Nationwide COT to be used full time in ’09

Work continues on the Nationwide car of tomorrow program, with the four manufacturers helping to push up the timeline for development of the new car, Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash says.

Another wind tunnel test is planned, Balash said, after the four manufacturers in the series – Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge and Toyota – have constructed "identity" pieces for the car. The chassis is based on the Sprint Cup COT, but the body is all new and likely to be based on "heritage" cars for each manufacturer – though Toyota will likely be the only car maker to stick with the same model as in Sprint Cup.

"They're all anxious to speed the process up, so we're actually shortening the timeline that helps us get closer to locking some other things down that lets us move ahead with the rule book," Balash said. "They all had pieces, gathered information and had to go back and do some work. They've done that work. They're saying, 'We can come back sooner than what we thought.'"

Balash said NASCAR's plan is still to have the new car run the entire 2009 season, but officials from the sanctioning body have not formally announced the rollout. More at Scenedaily.com