When NASCAR set out to create the plans for the new generation race car best known as the COT, it was the intended to limit the radical thoughts teams had long exercised in pursuing speed. After less than a half season of notes, NASCAR teams are now working outside of the boxy constraints of the new generation car.
After watching qualifying for the Spint All-Star race at Lowe's Motor Speedway, myself and I'm certain other TV viewers took note of the vehicles traveling down pit road. One after one, each race car had been side driving down the straights, giving the appearance deemed crab walking. When I first caught it, I thought it was the result of the track bar breaking. However, as qualifying progressed, it became evident that some crew chiefs and Sprint Cup team engineers allowed their skilled imaginations to get the better of them. While almost every car in All-Star qualifying exhibited this side drive including Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch, one of the more extreme examples to this setup appeared evident with Sam Hornish's #77 Mobil Dodge in the Showdown qualifying race.
Sprint cup teams will literally maintain the straight and narrow this weekend at the Coca-Cola 600. According to espn.com , NASCAR Sprint Cup teams have received a bulletin from NASCAR indicating new rules restricting car setups adding rightward toe to the rear end drive assembly which involved a drive plate and axle shaft. Though this side drive made the stock cars appear like wounded animals down the straightaways, the adjustment was sought to improve cornering speeds and increase downforce on the rear wing.
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