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| Letarte (with Regan Smith) likes the new car |
“This car is the perfect example of technology helping our
sport,” said Steve Letarte, crew
chief of the No. 88 National Guard/Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet. “I think we now
have three makes out here that my little boy at nine-years old can tell the
difference between. I think that is the goal – that anybody can walk through
the parking lot and see a Chevy, a Ford and a Toyota and know that they are
different. That’s really what it comes down to – if you’re into racing you want
to watch cool cars go around the track. I think the simple fact is in 2013 we
have cooler cars.”
The look of the new sixth-generation car has been a hit and so
has the performance of the new car. Drivers experienced speeds on Tuesday that
have the potential to break the current qualifying record at Charlotte Motor
Speedway, as the speed chart topped the 193-mile-per-hour range.
“It felt fast and I knew where my throttle was, so I knew it was
as fast as I have ever been around this track” said Kasey Kahne. “I just think this car goes around the corner
quicker.”
After potential record-breaking speeds throughout both test
sessions, rain cut the afternoon short. Teams will have two more open tests
before the beginning of the 2013 season starting with Preseason Thunder at
Daytona International Speedway Jan. 10-12.
The sixth-generation car will return to Charlotte Motor Speedway
Jan. 17-18, when the teams will have their final
opportunity to test the car before Speedweeks in Daytona.
Photo: Bob Jordan/AP
Sorry, but these are not "cool cars." I'm seeing little differences between them and am a little baffled that Letarte thinks his nine-year-old can differentiate between them. This 6th generation car repeats the same mistakes of the COT - it's a top-heavy sedan, not a raked aerocoupe. Racecars are supposed to be raked aerocoupes both for aesthetic appeal and because that is the optimum aerodynamic shape.
ReplyDeleteI want to watch lead changes - passing and especially RE-passing - not just dumpy sedans masquerading as "cool cars" on a racetrack. Letarte has his priorities screwed up here - if technology is going to help the sport, it needs to be applied to eliminate ALL impediment to passing.