Reader Question: Playing the Fuel Mileage Game

We haven’t done an “Ask The Insiders” question in a while, so I think its time to dig into the mailbag for a question.  I got an email from reader Jerry yesterday asking about strategy and fuel mileage.  He says:

It seems almost every week the announcers talk about fuel mileage determining the end of the race. [Crew chiefs] tell reporters they are a couple of laps short. Then the winner does a couple of victory laps, spins some donuts, hits the local drive-thru, and still has plenty of fuel for victory lane.  Does fuel mileage really come into play very often, or is this just a WWE type script to try and create drama?

To answer your question Jerry, it’s a little bit of both.  Fuel mileage is certainly an issue at every race, because you never really know how the race is going to play out.  But rarely do we see teams actually need to come in late for a splash and go, or try to stretch it by doing crazy things.

The mileage each driver gets is affected by many factors, including the engines, what track we are at, and the style of the driver.  For example, some drivers are left foot brakers and some are right foot brakers.  Those guys that use their right foot to press the brake pedal will get better mileage because they are off the accelerator when slowing.  Left foot brakerswill still have their right foot on the accelerator when braking, thus while the car is slowing, some fuel will still be flowing into the carburetor.  Tony Stewart is a left foot braker because of his open wheel background, while Bobby Labonte is a classic right foot braker.  Labonte will normally get better mileage.

When crew chiefs and engineers are working through their race strategy, they have a set number of green flag laps they know they can run on a full tank.  Mileage during caution laps is different then green flag conditions, because speeds are so much lower.  We usually figure we can run two caution laps on the same amount of fuel it takes to run one green flag lap.  So caution flags will extend the amount of laps we run on one full tank.

At tracks like Loudon or Michigan where long green flag runs are the norm, fuel mileage will always be on the minds of the teams.  And with the lack of excitement we’ve seen in the Cup races this season, the TV people are going to make every little strategy move a big deal.

In most cases, the fuel mileage story will be blown up by the broadcasters, only to have it dashed by a late caution that will bring everyone inside their window.  And this is exactly what happened at New Hampshire on Sunday.  So to answer your question, yes fuel mileage comes into play at every race, but it is also a tactic used by the announcers to create drama during the race.

Subscribe to the Insiders

Related Posts: