Steve, et al.
I can easily see your point and understand your position. Regardless
if I agree with it or not, I also see why the rule is in place and why
is was generated. People don’t want to show up with a knife at a gun
fight.
What I don’t see/understand is why the spirit of the rule is not the
focus of this issue. Carter’s statement about Spec E30 is basically
saying is that the series is about the drivers and the racing, not who
can find the loopholes and create an unfair advantage by way of more
HP and/or TQ. The idea is to take a street car, put some safety gear
in it and go racing. Not to build and spend more on an engine than
the value of the car itself. The rule is there for one reason…to
level the playing field.
That being said, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. Just
about all the racers who don’t spend a huge amount of time and money
on “development” would love to understand how someone has a legal
motor that has 2 more hp at the wheels than a brand new motor does at
the crank. I will say what the others are thinking…“Huh? How the
hell is that done? Where is the traditional 10-15hp that is lost in
the drive train when it is measured at the wheels? I would love to
have that kind of power.” I would sure like to know…so explain it
to everyone. If it is all legal, and I am choosing to believe you at
this point, I think it would help to explain how this is done since
nobody seems to be able to figure that out.
Now you could say “Why would I disclose my advantage?” The answer is
simple, go back to the spirit of the series and understand the idea
that having that kind of HP advantage diverts from that spirit.
Remember, this is suppose to be a driver’s series, not a builder’s
series, and that is why the rules are written in a way to attempt to
take away both real and perceived performance advantages. I get that
every racer wants to have a competitive advantage, but when it comes
by way other than the driver or at it being cost prohibitive to the
masses, that is where the rules are (at it’s core) being broken. So
if you want any kind of change in the rules, or allowance for
Nationals, I would think this would be a great way to make it. Then
you can say, there you have it and anyone can do the same. If it is
all within the rules, perhaps you will be granted your request. But
make sure you don’t limit the explanation to the engine because there
is more to it than that.
You see, all drivers would like to be rewarded when they do well and out drive the other guy. If they have a slightly better line through the corner or are smoother through the corner, even with the same entry and mid-corner speed, they don’t want that to watch the other guy walk away. That being said, I agree with C. Buzz in that I feel most drivers under estimate the value of their set up and what the skill of a great driver is worth. They simply just chalk it up to HP and wonder why their car won’t do that. Well, sometimes it’s the indian, not the arrows. But then again, there is still something to be said for a sharp arrow.
Just my .02