- Today is an important day.
It's Star Wars Day.
May the Fourth be with you,
but tomorrow,
tomorrow is NASCAR day.
(cars zooming by)
(crowd cheering)
Yee-hoo!
May 5th is the full unveiling of the 7th Generation
NASCAR Cup Car.
NASCAR, they have pulled out all the stops
and have built one of the most advanced cars
to ever go round and round a racetrack,
but I'm impatient.
I couldn't wait for tomorrow.
So today, we're gonna see what changes were made
to this new age Cup Car and how they all work.
NASCAR's putting the stock back in stock car,
kind of.
(upbeat music)
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Get back!
Clever girl.
- Since 1949, the NASCAR Cup Series
has been the pinnacle of American stock car racing.
Over 70 years,
there have been just six generations of cars
and that is about to change.
The all new 7th Generation Cup Car
will be unveiled tomorrow, May 5th,
and while many details are still under wraps,
it's no secret that this new car
is a major change for the sport.
- There are things that are radically different
about the car
that are gonna catch people having to really think again.
- That's race car engineer Brandon Thomas,
the managing director of vehicle systems for NASCAR.
From day one,
he's been overseeing the development
of the 7th Generation Car, officially called Next Gen.
When we asked Brandon how the Next Gen differs
from the current car, he said,
"oh just about everything makes it unique".
So, we're gonna focus on three
of those revolutionary changes.
The Next Gen's new sequential gearbox,
its independent rear suspension,
and the new frame and body structure.
With Brandon's help,
we're gonna see how these three features are part
of a total package that's safer,
less expensive,
and more importantly,
it creates more exciting racing.
Like mini front engine rear wheel drive cars,
NASCAR currently uses a gearbox
attached to the back of the engine,
which sends power to a solid rear axle
through a steel drive shaft.
It uses an H pattern shifter
like you'd find in most manual road cars.
This design has been around for decades,
because it's simple and it's durable.
The Next Gen uses a significantly different
drive train layout,
which includes a rear transaxle.
That's a single mechanical assembly
that combines functions of the gearbox,
the differential,
and the drive axles.
Moving the gearbox components to the rear of the car
helps improve weight distribution,
which is why the same layout is used
in high-performance road cars.
Ferrari, Porsche, Aston Martin,
and three generations of a Corvette
all use this layout.
In addition to better weight distribution,
the new transaxle also replaces the H pattern shifter
with a lever that's pulled back to upshift
or pushed forward to downshift.
Sequential shifting is faster than H pattern.
It rarely slips out of gear
and is nearly impossible to miss a shift,
unless you're are,
one of our editors Canaan,
who just sucks at driving.
He would be able to (beep) it up.
(ding)
But how does the new sequential transaxle effect the racing?
According to Brandon,
the drive train is now 50 to 60% stiffer
and that means every gear change is sharper,
smoother, and more efficient.
- What the gearbox gives us
is a very modern layout
to the drive train,
which is a big update from where we are.
It will reduce shift times for the drivers
who are, let's say,
bold enough and smooth enough to go after it.
- This is a core design principle for the Next Gen Car
that we're seeing again and again.
It's about giving the best drivers the best package,
so we can really see what they're capable of.
Another part of the package
is a brand new independent rear suspension.
NASCAR currently uses a truck arm suspension.
The rear axle attaches to the chassis
by two long pivoting arms
and the movement is damped by springs and shock absorbers.
It's a simple design that's cheap,
durable, contains few parts,
and it handles power well,
but it has a few problems.
- So, any adjustment you make to the right rear
actually is somewhat reflected or at least affected
on the left rear, as well.
- Those cross vehicle effects
aren't just the results of mechanical changes.
Uneven road surfaces can create instability,
because both sides will be affected,
even if initial disturbance happens
on just one side of the car.
Another problem is that solid axles,
they're heavy and they're unsprung weight.
Excessive unsprung weight reduces a car's ability
to maintain consistent grip.
If there's nothing damping impacts
or vibrations affecting the unsprung parts.
The Next Gen Car's rear suspension
uses multiple control arms
to link each wheel to the chassis,
allowing them to travel up and down independently.
This system reduces unsprung weight,
leaving only the wheels,
tires, and brakes unsupported by that suspension.
Even that is being improved with the Next Gen Car
by switching to lighter aluminum wheels.
The change to an independent rear suspension
allows fine tuning different suspension setups
between the left and right of the car.
It allows for a greater range
of adjustability at each corner.
For example,
independent suspension allows for more camber,
which is essential for corner and grip
but Brandon has some words of caution for team engineers.
- You set that up completely differently
than you set up a solid axle stock car
going around a corner
and so, you have to start to think about
the whole system a lot more critically.
It's gonna change the setups,
considerably is not even a strong enough word.
It basically is going to reset the setups.
- So, the Next Gen's got a new gearbox,
a new drive train layout,
new suspension design,
and even some new wheels,
all in the name of giving sharper tools to the best drivers,
but none of those changes come close
to how different the new frame and body structures are.
- Current car is not symmetric
about the X axis of the vehicle.
So, running down center line from front axle to rear axle,
the right side of the car is very flat
and the left side of the car really mimics
the OEM body shape
and so, if you're looking straight down on the vehicle,
the car is actually an air foil aimed towards the left.
So, it makes an error component
that is pulling the car to the left.
When it travels through a corner,
it's actually making a very
restorative, stabilizing yaw moment.
Now, Next Gen,
it is absolutely symmetric
down the center line of the vehicle
from the from the bumper to the tail.
That symmetry eliminates all of that restorative yaw moment.
- So, with these body changes,
the teams have to make up for lost aerodynamic grip
by finding that extra grip available
in the independent suspension setup
and the new tires.
Those setup changes are going to be a lot of work
and require a lot of experimentation.
So, why make the change?
Well, the symmetrical body
does not only look more like the real cars from Chevy,
Ford, and Toyota,
the new aerodynamics have less of an effect
on the cars around them.
That means more stability and tight high speed packs
and safer, faster passing.
In other words,
more competitive racing.
Does that mean that we can no longer shake and bake?
I don't know.
I probably shoulda asked Brandon that.
I didn't think of that at the time.
- Oh no, you can still shake and bake.
Shake and bake, baby.
So, the Next Gen has a sleek new body,
but we all know it's what's inside that counts.
Quite a few media outlets reported
that the Next Gen has a carbon fiber tub underneath.
It even made it onto the Wikipedia page.
- Well, let me correct you one thing there,
there's no carbon tub.
It's still a steel space frame
and it is, I would dare say,
the most advanced steel space frame ever designed.
- That's why your teachers told you
not to use Wikipedia when you're doing your research.
That's why I don't use Wikipedia
when I use my research.
I researched from jerrysresearch.net.
Like the current car,
the body still sits on a steel frame,
but this one is completely new
and from the sound of it,
is pretty special.
The driver has been moved inward
and the door bars that protect the driver
during side collisions,
they've been moved outward,
putting more space between the driver and the impact,
but one of the most advanced features
of the new car structure,
something unlike any of the previous cars,
is how it comes apart.
Why would you want that?
Well, you remove the rear clip
and you pull out the fuel cell,
the gearbox,
and the entire car's rear suspension
all in one unit
You remove the front clip
and out goes the radiator,
the front bumper assembly,
all the duct work,
all the front suspension and the steering system
and you can do all that very quickly.
Adapting to the Next Gen Car is going to require
a lot of work from the teams
and that work will be ongoing throughout the race season.
By designing a car to be modular,
it's much easier to set up and prep for events.
Talking to Brandon left the impression that
the Next Gen Car requires teams of smart people
who will put in work and adapt.
So, part of the car's success
is going to be down to skilled mechanics and engineers.
- But it gets the hardware
to be a lot more consistent between the drivers
and so, a chance for a driver
to suddenly elevate their game,
if they really are that good
and they just haven't had that shot.
I mean, that is a story right there
and that is something that I hope
does come out of something like this.
- Maybe fricking Jobe and I
will get a job working at NASCAR.
What if we start our own Donut NASCAR team?
Would you guys like that?
Leave a comment down below.
Now, we learned a ton talking to Brandon,
more than we could possibly include
in single episode of "B2B".
So, if you wanna see our full interview with him,
head on over to The Donut Underground.
Donut underground,
it's a membership for our diehard fans
where they can get special content
that you can't get on our channel.
So, if you want the full scoop on Next Gen NASCAR,
that's the place to be, especially before tomorrow.
K, we got the inside scoop.
Don't be left in the past.
You can go impress your friends right now.
Be like, yeah, I know about the NASCAR.
I watched "B2B", no big deal.
Say it just like that.
Big thanks to NASCAR and Brandon Thomas
for taking the time to share their secrets with us.
Look for the official unveiling of the Next Gen Car
tomorrow, May 5th,
with even more surprises that we couldn't include here.
This is a huge change
and in 2022,
NASCAR is gonna be awesome.
Excited to watch.
Thank you guys so much for watching us
here on "B2B".
Follow us on Instagram @donutmedia.
Follow me on Instagram @jeremiahburton
and until next week,
bye for now.