How do NASCAR know about their speed without Speedometers?

NASCAR is a game of speed, which involves drivers braking every known limit possible to control their fast beasts around ovals. NASCAR drivers are known to be aggressive and it is a prime reason why there are many wrecks in NASCAR races. Ross Chastain is one well-known personality who made a move known as “Hail Melon.”

He drove his car in conjunction with the wall to pass several cars at once and secure a spot in the playoffs. While it was a highly rewarding move for him and the team, it was extremely risky to the point that it would’ve caused an accident for several cars.

NASCAR drivers are daredevils who play with their lives on the line driving in the fast lane throughout the year. As such, it is necessary for them to know at what point of race they need to make changes or pit for tires. NASCAR cars have the old manual transmission which requires precise shifting so that the car smoothly transitions into the next gear and gets more performance. But, unlike a normal car a NASCAR car has no dashboard, or one which isn’t as incredibly detailed as the ones used on the consumer cars.

NASCAR Speed Without Speedometers

The NASCAR dashboard doesn’t have a Speedometer or a Tachometer. These two are the most important components for providing information during normal driving. A Speedometer tells a driver how fast he is going and it is crucial for NASCAR drivers to know their speed. While NASCAR drivers are trying to go full throttle for most of the race they have slowed down under safety car conditions and the pit lane. This makes the absence of Speedometers from cars a big issue.

Similarly, there is no tachometer in a NASCAR car which can tell the driver at which RPM their car is currently running. The knowledge of exact RPM is necessary for the driver to shift the car to the next gear or to drop a gear while slowing down. If not done properly, the car can stall or give a bad performance in the next gear due to the absence of optimum RPM.

The NASCAR legend, Dale Earnhardt Jr. once explained in an interview how a NASCAR driver uses his dashboard. He explained that there are small lights on the dashboard in place of the speedo cluster. There are four green lights, two yellow lights, two orange lights, and two red lights. These lights work similar to an RPM bar used in many performance and motorsports machines.

He said that two yellow lights means you are at the optimum speed for the pitlane whereas green lights mean you're too slow. Simply speaking, a NASCAR driver knows at what speed they are racing, they only need basic information which is provided by the RPM bar on the dashboard.