As one of the biggest voices in the sport, Dale Earnhardt Jr. takes his role seriously. So, he tried to figure out the NASCAR hybrid situation. Is there a situation in the near future where we see hybrids racing on Sunday?
Elton Sawyer has talked a lot in the media recently. The Senior Vice President of Competition has had a lot of questions to answer. With Dale Jr., the two talked about the future of the sport. What plans does NASCAR have when it comes to moving the product into the future and into the updated auto market?
Most importantly, Dale Earnhardt Jr. wanted to know if NASCAR had plans to switch to a hybrid model. Well, it turns out, they might.
“I think it is [in the] conversation,” Sawyer said on the Dale Jr. Download. “I think to your point, this car, a lot of thought and design went into it, not for just what we’re doing today but what are we going to do in the future with sustainable fuels and what are we going to do with hybrids and BEVs and things of that nature. And new OEMs coming in. We have great partners with Chevy, Ford, and Toyota and they’ve been with us forever. But we need a platform that will invite some new OEMs to come in and participate.”
Bringing in a new OEM or two is the endgame with the Next Gen car. Truly. More and more it feels like we are in a transition period. Which is wild to say after the transition period from 2020 to 2022. But with a new media deal, hopefully a new charter agreement soon, and potential OEMs poking around, this might be the start of more changes.
Is NASCAR going hybrid?
If the Next Gen car does take NASCAR into the hybrid era, it would make sense. The product on the track on Sundays has always been about selling cars the next day on Monday. While that looks different throughout the generations, that is at the heart of the sport.
Hybrids are getting more popular. Hybrid engines are being used in almost all forms of motorsports, including the sister series to NASCAR, IMSA. IndyCar is going to a hybrid engine this year. There are more of them on the road every day. It just makes sense that it will happen eventually.
Let’s not forget that NASCAR developed that crossover-looking electric vehicle. David Ragan has test-driven it and says it has more acceleration than most anything he’s driven. NASCAR isn’t going to put electric cars in the Cup Series any time soon, if ever. So don’t worry about that.
However, with Honda and Hyundai kicking the tires on joining the Cup Series, it makes sense to move toward that hybrid engine. NASCAR has also looked at hydrogen combustion engines and other alternatives to the current model.