NASCAR Language and Terminology

NASCAR is a sport that has a language and jargon all its own, a collection of treasured and much-used terms that are routinely used and understood by all in the business. We’re going to talk about a few words that are specific to NASCAR, to provide you with a better understanding of just what someone is referring too when they use these words.

NASCAR language

Back Marker: Back marker is a term that refers to a car running off-the-pace at the back of the field, which is not a desirable position for any driver and team.

Balance: If a car goes around a race track like it’s on train tracks and doesn’t tend to over-steer or under-steer, then it’s referred to as being in balance.

Camber: Camber is a word that refers to the angle at which a tire makes contact with the surface it’s running on. “Positive camber” means the angle of the tire is leaning away from the centerline while “negative camber” would mean the angle is tilted toward the centerline.

Camshaft: A word referring to a rotating shaft inside the powerplant that opens and closes an engines intake and exhaust valves.

Chassis: This word refers to the floorboard, interior, and roll cage of a race car, which together are referred too as the Chassis.

Chassis Roll: When a race car goes around a banked corner at high speed, the forces exerted on the car are greater on the part of the car on the outside part of the track. This results in an upward and downward motion of the car as it moves around the corner at high speed which is called Chassis Roll.

Dirty Air: The lead car in a race uses air and then throws it away; air like this is referred too as dirty air.

Downforce: Air traveling over the surface of a race car as it travels down the track exerts a downward force upon the surface of the car, this force is called downforce. Designers try to increase this downward force to increase tire grip and thus allow a car to travel faster through the corner.

These quick definitions should make watching NASCAR a lot more fun and the next time you read or hear these NASCAR words you should have a better idea of their significance and the subject being discussed.

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