TRD president David Wilson says Toyota is 'open' to more horsepower in NASCAR Cup Series

Ever since the Next Gen car was introduced by NASCAR in 2022, there have been complaints about horsepower, or lack thereof. At just 670 horsepower, the Cup Series cars leave something to be desired on short tracks.

At least, that’s one side of the argument. NASCAR has been insistent that putting more horsepower in the cars isn’t as simple as it sounds. They have instead opted for aerodynamic changes as well as different tires and compounds from Goodyear.

Drivers like Kevin Harvick have commented on the issue. Doug Yates of Roush Yates Engines didn’t seem to have an issue with adding horsepower when asked last year.

Now, we have David Wilson, president of Toyota Racing Development saying that his manufacturer is fine with adding horsepower. If that is the solution.

“We’d like to see better racing, and the path to that – we’re open to about anything,” Wilson said, according to The Athletic. “If the consensus is we need to put the power back up, then we’re on board.

“But we’re seeing historic reliability with our power plants, and that doesn’t happen by accident. … It’s trying to turn all of those knobs and achieve the best balance and not hurt one particular stakeholder or competitive element moreso than another. I don’t envy NASCAR in that regard, because it’s a tough problem to solve for.”

NASCAR pulled out all of the stops at Phoenix this December for an aero test. They have been tinkering with the Next Gen car for two years, and there will likely be more adjustments in the coming year or more.

Is it possible to fix the short track problems while keeping what makes this car great on other tracks?

NASCAR horsepower debate continues

There are a few arguments for not allowing more horsepower in the Cup Series cars. What it comes down to, according to NASCAR, is cost and current design of the car. NASCAR reduced horsepower to make engines last longer and reduce costs for teams across the board.

Others argue it is more expensive to search for that extra handful of power than it is to just give teams the ability to use high-powered engines. There is also the current build of the car, which is meant to withstand these 670 horsepower engines.

However, it feels like NASCAR is the one with its heels dug in on this issue. Time and again they say it is a manufacturer problem, they have to approve it, make the engines, and get it to work in the car. Then we hear from Ford folks, Toyota folks, and even drivers that the costs aren’t an issue and it wouldn’t be hard to just put more power into the cars.

So, who knows? While short track and road course racing should improve, I’m not sure how much it can improve without more power in the cars. There has to be stress on the cars, or the potential for failure. Otherwise, drivers aren’t challenged to save fuel, tires, or race strategically.

NASCAR can add more horsepower. They just have to decide if they want to. Maybe in a year or two, we will see a little more oomph in these Cup Series cars.