Question: What is the NASCAR Gen-6 Race Car?

Answer:

History Behind the Gen-6.

The Gen-6 is essentially short for sixth-generation race car and is the follow-up to the widely panned Car of Tomorrow that was used in varying forms from 2007-2012.

There is no way to sugar coat it -- the Car of Tomorrow was one of the worst ideas in NASCAR history and arguably set the sport back at least 10 years. While no one can deny the safety features it provided to the sport following the deaths of Dale Earnhardt, Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin Jr.

and others, the Car of Tomorrow was also one of the worst things to happen to the sport in terms of on-track competition.

The theory behind the COT was that it would be heavier, bulkier and therefore harder to driver, improving the competition as a result. It was a noble concept with a terrible execution.

The reality is that the making cars harder to drive argument simply doesn’t apply to speedway racing in the 21st century and did not improve the racing product. It worked wonders for short track races as events at Richmond, Bristol and Martinsville provided a lot of action and excitement but it proved to be a nightmare on larger venues.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway, for one, had a notoriously difficult time adjusting to the COT producing the infamous 2008 Brickyard 400 which destroyed tires at an alarming rate and forcing NASCAR to toss competition cautions every 10 laps just to prevent explosions and costly accidents.

While NASCAR eventually made changes to salvage the COT product, it was never well-liked by teams and the Gen-6 was developed to replace it, making its debut during Daytona Speedweeks in 2013.

What Is The Gen-6?

In short, the Gen-6 has five major changes from its predecessor ranging from both competition and aesthetic. They are:

Brand Identity: The Gen-6 was developed from 2010-2012 and rectified one of the major problems of the Car of Tomorrow -- its appearance. The COT, be it the original winged box or decaled monstrosity, looked nothing like a Stock Car, completely removing NASCAR from its roots of Win on Sunday and Sell on Monday.

The most noticeable feature of the Gen-6 is its similarities to models resembling its showroom floor counterparts, giving each manufacturer (Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota) a distinctive appearance, something the Car of Tomorrow never provided.

Additionally, sponsor and car number decals have been removed from the headlight and taillight areas. They will now appear on front and rear bumpers. A single sponsor logo has now been permitted on the roof in exchange.  

Safety Additions: Improving on the one thing the COT got right, the Gen-6 has increased the safety parameters of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing. Additions to the forward roof bar and center roof support bars to the roll cage has increased the integrity of the car while large roof flaps have also improved liftoff number and decreased the likelihood that the car will become airborne.

Slim fast and thin: A drawback to the Car of Tomorrow was that it was just too heavy. It was a bear to steer by all accounts and the weight made it difficult for Goodyear to produce a consistent tire. Compared to the COT, the total weight of the Sprint Cup car was reduced by 160 pounds for the Gen-6, 100 pounds less on the right side and 60 pounds on the left.

Additionally and perhaps irrelevantly, the minimum weight of the driver decreased from 200 to 180 pounds, something that NASCARcan mandate in other ways should a driver be underweight for whatever reason.

Manufacturer Involvement: With the exception of the carbon fiber rear deck lid, all body panels are now produced by the individual manufacturers (Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota) and individually stamped for verification. This is important for the manufacturers to feel involved and be able to work with teams on development products moving forward.

Driver Recognition: Driver names will be prominent features on the upper portion of the windshield. This is an effort by NASCAR to make its drivers more recognizable and therefore marketable. Sometimes a number simply isn’t enough.