ASA ENGINE PROGRAM REMAINS UNCHANGED FOR 2002 -

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Jeremy Troiano, 765-778-8088 (ASA)

ASA ENGINE PROGRAM REMAINS UNCHANGED FOR 2002

NASHVILLE, Ind. (December 7, 2001) – Officials from the American Speed Association have announced that the mandated engine program for the upcoming 2002 ASA Racing Series season remains unchanged. The series will continue utilizing the General Motors Vortec ASA 5700 introduced prior to the 2000 season . The announcement comes after months of negotiation between ASA and GM regarding a GM proposal that the Pendleton, Ind., sanctioning body mandate an upgraded version of the sealed, factory-produced engine.

"In the best interest of the series, we have decided to continue utilizing the current engine package configuration for the 2002 season," commented ASA Executive Vice President Brian R. Robbins. "GM Powertrain and the Vortec Engine Brand had asked us to consider utilizing an upgraded version of the engine for 2002, but we simply ran out of time to mandate a change."

Beginning in 1998, General Motors and ASA embarked on a joint venture with the objective of introducing electronic engine management to oval track racing, utilizing a high-performance, factory-built powerplant similar to the LS1 engine package currently found in Chevrolet Corvettes and Camaros and Pontiac Firebirds. 

After two years of extensive research and development, ASA announced it would mandate the use of a sealed engine for the 2000 season, manufactured by General Motors at the Romulus Assembly Plant just outside Detroit, Mich. With minor modifications to the production engine, the GM Vortec ASA 5700 was introduced to stock car racing in March of 2000 at USA International Speedway in Lakeland, Fla.

Over the course of the past two seasons, ASA drivers have logged 483,881 laps or 270,600 miles on the engines in 40 nationally sanctioned events, with minimal failures.

In addition to the remarkable durability of the engines, perhaps the most notable benefit has been the economic impact for the teams competing in ASA. The GM Vortec ASA 5700 engines are sold to the teams for just $12,000 each, and several teams have either run a full 20-event season utilizing a single engine or have run 20 or more events with the same engine over the course of the last two years. Compared to the aftermarket V6 powerplants utilized by ASA teams from 1992 through 1999, each costing $30,000 or more, it has been suggested that the Vortec program has reduced the teams' engine budgets by as much as $100,000 per season.

The announcement to continue with the current engine package was made during the 2001 ASA ACDelco Series National Awards Banquet at the Opryland Hotel Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn., on Friday evening, December 7.

The 20-event 2001 ASA Racing Series season is scheduled to begin on March 23-24 at USA International Speedway in Lakeland, Florida and will make its second visit to the West Coast and Irwindale Speedway for the April 6 and 7 weekend with preliminaries and qualifying on Saturday night followed on by a nationally-televised (live on TNN) Sunday afternoon race at 1pm pacific standard time.  

###





THANKS!