The Basics of a Nascar Nextel Cup Race Car

Americans have been known for their manyrace cars. While these systems can be tinkered
passions which includes speed. This apparent needwith, NASCAR set some rules that each team
for speed has led to the creation of motor racesmust meet including the weight of the race car.
which have been attracting Americans year afterCurrently, the weight set by NASCAR for race
year. While the sport may not seem as physicalcars is 3,400 pounds. Another rule is that the
as other sports such as baseball, football, anddistance between the front and rear wheels
basket ball, a huge number of Americans areshould also be uniform on all race cars which
supporting sports based on the speed ofwould compete in the Nextel Cup Series. The
automobiles. And when one speaks of car race,wheelbase of all race cars should be 100 inches.
the first thing that comes to mind is the NASCARThe fuel capacity of these race cars are also
Nextel Cup Series.controlled by NASCAR. For most tracks, the
The said championship series has captured themandated fuel capacity is 17.5 gallons. All race cars
imagination of millions of Americans who areentering the contest should have the same fuel
known for their attraction to speed contests. Thetype which is 110 octane unleaded fuel as ruled by
United States is also undoubtedly the biggestthe sport's sanctioning body. The cars' top speed
market for automobiles in the world which is aalso has a limit which is set at 235 miles per hour.
reason for the love of automobiles shown byFor a car to be permitted to race at the Nextel
Americans. As popular as the Nextel Cup SeriesCup Series, its engine should conform to the rules
may be, there are still a large number of peopleset by the National Association for Stock Car
who are still in the dark what this sport is about.Auto Racing or NASCAR. For instance, electronic
Basically, the Nextel Cup is a series of racesfeatures are not permitted and instead,
where the best race car driver, as judged by themechanical parts are used. This keeps the costs
number of points received during the duration offrom ballooning for the benefit of teams
the entire series of races is crowned as thecompeting in the races. Engines allowed to be
champion. The motorsport can be traced back toused on race cars competing in the Nextel Cup
the days when races are between "strictly stock"Series should have eight cylinders with combustion
cars or cars which have not been modified in anychambers measuring 358 cubic inches. To keep
way. During those early days, one can bring a carthe cars equal power output is set at a maximum
to the tracks and race it.of approximately 750 horsepower.
Today though, the race cars used in the NextelAn interesting fact about these race cars is their
Cup Series are tailor made for racing. Althoughheadlights. Since these cars are raced only during
teams can tinker with their cars to make it betterthe day, they do not need to have a pair of
than the competition's, NASCAR imposes rules toheadlights. The actual headlights that we see in
keep the cars equal. This year, four car brandsfront of these cars are in fact decals which look
have their vehicles racing at the series. These arerealistic enough to fool the unknowing person.
Ford, Dodge, Toyota, and Chevrolet. The latterAnother interesting fact about these race cars is
has been dominating the current series by winningthat they have to meet a number of templates
nine of the last ten races.that NASCAR is using to make sure that the
While a NASCAR Nextel Cup race car can beshape of the cars is almost uniform. The tires
modified for racing, they must have three stockused on these cars have no tread on them which
parts from manufacturers. These three parts areis the reason why the Jimmy Stewart 400 was
the roof, the trunk lid, and the hood of the cars.postponed due to the rain that poured during the
Aside from these three parts, the chassis, theevent. The absence of treads on the tires of
drive train, suspension, steering, and otherthese cars makes them impossible to race in wet
systems can be modified to make the car so astracks. The tire compound used on these cars'
to be suited to the demands of high speedtire is harder than those used by other
operations. In fact, aftermarket parts such as themotorsport vehicles given the fact that these
Pacesetter exhaust parts can be used by theserace cars significantly weigh more.