Chrysler eyes return to NASCAR racing

[tenderloin]

Chrysler To Return To NASCAR?

What team(s) would switch? Penske who used to run Dodge seems to be running well with Fords. I doubt Gibbs (Toyota) would switch, same with Hendricks (Chevy), Roush(Ford) or Childress (Chevy). Stewart just signed long term contract with Ford. Ganasii(Chevy) with 2 cars might be able to pull it off tech and money wise. RPM even though King Richard once drove Chrysler products has been getting $ and tech help from Ford..although they do not run well. Front Row not enough anything for a company to hang their hat on.

Of course when corporate money is tossed around, all bets are out the window..

 

[bdcardinal]

RPM and Front row depend heavily on Roush. To call the performance of hte Roush teams subpar would be a very big compliment. I could see those 2 teams switching. Penske is working too close with Wood Brothers who have always been Ford. SHR has said they will be working with Penske.

I think it would be a good thing for them to re-enter NASCAR. They will need to do a lot of catching up since they lost 4 years of engine development to the FR9, RO7, and Toyota engines. Only one xfinity and maybe one or two Truck teams still use Dodge and those will be going away with the new bodies for late 2017/2018 in those series. They have also missed out on a lot of body development with the Gen 6 cars that came out in 2013. The Charger that was supposed to come out in 2013 for the Gen 6 looked awesome, but was never used.

 

[53' Stude]

Like father says "NASCAR is a joke anymore; it's all rigged and not REAL STOCK
CARS when Petty ran!"

Glad we don't watch it

 

[4WD]

It has been slowly morphing from engine features, dimensions, and engine philosophy. One of the worst departures came from Toyota who was allowed to design and build a pushrod engine ...

 

[NormanBuntz]

Maybe they'll sponsor the Chrysler 200 and it will be the first car to drop out each week. One of the most unloved cars reviewed by Consumer Reports.

 

[bdcardinal]

Just a thought about Ganassi. They are use Hendrick engines in their Cup and Xfinity cars. Their IndyCar team just switched from Chevy to Honda but they run Ford's endurance program with Multimatic. I could not see them switching to Dodge in Cup, maybe, maybe Ford if Ford starts an IndyCar engine program when the aerokit freeze comes into effect.

 

[LotI]

Originally Posted By: NormanBuntz
Maybe they'll sponsor the Chrysler 200 and it will be the first car to drop out each week. One of the most unloved cars reviewed by Consumer Reports.

The plant just built the last 200 and Dart on Friday. Gotta build more Rams!

 

[Merkava_4]

I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


They're too worried that a car would get loose in the stands. It's a legitimate concern.

 

[A_Harman]

It would be nice if a couple of Toyota and Ford teams would switch to Dodge. Perhaps Furniture Row and RPM?
They should only do it if NASCAR allows them to use the HEMI.
The HEMI is the only selling point that Chrysler has to sell their cars now.
When they're selling HEMI, they're selling treasured Americana.
I think Sergio is desperately searching for ways to keep his leaky boat afloat. Poor Chrysler has always had to struggle to survive as the #3 American automaker. They can't sell cars in the US; the 200 and Dart are going out of production, the Fiat 500 flopped, and the Viper is going away again. Ram trucks are successful with the HEMI and Cummins engines. Jeep is successful. The minivan is still successful. So he needs a way to build market interest in the brand, and success in NASCAR may be the way to do it. If NASCAR allows the HEMI and doesn't legislate its advantage out, 2 or 4 Dodges in the field may be able to win some races.

 

[Malo83]

Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


They're too worried that a car would get loose in the stands. It's a legitimate concern.


They should have designed the tracks with the dogleg on the farside of the track instead of in front of the grandstands, POCONO has that long front stretch that would be perfect for unrestricted racing.

 

[bdcardinal]

Originally Posted By: Malo83
Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


They're too worried that a car would get loose in the stands. It's a legitimate concern.


They should have designed the tracks with the dogleg on the farside of the track instead of in front of the grandstands, POCONO has that long front stretch that would be perfect for unrestricted racing.


They don't run plates at Pocono. Currently they are only used at Daytona and Talladega.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: Malo83
They should have designed the tracks with the dogleg on the farside of the track instead of in front of the grandstands, POCONO has that long front stretch that would be perfect for unrestricted racing.


Should have, could have, would have. Smokey Yunick said much the same in the early 60's. (Build the stands in the infield). You can see how much they listened to him.

 

[aquartlow]

Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Malo83
They should have designed the tracks with the dogleg on the farside of the track instead of in front of the grandstands, POCONO has that long front stretch that would be perfect for unrestricted racing.


Should have, could have, would have. Smokey Yunick said much the same in the early 60's. (Build the stands in the infield). You can see how much they listened to him.


Been on both sides of the track while watching races at Daytona, definitely better viewing of the races when on the "outside", you can actually view almost all of the track. I sat in stands directly behind pitwall during a night race for the 400(actually ran in Oct. due to fires in July, '98 IIRC) and could only see 200-300 ft of race track in front of us and just the tops of the cars as they went down the back stretch. Got the pitwall stand tickets for free, but wouldn't want to view a race from the infield again, not at Daytona anyhow.

 

[billt460]

The problem with both Daytona and Talladega was unforeseen problems that didn't exist when they were built. Bill France built Talladega for 200+ MPH speeds, because that was the direction the sport was headed. And it was the direction the fans wanted it to go. They didn't expect 2 ton cars to fly at those speeds. Yet they do. Even with roof flaps, spoilers, and everything else they attach to them to try to prevent it.

When Bobby Allison's car almost went into the stands in 1987, it scared the he!! out of NASCAR. Their reply was restrictor plates. It wasn't what anyone wanted. It was the best anyone could do. Today the problem still exists. (Austin Dillon crash). If a car ever gets loose in the stands, at either Talladega or Daytona, it will end NASCAR as we now know it. It would make the 1955 Le Mans disaster that killed 83 people and injured over 120, pale in comparison. It seems silly to make race cars slower. But that's what happens when unforeseen things happen.

 

[Malo83]

Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
Originally Posted By: Malo83
Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


They're too worried that a car would get loose in the stands. It's a legitimate concern.


They should have designed the tracks with the dogleg on the farside of the track instead of in front of the grandstands, POCONO has that long front stretch that would be perfect for unrestricted racing.


They don't run plates at Pocono. Currently they are only used at Daytona and Talladega.


Exactly!

 

[Mitch Alsup]

Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and run 302s at tracks where unlimited engines are "too big".

 

[A_Harman]

Originally Posted By: Mitch Alsup
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and run 302s at tracks where unlimited engines are "too big".


Unrestricted 5.0L engines would still be powerful enough to top 200mph at Daytona and Talladega.

 

[bdcardinal]

Originally Posted By: A_Harman
Originally Posted By: Mitch Alsup
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and run 302s at tracks where unlimited engines are "too big".


Unrestricted 5.0L engines would still be powerful enough to top 200mph at Daytona and Talladega.


The Weathertech Sportscars haul the mail with even smaller engines on the section of Daytona from the bus-stop to turn in on the road course after pit exit.

Plate racing doesn't bother me really, makes the races there actually interesting. I laugh when I hear talk about how NASCAR was so much better years ago. Back when only 2-3 cars were actually competitive and races finished with half the field in the garage and maybe 2 cars on the lead lap.

 

[A_Harman]

Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
Originally Posted By: A_Harman
Originally Posted By: Mitch Alsup
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and allow unlimited horsepower.


I wish they would lose the restrictor plate and run 302s at tracks where unlimited engines are "too big".


Unrestricted 5.0L engines would still be powerful enough to top 200mph at Daytona and Talladega.


The Weathertech Sportscars haul the mail with even smaller engines on the section of Daytona from the bus-stop to turn in on the road course after pit exit.

Plate racing doesn't bother me really, makes the races there actually interesting. I laugh when I hear talk about how NASCAR was so much better years ago. Back when only 2-3 cars were actually competitive and races finished with half the field in the garage and maybe 2 cars on the lead lap.


Yes, I've driven the Daytona road course. In my 400-ish HP Corvette, I would exit the bus-stop at ~85 mph and go up through the gears and reach 165 at Start-Finish, and roll off the gas for a second before braking into Turn 1. On my best lap, I hit 168, and that's about all the old girl would do. If I was running in a draft of cars on just the oval, I guess the car could hit 175.

Last week, I watched a series on You Tube that condensed each Daytona 500 from 1959 to 2010 into 7 minute videos. You're right about lack of competition in the early years. From the mid-60's to mid-70's, it was either Petty or Pearson winning with the 2nd place car a lap back. In 1974, Petty won by 2 laps. One thing that surprised me was how uncompetitive Chevies were. After Junior Johnson's win in 1960, Chevrolet didn't win at Daytona until Benny Parsons won in 1975. If you didn't drive a Ford or Chrysler product from ~1963, you just couldn't win.