The Engines Behind the Drivers

03/18/96

The Associated Press recently published an article detailing what kind of engines power NASCAR's winning teams. Richard Childress, Runt Pittman, Robert Yates build the engines that win races, and engine design and optimization is a never ending process.

Robert Yates built the engines in cars driven by Ernie Irvan and Dale Jarrett, and before that he built power plants for Davey Allison. Yates explained the finer points of engine building when he remarked that most NASCAR racers use engines that produce between 700 and 730 horsepower. The closer an engine gets to 730 horsepower, he went on to say, the more likely it is to blow up.

The engines can be rebuilt from race to race depending on where a driver is in the point standings, and team strategy--a team must decide whether they want to run on the risky or the conservative side.

Engine builders use parts by one manufacturer and face quite a lot of regulations from NASCAR that attempt to level out the playing fields and make all cars equal. Still, the engineers figure out ways to change setups, and the teams constantly play the balance between reliability and horsepower.

Because engine design is so important to the outcome of races, engine espionage is reported to be rampant. Teams keep their engines covered up and locked away so that nobody can sneak around with a camera and discover team secrets. Yates said he constantly has to turn away photographers that wander into his garage trying to sell him their services and cunning with telephoto lenses. Bob Briffle, and engine technician for Jack Roush says "When we have the intake manifold off, we keep it covered up with blankets so people can't take pictures. A photograph is worth a lot nowadays."

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel