Toyota trying to cheat again

[Hendrick48]

Two Joe Gibbs Racing Nationwide Series cars that have dominated the competition could be penalized after NASCAR officials said late Saturday the teams had attempted to alter the outcome of a chassis dyno test, the Charlotte Observer reported.

The Nos. 18 and 20 Toyotas were tested Saturday on the chassis dynamometer, which measures rear-wheel horsepower. Officials have administered the test several times this season.

The two Toyotas in question have combined to win 13 of 25 races in the 2008 season, with the most recent being Kyle Busch's victory in Clermont, Ind., late last month.

During the test, the paper reported, officials discovered magnets on the accelerator pedals of the two Gibbs cars. Sources said the magnets could keep the pedals from being fully depressed, which would lower the engines' output during testing.

"This was an attempt to interfere with NASCAR's post-race inspection process, and we are taking it very seriously," said Jim Hunter, NASCAR vice president of corporate communications.

Hunter said both teams face penalties to be announced later this week.

JGR spokesperson Mike Arning told the paper late Saturday that team officials felt that they were within the rules.

:D BUSTED :D

[Octranspo]

Magnets on the accelerator pedal??are they serious ..

[Groovy_Kincaid]

Go Toyota!

[enrgy]

On high tech cars the pedals are made of aluminium....:D

[race1010]

:confused:
This makes noooooo sense. Toyota has the ability, as they have already shown, to compete within the rules of Nascar. Nascar slows them down with a restrictor plate, to satisfy the Big 3's issues about their under-powered cars, then Toyota puts 2 or 3 in the top 7 on Saturday....why try to confuse the numbers by doing this?? (Perhaps Jack Roush was in the Toyota paddock?? :eek:

[Watson Roadster]

If you've built a perfectly legal engine and are penalized for it,you might try to hide the legal horsepower from the NASCAR Gestapo with questionable methods....Lest the scions at Daytona Beach penalize you again for beating the Big 3 at their own game.NASCAR looks absolutely bush league for putting a restrictor plate on a perfectly legal engine because the Big 3 crybabies were getting beaten.

NASCAR= Automotive Affirmative Action for the Big 3!!!!:rolleyes::D

[Hendrick48]

Plain and simple, without all this crap banter.....
Gibbs Toyota's cheated and GOT CAUGHT! bravo for Nascar for catching these idiotss :D play by the rules or pay! and they WILL PAY! hopefully big $$$ ! How many other things are they doing that have'nt been caught yet? SLAM them good! they should take the points and wins away from teams that cheat!

You notice the Michigan races ?? the racing was good! (not dominated by the freegan cheating Toyota! when the teams are equal it makes for better racing, not some competitive advantaged Toyota road show)

Solve the issue? Boot the Jap crap out of Nascar and get back to North American BIG 3 only racing that it was designed for!

[race1010]

Interesting 48...when Hendrick is dominating, its because they're a 'better' team ('go GM go'), but when anyone else runs better...Gibbs, Roush, etc., you whinnnne.....racing is about 'competition' - a word you don't like to hear unless you're team is winning. Toyota played by the rules, built an engine using Nascar's specs, went faster, won more....live with it.

I don't disagree with you about a penalty, my point is why try to hide the HP when you play by the rules...WHICH TOYOTA DID!

[Hendrick48]

Interesting 48...when Hendrick is dominating, its because they're a 'better' team ('go GM go'), but when anyone else runs better...Gibbs, Roush, etc., you whinnnne.....racing is about 'competition' - a word you don't like to hear unless you're team is winning. Toyota played by the rules, built an engine using Nascar's specs, went faster, won more....live with it.

I don't disagree with you about a penalty, my point is why try to hide the HP when you play by the rules...WHICH TOYOTA DID!

They cheated, because they wanted an advantage over other teams....ummm, duh that's why you cheat? what don't you understand??
Played by the rules?? wtf ?? They broke the rules and got caught :D

The #18 winning isn't about Toyota, (and it's the only Toyota that is winning!) - it's about the driver and where do you think Kyle Busch learned to drive like he does http://www.mazeguy.net/angry/duh.gif
I'll spell it out for you - Hendrick Motorsports
(the biggest mistake HMS made! was replacing him with Jr)

[race1010]

They cheated, because they wanted an advantage over other teams....ummm, duh that's why you cheat? what don't you understand??
Played by the rules?? wtf ?? They broke the rules and got caught :D

The #18 winning isn't about Toyota, (and it's the only Toyota that is winning!) - it's about the driver and where do you think Kyle Busch learned to drive like he does http://www.mazeguy.net/angry/duh.gif
I'll spell it out for you - Hendrick Motorsports
(the biggest mistake HMS made! was replacing him with Jr)

Whoa! Back up 48! I would agree that he gained significant knowledge and talent driving for Hendrick (4 wins in 4 seasons), BUT, his efforts got him there, and the opportunity at JGR (8 wins in 20 races) opened it up so he could become better (ie 'maturity') than Rick Hendrick though he could be....and, let's face it, they've all been caught at one time or another. If Nascar didn't want the cheating to go on, perhaps they should continue moving forward to IROC-inspired (yawn) racing like they're doing now!! :eek:

[Watson Roadster]

Spot on 1010...

Hendrick...I agree the magnet thing is technically cheating,however,if this was a Hendrick Chevrolet and they had built a motor that was within NASCAR's rulebook and produced 20 more horses than everyone else...Would you say it was fair for NASCAR to penalize them with a restrictor plate?

Because that's precisely what NASCAR has done to Toyota.

I thought people were rewarded if you build something better in racing.In NASCAR you get penalized because the three weak link factories complained too much.NASCAR looks bush league with the ruling on Toyota.Instead of telling GM,Ford,and,Chrysler to shut up and build something to beat Toyota,they gave in to the Big 3 whiners and by doing so,have tacitly admitted that the Big 3 are weaker and can't build a better engine than Toyota.And all three have had a 50 year head start!

There is no excuse for this and it proves once again that NASCAR is NOT a racing series it's a corporate dog & pony show.

Another thing that needs to be said id that if Toyota put those magnets under the accelerator to fudge the horsepower readings to protect themselves from the France Family Gestapo...Do ya' think they've got that HP back even with a restrictor plate?

[Hendrick48]

:D Get this in ya :D

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Joe Gibbs Racing has suspended two Nationwide Series crew chiefs for the remainder of the season in the wake of penalties handed down by NASCAR after rule violations were discovered by inspectors prior to post-race testing on the chassis dynamometer Aug. 16 at Michigan.

NASCAR announced that seven crew members -- including No. 18 crew chief Jason Ratcliff and No. 20 crew chief Dave Rogers -- have been placed on indefinite suspension.

In response, team owner Joe Gibbs said in a statement: "A poor decision was made by some key members of our organization, and 100 percent of the blame rests with us."

Gibbs also noted that JGR would adding its own penalties to the team members on top of NASCAR's sanctions.

"We had come to the conclusion that we would add to any NASCAR imposed penalties with the minimum being suspension for the remainder of the season for those involved, including our two Nationwide Series crew chiefs. There will also be an additional monetary fine beyond the amount announced by NASCAR earlier today, which will be the responsibility of those involved."

A JGR spokesman confirmed to NASCAR.COM that team has suspended the seven crew members for the remainder of the season.

Both the Nos. 18 and 20 cars were found to be in violation of:

• Section 12-4-A (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 8-9 (competitive analysis -- from time to time, NASCAR may determine, in the interest of competition, that it is necessary or appropriate to undertake an analysis of the performance capabilities of a car, car part, component or equipment. The Competitor shall take whatever steps are requested by NASCAR Officials for this purpose. NASCAR also has the right to seal or impound cars, car parts, components and/or equipment for this purpose);

• Section 12-4-Q (1): (car, car parts, components and/or equipment used that do not conform to NASCAR rules, detailed in Section 20A of the 2008 NASCAR Rule Book, or has not been approved by NASCAR prior to the event, or is not required for the normal functional operation of the race car, or has been altered to detract from or compromise its integrity or effectiveness, whether operational or not);

• Section 12-4-K: (when NASCAR Officials mandate inspection during the Event, if any car, car parts, components, and/or equipment which have been used in the Event are taken from the racing premises without permission of a NASCAR Official, or are tampered with by any member of the team or anyone associated with the team: Magnetic spacer attached under the gas pedal with the intent of compromising the chassis dynamometer test).

As a result, NASCAR issued the following penalties:

• Both of the drivers -- Joey Logano of the No. 18 and Tony Stewart of the No. 20 -- have been penalized with the loss of 150 championship driver points and placed on probation until Dec. 31. Joe Gibbs, owner of both of the cars, has likewise been penalized 150 championship owner points for each of those entries.

• Both crew chiefs -- Ratcliff and Rogers -- have been fined $50,000 and indefinitely suspended.


• From the No. 18 team, car chief Dorian Thorsen, engine tuner Michael Johnson, and crew member Toby Bigelow have been placed on indefinite suspension.

• From the No. 20 team, car chief Richard Bray and engine tuner Dan Bajek have been indefinitely suspended.

• In addition, the entire Nos. 18 and 20 Nationwide Series teams have been placed on NASCAR probation until Dec. 31.

"In our post-race inspection, our inspectors discovered some shims that were placed on the gas-pedal stop. They were magnets that were about a quarter-inch thick that prevented the accelerator from going 100 percent wide open," said Robin Pemberton, vice president of competition for NASCAR.

It is not unusual for NASCAR to test cars on the chassis dynamometer, which measures rear-wheel horsepower. Officials have administered this test several times during the season, and the Nos. 18 and 20 cars were only two of several that were tested following the race.

"In 17 years we have never had any representative of Joe Gibbs Racing knowingly act outside of NASCAR's rules, and that is something we consider essential to how we operate on a daily basis," Gibbs said. "What we have determined is that these individuals involved used extremely poor judgment in attempting to alter the results of NASCAR's dyno test following Saturday's Nationwide Series race in Michigan.

"Although in no way was anything done that might have altered the race outcome, these JGR employees attempted to circumvent the NASCAR rule book and that is unacceptable."

The JGR teams in question have dominated the series for much of the season, combining to win 14 of 25 races. The infractions come shortly after NASCAR announced rule changes for the Toyota engines used in the Nationwide Series last month. The guidelines were intended to cut 15 horsepower and level a playing field that fellow competitors had insisted was lopsided for much of the season because they believed the Toyota engines were producing more horsepower than other manufacturers.

"We take full responsibility and accept the penalties NASCAR has levied against us today," Gibbs said. "We are, however, disappointed that NASCAR chose to place our drivers on probation, as they had no knowledge or involvement of this incident."

[race1010]

Read alot of blogs and electronic print on this today....doesn't matter if it's GM, Ford, Dodge or Toyota, there's waaaaaay too much secrecy in the Nascar camp....test 'em, fine 'em (no problem with that), BUT, for F#%*& sake, give us the whole damn story! It's like an area 51 cover-up with Nascar - nobody ever knows the whole story, and the longer they do it this way, I think the less that fans will give a chit about the series....:confused:

[Hendrick48]

Read alot of blogs and electronic print on this today....doesn't matter if it's GM, Ford, Dodge or Toyota, there's waaaaaay too much secrecy in the Nascar camp....test 'em, fine 'em (no problem with that), BUT, for F#%*& sake, give us the whole damn story! It's like an area 51 cover-up with Nascar - nobody ever knows the whole story, and the longer they do it this way, I think the less that fans will give a chit about the series....:confused:

agreed, the whole sport is taking a turn for the worse.....
1st the COT bullchit shoved down all the teams throats, now all this other crap that the clone car can't be tampered with? The ******* thing needs to be changed!!...that's a given, cuz the racing sucks now! But fudging isn't the way to do it. The Nascar Tech centre in Moorseville NC has to get off their asses and make ALL of the cars better and more competitive.
Get rid of all the lame plate restrictions at all the tracks, the COT is safer? let them run flat out! full HP's !! especially on the SuperSpeedways! that would create some good racing I'm sure :D

[Cosworth]

1st the COT bullchit shoved down all the teams throats, now all this other crap that the CLOWN car can't be tampered with?

Fixed it for you. ;) :D

RJ

[Offenhauser]

I honestly anymore find the whole bickering about the manufactuers about how one is better than the other a joke. I honestly despise toyota I'd rather walk than buy one of thier products, but I don't blame them for cheating, Gibbs cheated not toyota. The only thing really separating these cars from being any different is the headlight stickers on the front of the car. I don't know why the manufactuers waste a dime on this deal anymore because there's no brand recognition just nascar lining thier pockets. Every one of these teams cheat it's just a matter of who gets caught. I'd be willing to bet if kia had a nascar program tomorrow if you had hendrick or gibbs running it they'd be winning races.

[Watson Roadster]

And Mr.Chad Knaus is historically one of biggest offenders...