A major engine dilemma now, on the eve of the Daytona 500

  Doug Yates: a big Daytona headache, with the big race only days away (Photo: Autostock)
  

   By Mike Mulhern
   mikemulhern.net

  

   "Obviously as we ran practice and the Bud Shootout, those speeds are too high, which is a big concern," Yates says.
  "Second – NASCAR doesn't like the way the guys can push other cars for many laps. 
   "So I think the first objective with these rules changes is it looks like NASCAR is trying to break the cars up and they're trying to limit how hot we can run these engines. 
    "They are going to limit the frontend (grill) opening and put a pressure release valve (on the radiators) at 33 psi, which is going to bring down the operating limits of the engine. 
    "What we've done this morning (Monday) -- probably like other shops -- is we've gone to work on the dyno, to understanding the system, and we're working to optimize what we can, so when we can have a safe, reliable race."
   Blown engines, under either scenario – changing something or change nothing – would now seem to be a major issue hanging over the Daytona 500.
   "The engines are turning more RPM than we had planned and what we feel comfortable with, and they're also going to run hotter," Yates says.
   "With this rule change, it's going to bring down how hot we can run them, and it is concerning."
    So after months of preparation and testing for the sport's biggest race, teams are facing a major engine reliability issue.
   "It is a very big deal – We've worked for a long time, especially on the water systems, to be able to run the temperatures we do," Yates frets.
   "What's concerning about this is it's (now) mainly a driver-driven decision."
   Specifically, the driver will have to decide when his engine is running too hot and how long he can run it too hot in a draft. The longer a two-car draft sticks together, the faster and faster it can run.
    "If the driver is pushing somebody, he has to pay attention not only to what's in front of him, but also to his water temperature gauge," Yates says.
    "He has to know when to get air to the nose.
     "When you put that much emphasis on the driver watching the gauges, you open yourself up to some potential failures, just because it’s not easy to do."
    Dodge engineering specialist Howard Comstock agrees that the rules change puts more pressure on drivers than he would like to see, particularly as difficult as racing is at this place anyway.
   "As an engine builder, this is a big change for a big race," Yates says. "So we're going to do a lot of homework."
   On top of all this, there is the possibility NASCAR could change the size of the carburetor restrictor plate, to cut horsepower.
   "Absolutely," Yates says.  "I wouldn't be surprised from the speeds I've seen that we could have a plate change.
    "So we are preparing as if that might come."
    The high RPM being turned in these fast drafts not only surprised people, but Yates says "I was a bit surprised there weren't more failures."
    Kasey Kahne did blow an engine early in the Shootout.
    The RPM Yates says "is concerning.
    "For years NASCAR has wanted more (rear end) gear in the car so the guys have more throttle response.
    "But the engines are really over where normal operating range would be for a plate engine.  We're turning almost as much RPM at Daytona as we turn
at Michigan -- with an engine that's designed to turn 1,000 RPM less."