NASCAR believes it is adapting the theory of the truck to the CoT and we’ve already heard the concept propounded on TV by the likes of Kenny Wallace and Jimmy Spencer. NASCAR believes the CoT’s front splitter and tail wing as well as its enlarged greenhouse and overall shape will act like the truck and make for exciting side-by-side racing. But my aero engineering friends tell me the truck makes much more downforce than the CoT because it’s got a big nose with a lot more surface area as well as a long tail and substantial spoiler. The trucks are similar to IRL cars in that they make plenty of downforce and can run side-by-side at many tracks. I’m told not to expect that with the CoT.
Then there’s the matter of the splitter as a weapon or easily damaged piece. It seems like the splitter will be in for a serious test in the CoT’s debut at Bristol where it’s all too easy to imagine bits and pieces of splitter laying all over the track by half-distance. As well as being a possible debris monster, the splitter means the CoT is more aero dependent than the current car.
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