Nationwide Series' new car to test at Lowe's this week

Seven teams scheduled to participate in final test of 2008

By Official Release
October 12, 2008
04:41 PM EDT

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- This week marks the final open week of the season for the NASCAR Nationwide Series. But for seven teams, an extended stay at Lowe's Motor Speedway following the Dollar General 300 comes before any leisure time.

The second and final test of 2008 for the Nationwide Series new car is scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 13-14, at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Wednesday, Oct. 15 will be a rain date.

Nationwide Series

Test Participants

Team	Driver

Ganassi	Bryan Clauson
Gibbs	Joey Logano
	Kyle Busch
JDM	Morgan Shepherd
Childress	Clint Bowyer
	Jeff Burton
	Kevin Harvick
	Scott Wimmer
Roush	Colin Braun
	Carl Edwards
	David Ragan
Waltrip	David Reutimann
	Josh Wise

The first official test for the Nationwide new car was held last month at Richmond International Raceway. The six teams representing the series' four manufacturers gave the new car high marks following the test. "A couple actually said they wished they could race this new car tomorrow," said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president of competition.

At LMS, seven teams are expected to test the NASCAR-certified chassis over the two days. The six teams that participated at Richmond will be joined by Joe Gibbs Racing. Chip Ganassi Racing; JD Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing, Roush Fenway Racing (two teams) and Michael Waltrip Racing are on their second go-round with the new car.

"We're continuing our testing program at this stage by moving from a short track to an intermediate track," said Joe Balash, NASCAR Nationwide Series director. "That progression will allow us to gather more information on the car at higher speeds. It'll also allow for cars to run with each other in a controlled situation.

Drivers scheduled to participate are Bryan Clauson for Ganassi, Joey Logano and Kyle Busch for JGR, Morgan Shepherd for JDM, as well as series standings leader Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, two-time series champion Kevin Harvick and Scott Wimmer for RCR. Colin Braun, reigning series champion Carl Edwards and David Ragan will test for Roush Fenway, while David Reutimann and Josh Wise will drive for MWR.

The garage opens at 7 a.m. ET both days and the morning sessions will take place from 9 a.m. until noon. The afternoon sessions will be from 1 to 5 p.m. The garage closes at 5:30 p.m.