Doug Yates Discusses Daytona Rules Change

For the second time in a week, NASCAR has made a change to the cars
during Speedweeks. On Saturday, the sanctioning body requested teams
disconnect air hoses to the radiator and air cooler. On Sunday, Robin
Pemberton, NASCAR’s Vice President of Competition, said that teams
will be required to have a maximum size of 2.5 inches tall by 20
inches wide on the front grille opening and install a pressure-relief
valve on the water system that will be set at 33 psi before they
return to Daytona on Wednesday.

 Doug Yates, head engine builder for Roush Yates Engines, spoke with
Ford Racing about what the change means for his operation and how he
wouldn’t be surprised if more changes were on the way.

 ... more after the jump ...

DOUG YATES, Head Engine Builder, Roush Yates Engines – HOW MUCH WORK
IS INVOLVED WITH THESE CHANGES TO GET READY FOR THIS WEEK? "The
Daytona 500 is an historic event, it’s our Super Bowl, and with a new
track and new noses on the cars, I think everybody did their best to
try to set the rules so when we got there we would have a good,
competitive race. Obviously, as we ran practice and the Bud Shootout
those speeds are too high, which is a big concern. Second, NASCAR
doesn’t like the way the guys can push other cars for many laps. So,
I think the first objective with these rules changes is it looks like
NASCAR is trying to break the cars up and they’re trying to limit how
hot we can run these engines. As a result, they’re gonna limit the
front-end opening and put a pressure release valve at 33 psi, which is
gonna bring down the operating limits of the engine. What we’ve done
this morning, probably like other shops, is we’ve gone to work on the
dynamometer and understanding the system and we’re working to optimize
what we can, so when we go back we can have a safe, reliable race.
The engines are turning more RPM than we had planned and what we feel
comfortable with, and they’re also gonna run hotter, so with this rule
change it’s gonna bring down how hot we can run them and it is
concerning."
 
HOW BIG OF A DEAL IS THIS FOR YOU AND YOUR GROUP? "It is a very big
deal. We’ve worked for a long time, especially on the water systems,
to be able to run the temperatures that we do today. What’s
concerning about this is it’s mainly a driver-driven decision. If the
driver is pushing somebody, he has to pay attention not only to what’s
in front of him, but also to his water temperature gauge. He has to
know when to get air to the nose, so whenever you put that much
emphasis on the driver watching the gauges, you open yourself up to
some potential failures just because it’s not easy to do. As an
engine builder, this is a big change for a big race, so we’re gonna do
a lot of homework today and tomorrow and, hopefully, be prepared when
we go back there on Wednesday and Thursday. If we need to do some
more research before the 500, then we will."
 
ROBIN SAID THEY CAN STILL GO TO THE PLATE AND MAKE A CHANGE, IF
NECESSARY. SO IS THIS A WEEK WHERE YOU PLAN FOR ALL POSSIBILITIES?
"Absolutely. I wouldn’t be surprised from the speeds that I’ve seen
that we could have a plate change, so we are preparing as if that
might come. The guys are working on that right now, and the one thing
we can do today is work on the car as far as better jetting and the
tune-up because the components are already built and at the track, so
we can work on the things around them and try to make the best
decisions, or have our notebook full of data so if we need to make a
decision based on a plate change, we will."
 
WHAT WERE YOUR THOUGHTS WHEN YOU SAW THE RPM’s BEING TURNED AND THE
KIND OF RACING THAT WENT ON IN THE SHOOTOUT? "First, I was a bit
surprised that there weren’t more failures, but it is a short race.
We’ll obviously get those parts back and do our post-race analysis
like we normally do and are likely to see more distress in those
parts, but it’s concerning. For years, NASCAR has wanted to have more
gear in the car so the guys have more throttle response, but the
engines are really over where normal operating range would be for a
plate engine. We’re turning almost as much RPM at Daytona as we turn
at Michigan with an engine that’s designed to turn 1,000 RPM less.
It’s a little bit of an odd situation, but everybody is in the same
boat, and I feel like our guys and our team have done a good job
reacting. I was quite pleased with qualifying yesterday. Obviously,
we would like to be on the front row, but the Wood Brothers did a
really good job with their effort and, for the most part, most of our
cars were in the top 20, so I think we’ve made some good strides from
Talladega to now."
 
ROBIN ALSO SAID THAT EVERYONE HAS DONE A GOOD JOB – FROM THE TRACK TO
THE TEAMS AND NASCAR. IS IT A CASE NOW OF JUST CONTINUING TO TWEAK
THINGS UNTIL THE RIGHT PACKAGE IS FOUND? "That’s exactly right.
Robin Pemberton and John Darby do a great job and it’s challenging
because as competitors we’re looking to build as much speed in the
car. Whatever situation we’re given, it’s our job to try to take
those rules and win races with it. No matter how much data you have,
when everybody got back down there for the race with their best cars
and their best efforts, it was faster than we were at the test. The
track is beautiful. I think a little bit of the feedback I heard from
the fans is that they were really excited about the racing. It came
down to the finish line for the win, so it’s different. As a guy
that’s been around this sport for a long time, it was unconventional
to what I’ve ever seen, but it was actually pretty interesting how two
cars could hook up and chase down another two-car combination and pass
them. At the end, there were three groups of two racing for the win,
so it’s different, but it was actually quite interesting."