[h=2]NASCAR implements new damaged vehicle policy[/h] Wednesday, 08 February 2017


Kelly Crandall / Images by LAT

The race to fix a damaged race car will take on a new meaning beginning this season.
NASCAR announced a new damaged vehicle policy Wednesday that will be implemented in all three national series pertaining to how cars involved in an on-track accident can be repaired. Beginning at Daytona, drivers and teams cannot take their cars to the garage for repairs in the hopes of returning to competition.


Severely damaged cars that need extensive repairs in the garage will be retired from the race. However, teams will be put on a five-minute clock should they choose to come down pit road and attempt to fix the car. If repairs are made in five minutes or less, and a driver then maintains minimum speed, the clock will be reset, and he or she will be allowed to remain in the event.
The clock starts when the car crosses the yellow line at the entrance of pit road and ends when the car crosses the yellow line at pit road exit. A driver who speeds on pit road (to circumvent the clock) or misses the commitment cone will lose 15 seconds from the five-minute clock.
Under the new rule, teams will also not be allowed to send more than the allowed number of crew members over the wall in assist in repairs. If a team is caught doing so, the car will be removed from the race. Teams are allowed to have six crew members go over the wall to work on the car and one to service the driver or windshield.
Pit road repairs will be as follows:

• Body repairs are limited to the removal or reattachment of original body parts with fasteners and tape
• Rods/supports may be used to reinforce original parts
• New or previously unused body panels are prohibited
• Series directors will provide teams with a list of items that are required for competition, such as rear bumper covers, tail extensions, etc.

An exception to the new policy is a car that needs to repair a mechanical or electrical failure. That team may go the garage if the failure was not the result of an accident. NASCAR will allow teams to replace or fix the part without a time constraint before allowing the driver to return to competition.
"We have a lot of cars that are going back on the track that end up in 38th position, for instance, that probably don't need to be out there from a safety and competition aspect," NASCAR senior vice president of competition Scott Miller told NASCAR.com, "because they always tend to bring out more yellows with stuff falling off."
The new rule eliminates teams trashing around the garage area in hopes of returning a driver to the event as quickly as possible. Repairs will now prohibit teams from replacing parts and pieces such as a nose cone, deck lids, hoods and sheet metal.
Body repairs will now be limited to the above-mentioned removal or reattachment of original parts with fasteners and tape.
"I've been involved in crash repairs, and that's not a great situation down there in the garage with 20 people running around, oil leaking on the floor, things catching on fire and sharp metal being cut off," Miller said. "It's a fairly unsafe situation. And at times it would be unsafe really for the driver to get back in a car that was damaged that heavily. There's nothing that doesn't come with some downside, but I think there is a lot of upside to where we are going with this."