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Engine Shop and Car Preparation

11:26
56:15
107.3K views

At 11:26 in

Bobby Labonte Explores Bill Davis Racing's First NASCAR Race Shop with Crew Chief Chris Hussey

What happens here

The tour resumes inside the engine building area. Chris explains that this section used to be an open space dedicated to engine assembly and parts washing, with no interior walls. He points out where the engine spray booth and various engine machines were located. The shop has evolved over time, with new additions like glass-enclosed rooms. Bobby Labonte recalls working on specific engines in these areas. They discuss how early Busch Grand National race cars were built and maintained, including their limited spare parts and the challenge of preparing cars for races.

Goal: Showcase the engine building area and discuss car preparation methods.

What they say

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And we got the doors up in this way, and that was And it wasn't a draw down booth or a bake booth. It didn't have heat, you know, it The heat was whenever you put a space heater in there. Yeah. It was just a It was just a paint booth so you didn't get overspray. Whenever it was uh the Baby Ruth car and Mark Martin's car, how was the shop laid out? Were they mixed among each other or did Yeah, this really same thing. This we call this a dirty room, you know, we could always shut those doors. This used to be dirty grinding and all that and that up there was always suspension and assembly. And Mark's car, the the 60 car the night I come over here, it was close to stuff to where the parts room It was kind of kept up there and Bill's stuff was back on this side of it. You know, but that's still all that's still up there. That was uh National house, yeah. It's free of charge. Did that jack come with the building, too? Yeah. Yeah, I bought the building as old Yeah, it it was here. So, when I bought the building, I bought it with the bolt bins, the office supplies, uh the dyno, and he had some kind of cleaning back back here, one rod machine. We We got rid of it. So, you got to think that after we moved or they moved to the other building, this one here would be in a the bus shop. Probably took some of the stuff with it. So, it might the paint booth probably was over there. You know, I mean, there was probably some things that changed before you got it. Yeah, cuz there was two dyno rooms here and I bought it with one dyno. Okay. I mean, we dyno three to four motors a week. Everyone of our new motors is dynoed, you know, Mhm. or we ship them out. The hauler was parked out back. Everything went in and out that door. Uh that was the only door that cars would go in and out of. The hauler was Hauler was at the bus. Yeah. Yeah, that was the original Barney mobile. Literally. No, no, this one here is the Okay. This is all um This wall was here? Yeah. This one here? Yeah. That wall wasn't there? Everything is just one big open area. It's just yeah, open. Surface plate was right over there for for hanging bodies. This is like a Roman fountain equivalent of a parts washer. Yeah. It was surface plate right here, metal surface plate that was, you know, off the ground. And and this is where all the bodies were hung. I remember that corner is where the heat yard machine was. So, all the aluminum welding and stuff was back in that corner. And templates and stuff hung on that…

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