Rule Changes for 2015

[Brierley]

2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race Package includes:
-- Reduction of horsepower to 725 via tapered spacer - Not a big fan of horsepower reduction, but with a lower spoiler and reduced weight, it might not be so bad. Will have to wait and see.
-- Roller valve lifters to replace flat valve lifter - probably a good idea, resulting in engine reliability.
-- Lower rear differential gear ratios targeting 9,000 RPM - Better this way to control RPMs than a rev limiter like in most other racing series.
-- Rear spoiler adjustment to 6 inches high (2014 height: 8 inches) - Reduced downforce. Good idea.
-- Optional driver adjustable track bar - I have no problem with this.
-- 38-inch wide radiator pan - Ambivalent.
-- Minimum vehicle weight drops 50 lbs. via ballast reduction (2014 weight: 3,300 w/o driver) - Good move, in my opinion.
-- Updated qualifying formats for all tracks - Qualifying is greatly improved this year. Maybe it will get better.
· Rain tires on road courses, similar to rules in place for the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series; mandatory wipers, defogger and rear flashing rain light installed for the event weekend - It's about time.

[slorydn1]

2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race Package includes:
-- Reduction of horsepower to 725 via tapered spacer - Not a big fan of horsepower reduction, but with a lower spoiler and reduced weight, it might not be so bad. Will have to wait and see.


I'm with ya' here. Horsepower reduction is fine in the lower series but in Cup? I have noticed in the Busch/Nationwide/Xfinity Series that the cars seem to struggle to get up off the corner, and they definitely run out of steam by the end of the straightaway. I don't like this part at all.


-- Roller valve lifters to replace flat valve lifter - probably a good idea, resulting in engine reliability.

With ya' here too: Street V8's have been using rollers for like forever now, its about time NASCAR catches up. I wouldn't mind seeing overhead cams down the road either. The Ti-VCT set up in my Mustangs really allow my cars to breathe very well at high RPM and still be very stable and civilized at low RPM.



-- Lower rear differential gear ratios targeting 9,000 RPM - Better this way to control RPMs than a rev limiter like in most other racing series.

I find myself wanting to agree with you here, but I just KNOW that this combined with the horsepower reduction is going to cause us to hear "The car just won't get out of its own way" from the drivers when we listen in on their radios. We won't hear it from them in the press because they don't want to get the Hamlin-Newman treatment.



-- Rear spoiler adjustment to 6 inches high (2014 height: 8 inches) - Reduced downforce. Good idea.

All that needs to be said, here :up:



-- Optional driver adjustable track bar - I have no problem with this.

Now we can hear the announcers talk about the drivers "using their tools" like on the IndyCar broadcasts. Its about time.



-- 38-inch wide radiator pan - Ambivalent.

Same here. I guess this would be to help front downforce?



-- Minimum vehicle weight drops 50 lbs. via ballast reduction (2014 weight: 3,300 w/o driver) - Good move, in my opinion.

Should help the car turn better, but I do see the lack of testing causing an issue for the teams until they can figure out just where on the car the remaining ballast needs to be to keep the driver happy. It will take them a few non-restrictor plate races to work that out.



-- Updated qualifying formats for all tracks - Qualifying is greatly improved this year. Maybe it will get better.

We shall see. I would have liked them to go back to single car qually for the 4 plate races though-so far all the qually sessions in all 3 series at the plate tracks have been an abomination. Everywhere else it has been absolutely off the chain crazy, I love it.



· Rain tires on road courses, similar to rules in place for the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series; mandatory wipers, defogger and rear flashing rain light installed for the event weekend - It's about time.

AMEN-I have been screaming about this for years. In any event, the Farce makes the 2 road course races expendable, one could crash out of both and still easily make the sweet 16, LOL.

You forgot to address the lack of testing. I have been saying that having teams test at tracks they don't race at has been ridiculous for years, so that part of it will be good. That said, they need to EXPAND the number of test dates at the sanctioned tracks, and allow Rookies to have extra test dates that the others don't have.

One of the reasons that Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson (etc) were so good their rookie years (besides being with championship caliber teams) was because they could test pretty much at will back then.

I think NASCAR cutting back on testing dates, and adding a tapered spacer to the cars will drive alot more cup drivers back into the Nationwide Series (ok Xfinity, its gonna take a while) as a necessity for track time. I personally don't mind that, my favorite seasons were the years that Harv was running full time in both series, but a great many fans are so turned off by the Shrub-Harvick-Keslowski show that this could be problematic.