NASCAR could move on from the V8 engines that have powered the sport for over 75 years.
The goal is to bring in new manufacturers. At Race Industry Week, Toyota Racing Development president Tyler Gibbs said new car companies won’t build the pushrod V8 engines NASCAR uses today.
NASCAR’s Signature V8s Could Be Replaced To Attract New Automakers
“No one is going to make a pushrod cast iron V8 block,” Gibbs said. “It’s just not something they are going to do. It doesn’t fit into their lineup; it doesn’t fit into their relevancy formula.”
Toyota was the last manufacturer to join NASCAR’s Cup Series back in 2007. Since then, there’s been plenty of talk about who might be next, but no one has pulled the trigger. The problem is simple; the engines NASCAR uses today don’t match what car companies are building for everyday drivers.
Honda is one manufacturer that’s openly considering NASCAR. Kelvin Fu, Vice President of Honda Racing Corporation USA, says they’re looking at all racing series to see what makes sense for their business.
“We do have two very well-developed V6 twin turbos, but it goes back to the relevance of the series,” Fu explained. “Honda makes one V8, and it’s for a marine engine.”
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That’s the problem in a nutshell. Modern car manufacturers build turbocharged V6 engines, not old-school V8s. If NASCAR wants Honda or any other new manufacturer, they’ll need to change.
NASCAR officials know what’s at stake. Elton Sawyer, NASCAR’s senior vice president of competition, said the current engine is a dealbreaker for potential new manufacturers.
“They love the Next Gen car,” Sawyer said on “The Dale Jr. Download” podcast. “The one thing they’re not going to do is they are not going to build a V8 pushrod engine.”
When asked what type of engine NASCAR might switch to, Sawyer mentioned turbocharged engines. That’s a huge shift for a sport that’s used naturally aspirated V8s since its beginning. Switching to turbocharged engines isn’t just about bolting on a different motor. It would completely change how NASCAR operates.
For decades, policing the sport has been straightforward. Every team uses similar engines with the same basic specifications. But turbocharged engines require something called “balance of performance” regulations; a complex system that measures torque and horsepower to keep competition fair.
“That’s a different way to police your sport,” Sawyer admitted. “But we’re going to have to figure out how that looks to be able to get new OEMs to come in.”
NASCAR’s sister racing series, IMSA, already uses a balance of performance rules. NASCAR might need to follow their lead.
NASCAR and its current manufacturers — Chevrolet, Ford, and Toyota — all understand the need to stay relevant. Car companies use racing to showcase their technology and connect with customers. If the engines on the track have nothing to do with what’s in showrooms, that connection breaks down.
Fu emphasized that manufacturers look for three things: return on value, relevance, and tracking trends that tie into what they’re selling. NASCAR’s current engines don’t check those boxes for companies like Honda.
NASCAR’s existing manufacturers seem willing to make the change. They know that bringing in fresh competition would be good for the sport, even if it means abandoning one of NASCAR’s most iconic features.
