NASCAR Sways Away From Goodyear Finding a Solution for Their Flat Tire Dilemma

It’s no secret that flat tires have been a major headache in the NASCAR Cup Series. At the kickoff race in Iowa earlier this year, five drivers—Ty Gibbs, Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain, Austin Cindric, and Tyler Reddick—got into some serious trouble with their rubber, leading to a bunch of wrecks. Goodyear was scratching their heads because they’d just done a tire test on the track a month before, and it didn’t predict this mess.

And it is not the first time this has happened. Drivers had a similar blowout bonanza at Bristol Motor Speedway earlier this season. So, NASCAR’s come up with a fix for this flat tire fiasco—they’re letting Cup teams slap a lifter system on their rides starting next month.

Why is a lifter system necessary?

Despite popular belief, a Cup Series car only has a few ‘stock’ parts, while the majority of its components are completely custom-made. Cars running in NASCAR’s top tier have notoriously low ground clearance, reducing the center of gravity, and ensuring less air passes under the car’s surface so that they can corner rapidly without turning over. But what’s the downside? If there’s a flat tire, the already low ground clearance gets even lower, causing a problem for cars to make their way onto the pit road. Which is where the lifter system comes in.

In a tweet by Bozi Tatarevic, the NASCAR race mechanic and crew member said, “In order to prevent cars from getting stranded when they get a flat, NASCAR will allow Cup teams to start installing a lifter system on the rear dampers next month so that the rear of the car can be raised when necessary. The system can only by actuated by a NASCAR Official.”

What impact would a lifter system have once it’s installed in Cup Series cars?

1. If the lifter works as intended, it would mean fewer disruptions to the race itself, as cars will be able to make their way into the pit road on their own instead of requiring assistance from a towing vehicle.
2. This could also mean fewer DNFs, as replacing a flat tire is easier and less time-consuming than waiting for a car to make its way into the pit box through a towing vehicle. Moreover, a flat tire causes friction with the car’s body due to low ground clearance, affecting the car’s stability and increasing the chances of crashes. This can be hazardous to not just the car with the flat tire but other cars around them.

However, one can’t help but think that the lifter system is just a short-term solution to a long-term problem. While it does solve what needs to be done if there is a flat tire, the bigger problem lies in the number of flat tires that occur in the Cup Series. If NASCAR aims to truly find a solution to this problem, it needs to hold Goodyear accountable for their tires’ durability and reliability.

With Iowa and Bristol already proving that the flat tire issue is a recurring one, a solution ultimately lies with the tire manufacturer and not the lifter system. Unsurprisingly, many fans felt the same when they heard the news on social media.

NASCAR’s innovative solution to tire woes has some feedback already

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It didn’t take fans long to make their voices heard about NASCAR’s solution to the notorious flat tire problem. Recognizing that the lifter system addresses how the flat tire problem can be tackled, instead of ensuring Goodyear fixes the issue, a fan wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter), “NASCAR is putting band-aids on symptoms instead of treating the disease.”

Another fan felt that it’s only a matter of time before teams will take advantage of the lifter system to gain on-track benefits. With NASCAR being a sport where the finest of margins can make all the difference, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that teams might figure out a way to use the lifter system to make performance gains. The fan wrote, “Interesting. You KNOW teams are going to find a way to exploit this piece. Somehow, someone will figure out something to gain an advantage… and I’m all for it. I love the “innovations” team come up with.”

According to one fan, the lifter system was a very sophisticated and expensive solution to a simple problem. Writing on X, the fan said, “Or. Here me out. This is crazy. Have the safety trucks equipped with a jack, an electric impact, and specially marked wheels and tires to get back to pit road. I dunno. Seems silly to put $2k or more in silly actuators when everyone is already bitching about costs.”

With teams consistently looking to make their cars lighter to increase on-track speed, a NASCAR fan expressed his concern at how much weight the lifter system will add to the Cup Series car. The fan wrote, “how much weight do you think this’ll add? will it change how teams set up cars or go through tech?”

With independent front and rear coilover suspension systems already present, one fan joked that the lifter system can further improve the car’s already tremendous shock absorbing capacity by saying, “So this is how NASCAR gets active suspension”.

What are your thoughts about NASCAR’s lifter system? Do you think it will solve the flat tire dilemma? Let us know in the comments!