NASCAR has had an incredible first season with the NextGen car in track racing; however, the issues that have been the subject of conversation in recent months revolve around safety.
Kurt Busch suffered a concussion at Pocono Raceway that ended his full-time career while Alex Bowman’s playoff run ended after a concussion at Texas Motor Speedway in the final 12 laps.
Another issue that has been getting a lot of attention is the fire risk with the NextGen car. Fortunately, it appears that NASCAR has changes in the works to potentially address the issue before the 2023 Daytona 500.
Related: NASCAR discusses big changes coming to NextGen cars in 2023
NASCAR Knows Root Cause of NextGen Car Fires, Working on Changes
NASCAR is working on the NextGen car for the 2023 season and many changes are expected across the entire car. One of the changes will be the fires which have been the subject of much conversation.
During the 2022 season, 10 fires broke out unexpectedly, without any catalyst, such as an accident. Nine of those fires originated in the Ford camp, with Alex Bowman and Chevrolet having the problem at Darlington Raceway.
Scott Miller, NASCAR’s senior vice president of racing, jumped on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio last month to discuss the situation surrounding the fires and the NextGen car.
“I think the main cause of fires is rubber building up in the wrong areas and starting a small fire that can then ignite other parts. We’ve made a lot of progress in that area and I think we have some things to do for the winter.”
Scott Miller Speaks Out on NextGen Car Fire Risks
The NextGen car will see a number of changes over the offseason, including a new rear bumper structure, rear clip, hood, nose, and cooling louvers on the hood. It also seems likely that there will be changes to the headrest.
NASCAR wasn’t expected to roll out a perfect version of the NextGen car for the 2022 season and while safety shouldn’t have been an issue, it’s a step in the right direction to see these changes.
Official changes for the 2023 season will likely be known closer to the Busch Light Clash in early February.
