Not according to NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton. In a statement he explained that several teams and NASCAR’s governing rules body are working together to reach the goal of introducing EFI to Sprint Cup racing for the 2011 season.
Also in the works is a yet to be determined blend of ethanol fuel that will become the new standard for NASCAR racers. "Our goal, when we set out, everything was to happen in 2011,” Pemberton stated, “and where we land with the percentage of ethanol has not been determined yet. But we have teams that have been running on the dynos with some 10, E10 and E15 and all the way up to E30. But for the most part it's been E10 and E15."
While the more advanced capabilities of EFI may open up new avenues in tuning and increase average horsepower and torque across the curve, we’re curious what interesting issues the introduction of E10 and E15 into the equation will wreak. While we’ve explored the awesome horsepower potential in E85, E10 and E15 are unknown variables since our only experience with them is the watered down 90% gasoline/10% ethanol blends commonly found at the corner gas pump that often result in a slight loss of power and fuel economy on the order of 3-5%. Granted, NASCAR won’t be running 91 octane swished with corn squeezins, but we would love to get a little insider information on the special concessions the teams are required to make.
A good tuner is worth his weight in gold and can mean the difference between, winning, loosing, and blowing an engine, and you can be assured there will be a lot of collateral damage as tuners try to determine what fuel and ignition curves FR9’s, R07’s, and R6P8’s like best. If nothing else, the new rules for the 2011 season could be the beginning of a whole new racing specialization.