page_title: Pit stop
section_title: IndyCar Series
hierarchical_section_title: Pit stop / IndyCar Series
caption_attribution_description: English: Pit stops during the 2017 Rainguard Water Sealers 600 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas (United States).
context_page_description: In motorsports, a pit stop is a pause for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. The pits usually comprise a pit lane which runs parallel to the start/finish straight and is connected at each end to the main track, and a row of garages outside which the work is done. Pit stop work is carried out by anywhere from two to twenty mechanics, depending on the series regulations, while the driver often waits in the vehicle.
context_section_description: In the IndyCar Series, a pit stop is a more complex operation than in NASCAR, but far less so than in Formula One. Rules permit six mechanics over the pit wall during a stop. The pit rules and procedures have origins in USAC National Championship racing. The spare fuel for IndyCar competition is stored in large pitside fuel tanks. Each team's tank is filled to a specified volume of fuel, depending upon the race distance. Teams are also given a certain allotment of spare tires sets, likewise owing to the race distance. All of the spare tires are pre-mounted on wheels before the race.
  During a routine pit stop, the tires are laid out beforehand, and three of the four tire changers are pre-positioned before the car enters its pit stall. The fourth tire changer, whose responsibility is the rear tire on the far side of pit road from the pit wall, does not take his position until after the car arrives, due to a rule against having the car run over the feed hose for the impact wrench used to change the tires, and a prohibition of using an overhead boom to support air hoses. As a result, the outside rear changer also serves to wave at the driver to inform him of where his pit box is while holding the air hose up.
  As soon as the car comes to a halt, the first step, taken while the fourth tire changer assumes his position, is for a mechanic to activate the car's built-in pneumatic jacks. A pressurized air hose is inserted into a receiving nozzle at the rear of the car, under the rear wing. Previously, this device was inserted on the side of the car, but for safety reasons, the location was moved in the 2000s. At the same instant, another crew member begins the refueling process. A fueling hose is inserted into a socket (called the "buckeye"), allowing a gravity-fed hose to refill the car's fuel tank. The fuel hose has a built-in vent/overflow hose as part of the mechanism, an invention of the mid-2000s. Previously, a second "vent hose" was utilized, but it was phased out to improve safety.
  Simultaneously, the four tire changers remove the wheels and install the new ones. IndyCar wheels are affixed to the hubs with a single lug nut, making it easier and faster to change them. After the tire changes are complete, the front tire changers may use manual adjusters to adjust the angle of the car's front wing, remove debris from air intakes, or make other minor repairs. While the service is being completed by the over-the-wall crew, another crew member behind the wall may use a stick to offer the driver a refreshment.
  After the tire changes are complete, the air jack hose is removed, dropping the car to the ground. However, the driver usually must wait additional seconds until the refueling is complete. The right front tire changer (who is usually also the crew chief) signals the driver when the stop is complete. Before the car departs its pit stall, a crew member must squirt water to wash any excess spilled fuel from the fuel buckeye; this is usually done with a pressurized water hose by a crew member behind the pit wall.
  Under normal conditions, a routine stop for an IndyCar team lasts between six and ten seconds. IndyCar teams are permitted to set their own pit strategies.
caption: Pit stops during the 2017 Rainguard Water Sealers 600 at Texas Motor Speedway.
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