NASCAR Cup Series cars are known for high speeds, which are perennial throughout the race. The power produced by the engines is astronomical and reliable. To transfer this power efficiently to the wheels, the transmission should be robust and dynamic, which is exactly what the cars in the NASCAR Cup Series use.
Is the NASCAR Cup Series cars transmission manual or automatic?
As compared to open-wheel and prototype sports car championships in the world, where automatic transmissions are persistent, the NASCAR Cup Series cars use a five-speed sequential manual transmission with an additional reverse gear manufactured by Xtrac Limited.
Do Cup Series cars have sequential transmission?
Almost every championship sports car in the world comes equipped with sequential transmission, as it offers great drivability and smooth, steady changes of gears, which are absolutely necessary for handling the car. This trend of installing sequential transmission also continues in the NASCAR Cup Series cars, where drivers can seamlessly shift gears without major wheel spins.
What 4-speed did NASCAR use?
In the generation 6, Cup Series cars used to have a H-pattern 4-speed manual non-sequential transmission with an additional reverse gear. The drivability of this transmission was not great, with skipping of gears creating a jerky movement, which used to result in massive wheel spins and momentary loss of control. Hence to address these issues NASCAR shifted towards 5-speed sequential manual transmission for better and improved drivability.
Do NASCAR drivers shift gears during a race?
NASCAR drivers do shift gears. The rate of shifting gears per lap depends upon the configuration of the race tracks. Road course tracks have the highest gear shift rate, as drivers have to optimize their entry and exit speeds on turns. Oval tracks have the lowest gear shift rate, as most of the time the cars run full throttle, hence only requiring to shift gears at pit stops or yellow restarts.
FAQ's On NASCAR Cup Series
A. NASCAR adopted a 5-speed sequential manual transmission when the Generation 7 or the “Next Gen” car was introduced.
A. The road course tracks have the highest rate of gear shifts, as drivers have to optimize their entry and exit speeds on turns.
A. The major downside of the 4-speed manual transmission was its drivability as the gear changes were not seamless and smooth.
A. The rate of gear shift on an oval track is low as the cars run on full throttle and on the highest gear due to the configuration.
A. Sequential transmission offers great drivability as the gear shifts are smooth as compared to non-sequential transmission.
