Nationwide COT hits Talladega

November 3, 11:08 AMLouisville NASCAR ExaminerAmanda Vincent

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Justin Allgaier heads out to the track at Talladega Superspeedway on Monday for the N'wide COT test.

NASCAR Media

The Nationwide Series Car of Tomorrow, set to hit the track in competition for four races in 2010 and full-time in 2011, took to Talladega Superspeedway for testing on Monday.

According to Robin Pemberton, NASCAR Vice President of Competition, the purpose of Monday's test was to find out what size tapered spacer would need to be used at the restrictor plate tracks -- Talladega and Daytona International Speedway. The test was also used to help discover the proper gear ratio that would be best for the new car.

"It drives like a dream," Justin Allgaier said of his Dodge Challenger.

Allgaier was among eight drivers participating in the test for the four manufacturers' (Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, and Toyota) Nationwide Series COT.

As evidenced by the cars presented for Monday's test, Chevrolet and Toyota sticks with the nameplates they are already using for cars in the series -- the Impala and the Camry. Dodge and Ford, however, are making a switch, with Ford's COT being labeled a Mustang and Dodge's entry a Challenger.

"The great advantage of this car is we have a lot of time with the first new car (the Sprint Cup Series' COT)," Sprint Cup driver and part-time Nationwide driver Jeff Burton said. "This is an evolution of that. I think it's going to work really well. I like the way the cars look and the way the cars drive."

The Sprint Cup Series went to a COT a couple of years ago, but the Nationwide Series version of the COT is obviously different than the Cup version. Asside from a couple of different nameplates, the Nationwide Series COT has a spoiler, as opposed to the wing that is on the Sprint Cup car.

"We believe this car will give our series its own unique identity and that certainly was one of our goals from the very beginning in developing this new car," Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash said.

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