Win On Sunday, Sell On Monday
What would it take to make NASCAR racing more credible? I think you hit on the answer: put the engineering back into the manufacturers' hands. I think that NASCAR designing a "spec-NASCAR" with a common aero template is wrong. Leave it to Ford, GM, or Dodge to prove their capabilities on the track with their stock designs. Mandating stock wheelbase, track width, and so on would put the emphasis on the ever-important Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday mantra that is lost in today's motorsports. Could you imagine a late-model Monte Carlo with rear-drive, double A-arm front suspension, live-axle rear diff, a manual transmission, and an LS2 small-block on the showroom floor of your local Chevrolet dealer?Greg NelsonGreenfield, WI
Yes On Pro Late Model
Yes! Pro Late Model has to happen! Pro Stock has no relevance to today's cars. Pro Late Model, on the other hand, offers new, more exciting racing. I have just a few suggestions to make:Allow any engine management system.
Factory-based systems aren't tunable enough. And allow one turbo or supercharger without regard to factory availability, but no hood holes or scoops. Keep all intercooler components forward of the firewall. The weight break can be adjusted over time.
Allow active suspension. Imagine the ability to launch straight with both slicks evenly planted and a lowered ride height and rake at speed. You can buy it off the showroom floor, why not in Pro Late Model?
Think about all-wheel drive. Allow foreign cars too. If NHRA could keep the class from morphing into something bizarre like Pro Mod, a new Pro Late Model class would bring the most exciting racing in the last decade. Let's figure out a way to make it happen.Graeme SackrisonLacey, WA
The Other Side
What you don't seem to get is that racing purposely shed factory cars so as not to get stuck again when factory teams pull out. Using generic cars and motors keeps the manufacturers from controlling the racing, influencing rules, and leaving racing high and dry like they did before. NHRA and NASCAR are enjoying their best ticket sales and popularity without dealing with GM, Ford, Mopar, or Toyota. Now, manufacturers come to them to get programs included and buy TV time, so why would they want to go backward? I'd rather manufacturers spend their money on making better cars than throwing money at racing teams, and I've been a racing fan for 40 years.Lawrence BrownFallston, MD
Brand Identification
I mourn the passing of the time when you could tell who was leading a NASCAR race just by the make of their car. If it was a big Ford Torino, it was probably David Pearson. If it was a Dodge, chances were good it was a Petty, and there was always the question in the back of your mind, "Could I build a hot motor for my Chevelle and run with those guys?"
At the dragstrip, Ronnie Sox was flogging Chryslers and a few of us actually went out and bought one, built a hot motor, and went drag racing side by side with Ronnie Sox. We didn't stand a chance of beating him, but we were at least in a car that looked just like his, was bought from a used-car lot, was driven to work every day, and was a tough car around our hometown. In other words, we actually got to live the dream.Dr. Larry StanleyVirginia
Department Of Corrections
In the Nov. '04 issue, Matt King wrote a section on the Holley 3310 carb ("20 Speed Parts That Changed the World"). The Holley 0-3310 is actually a 4160 model, not a 4150 as stated. The 4150 is a double-pumper and the 4160 has vacuum secondaries. Consider yourself educated by a "clueless" former Super Shops employee. Monty WhiteVia e-mail
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