> An announcer for an F1 race the other day said it cost about
> $14 million to
> build an F1 car versus about $150,000 for a NASCAR unit. I
> know there is a
> lot of difference in sophistication but that is a huge cost
> difference. Are
> the numbers close to being correct? /jmac
Yes and no. They'll have $14M of engineering in it, but the cost
of manufacturing is substantially less. The fact is, they have
dozens of "tubs" (bodies). As to all of the rest of the bolt-on
stuff, they are constantly engineering new componants anyway and
half the things are never used twice. Just look at the
"chimneys" that make an appearance for one race and are
redesigned before the next race. Those are about $1M each time.
Case in point:
They talk about how expensive the front wing is. Every one is
handbuilt and no two sets are alike. They can build one in a
week for about $5000 in real costs. If they hit upon something
good, they can whip out a dozen of them. But usually, they are
constantly developing new ones, so they become obsolete long
before they're busted or worn out.
As to the real cost of a NASCAR cup car, well, again you can
build one for about $150,000 minus engine and bolt-on
componants. That's materials plus labor. It takes about 200
people to support a two-car team in NASCAR. That's a lot of
engineering, development and test personnel.
But NASCAR does have a "disposable car" mentality. It doesn't
matter what it looks like when you cross the finish line, just
that you cross it first.
AG
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