Kevin Manion, crew chief for Jamie McMurray and the MOOG® Steering and Suspension-equipped No. 1 Hellmann’s Chevrolet SS, received Federal-Mogul’s MOOG “Problem Solver of the Race” Award after McMurray picked up 22 positions to finish second in Sunday’s Quaker State 400 NASCAR® Sprint Cup race at Kentucky Speedway.
Manion’s MOOG Problem Solver award – his second of 2013 – came after the No. 1 car improved by a race-best 0.167-seconds per lap over the second half of racing while finishing on the lead lap. The race was originally scheduled for Saturday night but rain forced a noon start on Sunday.
“Today was a real challenge for crew chiefs, who hadn’t been able to work on their cars since Friday and had set up their steering and suspension systems for night racing. Kevin did an excellent job of quickly dialing in their MOOG-equipped chassis and Jamie was able to stay out of trouble while steadily advancing through the field,” said Federal-Mogul Motorsports Director Tim Nelson.
Manion called for a series of track bar and wedge adjustments during the first half of the race, enabling McMurray to consistently run in the top 15 through lap 150. The 1 car was running in the top 10 with 50 laps remaining and had advanced to third with just over 10 laps to go. McMurray outdueled Clint Bowyer (No. 15 Toyota) for second place on Lap 264 but ran out of time before he could reel in the leader. The Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing-owned team improved from 21st to 19th in Sprint Cup points.
As the automotive service industry’s “Problem Solver®,” MOOG is the preferred brand of professional technicians and NASCAR crew chiefs. Federal-Mogul’s MOOG steering and suspension product engineers work in partnership with Sprint Cup teams to develop and test innovative designs that help provide race-winning performance and durability. Many of these same technologies are featured in MOOG ball joints, tie rod ends and other components available for today’s passenger vehicles.
For more information regarding MOOG steering and suspension parts, visit the brand’s technician-focused www.moogproblemsolver.com website or contact your MOOG supplier. To identify the right MOOG part for virtually any application, please use the convenient, free www.FMe-cat.com electronic catalog.
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