Another newbie question- "fast" cars?

[Masked Terror]

I hear and read a lot about how some cars are fast, you need a fast car to win, the big three have the financial resources to consistently field fast cars, etc.

What exactly does that mean?

I'm sure it sounds like a dumb question, but they're all using the same engine, same chassis, same tires. Obviously, different settings or tunings can affect the car's performance, but surely the opportunity to dial in the perfect configuartion exists for all teams/drivers?

I know I'm missing something here, so if someone could explain what factors go into making one of these standardized cars faster than another and in what way money plays such a significant factor, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks.

[NickFalzone]

wind tunnel testing, trick parts/customized parts that fit within the rules, all the latest part upgrades, best pit crews, engineers, and strategists (see kyle moyer and danica win), money for driver coaches, etc. As opposed to the smaller teams, which have less or no wind tunnel testing, no money to design their own parts, sometimes can't afford all the manufacturer upgrades, less experienced pit crews and engineers. Probably more to it than that, but as you can see even a spec series has a window of opportunity that the richer teams can take advantage of. I see nothing wrong with that.

[Jonesi]

If a part has an expected life of say 10 races, the top teams are probably replacing them after 4-5 races (and if they think there's a competitive advantage to be had, maybe every race) the mid pack teams are probably going 10 races on them, and the back of the pack are trying to get 12-20 races out of it.

[Masked Terror]

Useful insights, Guys. Thanks.

Roughly how much wiggle room is there for customizing equipment, parts, etc? Any particular areas of the car more likely to be customized or certain parts that are always left bone stock?

Appreciate the info.

[Jonesi]

Useful insights, Guys. Thanks.

Roughly how much wiggle room is there for customizing equipment, parts, etc? Any particular areas of the car more likely to be customized or certain parts that are always left bone stock?

Appreciate the info.

Mirrors, wings/brackets, seem to be where the top teams are trying to get a little better aero. The announcers seems to think the tarp covering the side pod at Indy was about an improved radiator lay out.

[beachbum]

Interesting question, and insightful answers. Money buys parts and people. While theoretically, everyone starts with the same ingredients, how they are mixed determines who runs up front and who runs at the back.

I once was a crew chief in a motorcycle series running "stock" motorcycles. A large number of parts had to be technically "stock", unmodified. Yet the factory supported teams were faster, sometimes by a noticeable amount. Why? I knew one of the top factory tuners pretty well, and he gave some answers. They didn't take an engine out of a crate and just drop it in. The engines were hand built. They might examine 100 or more new pistons and pick the 4 that were perfect. They checked every cam, every cylinder, and made sure the ones picked were perfect. The rules had "gray" areas, and they massaged anything in the gray area. They even checked new frames in a jig, to make sure the one they used had the desired geometry. When I asked about a certain change allowed in the rules, he replied "4 hp". Another change gave 1.5. A suspension change was worth 2 tenths of a second. How did he know? They had worn out a number of engines on a dyno, testing every little change. They had worn out a number of machines in thousands of miles of testing. Our team had one week end of testing. Almost nothing was just taken off a parts shelf and stuck on the machine. Every part was carefully checked and sometimes changed in very subtle ways. Smooth a little rough edge, find the part that is slightly lighter, etc.

They showed up at every event with fresh engines, fresh shocks (often new), lots of other new parts and spares. They had the best riders. The top teams had new tires in every session. A privateer may have new tires for a final only. The factory usually won.

There once was a sign in a race shop that read "How fast do you want to spend?" Speed takes money and more money usually equals more speed.