NASCAR hopes to extinguish fire threats with intumescent coating legalisation

Kevin Harvick was anything but happy when his car suddenly burst into flames due to an exhaust failure during Sunday’s Southern 500, prompting him to call out the Next Gen car’s “crappy-ass parts.” In response to such criticisms and safety concerns, NASCAR will allow Cup Series teams to install intumescent coatings along the cars’ underside lower crush panels, exhaust cover panels, right-side stop panel, and upper rocker box surface. It is not required and teams may opt against using it if they feel otherwise.

According to the Society for Protective Coatings’ 2011 Protective Coatings Glossary, an intumescent coating is a “fire-retardant coating that when heated forms a foam produced by nonflammable gases, such as carbon dioxide and ammonia. This results in a thick, highly insulating layer of carbon (about 50 times as thick as the original coating) that serves to protect the coated substrate from fire.” Such paints are used to protect steel parts from igniting; while steel is a powerful metal, it can be damaged by exposure to extreme heat like flames.

The coatings must meet the SFI Foundation’s Specification 54.1 regarding “Non Flammable, Thermal Barrier / Fire Extinguishing Coatings”, such as TEMPROTEX’s coating that is frequently utilised in NHRA.

While the paint is optional, NASCAR will require teams to install a lateral seal/dam between the back of the front clip weight box and the top of the splitter panel; the seal is intended to keep debris created by flat tyres from entering the splitter and causing further damage. Teams are also obliged to modify the right-side back stop panel by replacing it with a fourteen-gauge steel panel.

Other changes include expanding clearance between the exhaust and rocker box floor.

These regulations come on the heels of increasing safety concerns among drivers with the new Next Gen car. While the racing has proven popular, many have expressed worry about the vehicles’ durability resulting in crashes feeling harder.

The new rules go into effect ahead of Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway.