Dumfries, VA – After a successful start in 2004, the D&N Motorsports team was looking forward to the 2005 USTCC season. New rule changes have created new challenges for the team and new plans.
The USTCC introduced a series of rule changes for the 2005 season, primarily focusing on engine and suspension modifications. These alterations have granted teams greater flexibility in optimizing their race engines and suspension setups. Unfortunately, the team encountered difficulties last year due to issues with horsepower and minimum weight. The low horsepower output of a Saturn engine led to the car being assigned a minimum weight that was unattainable.
D&N Motorsports had planned on running a full season in the USTCC this year, but they have decided to withdraw their entry for the 2005 season to prepare a more competitive car for 2006.
The minimum weight assigned to the car was equivalent to the weight of a formula car, so the team couldn’t fully take advantage of the USTCC’s power-to-weight ratio. The new rules will allow teams with low-horsepower cars to build engines with more power, raising the car’s minimum weight to an achievable number.
The decision not to race is never easy, but the team feels it is the right one. It allows them to put the money that would have been spent on race weekends back into developing the car.
D&N Motorsports has several test days scheduled throughout the year to test and tune the car, hoping to make it more competitive for 2006.
DENNIS SHORT, TEAM OWNER/DRIVER, NO. 24 SATURN SW2: “The rule changes made for this season have given us an opportunity to fix some of the problems we had with the car last year. To fix those problems, we had to evaluate our current situation and alter our plans for this season. Building an engine with more power will affect other car components, so we’ve decided to use this season to prepare, test, and develop the car for the 2006 season.”
