, Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash says. Another wind tunnel test is planned, Balash said, after the four manufacturers in the series – Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge and Toyota – have constructed “identity” pieces for the car. The chassis is based on the Sprint Cup COT, but the body is all new and likely to be based on “heritage” cars for each manufacturer – though Toyota will likely be the only car maker to stick with the same model as in Sprint Cup. Balash said NASCAR’s plan is still to have the new car run the entire 2009 season, but officials from the sanctioning body have not formally announced the rollout. (SceneDaily.com)(1-28-2008)
Nationwide COT to use different suspension package: NASCAR Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash said Thursday that the car scheduled to be used in the series in 2009 will have a different front suspension package than the Sprint Cup version. The Nationwide car of tomorrow will have a spring package like the one used in current cars, Balash said. Sprint Cup cars, which will all be the model formerly known as the COT beginning in 2008, use “bump-stops” on the front suspension instead of the “coil-binding” setup on current Nationwide cars. Balash also said plans call for the Nationwide COT to be rolled out in all races in 2009. The Nationwide cars also will use a different body style, with a higher hood and shorter deck lid. Manufacturers are still deciding what model to use, though it appears likely Ford will run a Mustang, Chevrolet a Camaro and Dodge a Challenger. Toyota likely will stick to the Camry, sources said. Balash said all four manufacturers have been involved in the design of the new car. The car has one more round of wind tunnel tests before NASCAR can lock down the ¹09 rules, Balash said. Balash said the new rules package will likely be announced in January.(SceneDaily.com)(12-7-2007)
More on Pony Cars in the Nationwide Series: A source at Ford Motor Company says the motorsports division expects the Ford Mustang to replace the Fusion in the Busch series. “We’re expecting to run the Mustang in 2009,” the source said. It’s the first confirmation from a manufacturer what I first reported in early 2006 – that the cars in the Busch series, which will be called the Nationwide series in 2008 and beyond – may soon be substantially different from the cars in the top-tier Nextel Cup series. NASCAR is expected to require the Busch cars to be built to a safety specification similar to the Nextel Cup “Car of Tomorrow,” which becomes the standard car after the Daytona 500 in February. If a makeover will be required anyway for the 2009 season, logic suggests that would be a good time for a nameplate change, as well. That said, it may not be a done deal. Reportedly Chevyt is balking at running the Camaro in the NASCAR series. Rumors suggest that Dodge is considering a Busch series version of the Challenger. Also, the move to “pony car” coupes could cause a problem for Toyota. The Camry Solara, a two-door sedan version of the top-selling car in the United States, may disappear after the 2008 model year. If the move to the Mustang, et al, is to be made for 2009, that announcement would be expected soon after the first of next year.(Orlando Sentinel)(11-30-2005)
COT Planned for Nationwide Series in 2009: NASCAR officials confirmed Sunday plans to have a Car of Tomorrow chassis tentatively in place for the 2009 Nationwide Series season. During Saturday’s Busch Series broadcast from Memphis, Rusty Wallace mentioned a Nationwide Series COT chassis that is on display at NASCAR’s research and development center in Concord, N.C. NASCAR’s director of cost and research, Brett Bodine, confirmed that a prototype has been built and is undergoing tests. “We’re working on an ’09 [Nationwide] car,” Bodine said. “[Having it ready for] ’09 is tentative. It’s not set in stone but we’re working on it. We’ve informed some of the Busch owners and we’ve got a prototype at the R&D center.” At 110 inches, the wheelbase would match the current Nextel Cup chassis and includes all of the safety initiatives added in the COT design. However, Bodine said there will be significant differences between the two series, although the specifics have yet to be worked out. “There will be a different body style and different aerodynamic package,” Bodine said. “We’re working on all that stuff. We’re just not there yet, still working through all that process.(NASCAR.com)(10-28-2007)
NASCAR Takes Busch COT to Wind Tunnel: NASCAR has had its planned new Busch version of the car of tomorrow in the wind tunnel this week, with Detroit car makers sending engineers over to discuss various options. NASCAR officials have been considering allowing more leeway on the body styling of the new model, which is tentatively set to debut in 2009.(Winston Salem Journal)(10-13-2007)
Busch Series ponders move to COT-type car in 2009: The Busch Series will be going to a NASCAR-approved chassis, at least a brother if not a twin to the current “car of tomorrow” in the future, likely as early as 2009. Busch Series Director Joe Balash said Saturday that there are too many factors undecided on what or when the series will make the change. NASCAR has floated the idea of using pony car bodies – Mustangs, Camaros, etc. – with the manufacturers. Among the other things that could change is the wheelbase to be consistent with Cup at 110 inches (from 105 in the Busch Series). Teams have been going to the NASCAR Research and Development Center looking at proposed chassis. Busch Series teams are bracing for the change to occur for the start of the 2009 season. Mike Dillon, Richard Childress Racing’s Vice President of Competition, predicted the car would have a smaller splitter to go with the new body and also will have a spoiler instead of a wing. Balash said the hope would be that the teams will have fewer cars. Teams are estimating being able to go from about 12-15 cars to about five to eight cars. There will be no body changes for the Busch Series next season, but the series will go to the smaller fuel cell. The series was still using the 22-gallon fuel cell and will go to the current Cup cell that holds 17-18 gallons. The engine rules will change slightly, which Balash estimates will lower RPM by about 500 RPM, down to about 8000 RPM. Certain components will have different weight requirements with the idea that, combined with the lower RPM using a different gear rule, they will last longer.(SceneDaily.com)(9-29-2007)