Content area
Full text
WheeIs of Fortune
Steering Components
For some NASCAR race competitors, victory is going to be just around the next turn. Before they can turn that corner, however, the car must steer properly. Steering a NASCAR race car involves an intricate balance of components all working together to drive cars to victory
Steering is one of the more physically taxing aspects of racing for a driver, and all NASCAR Winston Cup Series teams run power steering in their cars. Even with power steering, driving is still physically challenging in NASCAR racing because of the downforces at speed combined with the grip of the tires and vehicle weight.
"Power steering makes the car more responsive and it makes it a lot easier to drive," said Bob Stobbs, motorsports manager for Moog Chassis Parts and Wagner Brake Products. "Without power steering the driver would literally have to 'manhandle' the car. Every once in a while you hear about a car's power steering belt breaking, and then it's shoulders and arms steering the car and that's tough on the driver. It takes a lot of endurance on his part to be able to handle that car, particularly in a long race. There's literally nobody anymore that doesn't run power steering.'
In addition to power steering, the components found in NASCAR race car steering systems are the same ones found in the vehicles you repair: ball joints; pitman arms; centerlinks; idler arms; tie rods; steering arms; spindles; and, steering boxes. All of the ball joints and tie rod ends used by NASCAR Winston Cup Series teams are supplied by Moog. Moog chassis parts are manufactured by Federal-Mogul Corporation, and are the same, better-than-OE...