Ingenious Cheats in NASCAR: The Curious Case of Hydraulic Spoilers

Let’s be honest; as individuals, we have all tried our hands to take advantage of the rules. These instances are not only applicable to the daily pursuits of life but also to the world of sports like NASCAR. In the past 75 years since the inception of the sport, there have been numerous instances that have compelled the authorities to implement certain regulations and stringencies to maintain uniformity among the teams.

However, the vaulting ambition and the volition of outmaneuvering fellow competitors have often found teams and their drivers to push the envelope to gain an advantage, while NASCAR would stand as a vigilant guard of the rulebook and try to nab the deviant. However, there were master craftsmen who were able to jockey the authorities through their prowess, one such being Jimmy Means and his case on hydraulic spoilers.

Former NASCAR driver Jimmy Means reveals his strange cases of flouting rules

“It ain’t cheating if you don’t get caught.” The adage can be employed to define a driver like Jimmy Means. One may call it playing dirty that defeats the spirit of the sport; for others, it would be nothing less than a creative innovator. To make a case for Jimmy Means and his inventiveness with the car, one has to delve deeper into one of the Daytona 500 races in the early 90s, where the former NASCAR driver built an adjustable spoiler mechanism in his car’s decklid. 

In a video posted by Stapleton42 on YouTube, the driver was seen displaying the modified parts of the car that he used in the Daytona 500 race. He exclaimed, “We built an adjustable spore, totally illegal. We could lean this back. We had a hydraulic cylinder in the middle right there, and we had a hydraulic cylinder hidden under the dash, with hydraulic lines snuck through the shock. And we never got caught with it.”

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However, as Jimmy Means said, not everyone proved to be lucky. He stated, “But they caught; I believe it was Bill Davis’ car that ran into LaJoie. But they had hydraulic deadpans, and I think they fined him 50 grands. When they found out Randy LaJoie’s deal, he was fined $50,000. I said, Well, I can’t afford that. It was one thing to leave Daytona broke; it’s another to be left bankrupted. That’s what would have happened if I get caught, so I took it off.” 

Jimmy Means recalls his not-so-lucky affair with the authorities

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Speaking on the mechanism of the hidden hydraulic stable, Means recalled how the T-handle held the entrance to the cylinder, and the screwing of the handle led to the movement of the fluid that eventually led the spore out. While this had been an instance where the driver was able to escape from the vigilant eyes of the governing bodies, there have been times when Means had his car components confiscated by the authorities because of modifications.

Recalling NASCAR memories, Means further shared, “Gary Nelson caught my eye while I was working for Bud More and I was a crew chief. I didn’t hide it very well; they were showing through ignition boxes, and Nelson came by and said, When you decide what’s two ignition boxes, you are gonna run and bring me the other one […] bring me the one I saw.” As a result, Means was fined another $10,000 for the modifications to the car.

Since Jimmy Means had hung up his helmet, NASCAR had undergone immense changes. The policies regarding car parts and penalties for meddling with the car have become more stringent than before. Nevertheless, these instances of cheating, how erudite these people have been when the question arose about their car.

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