Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet has won the last two Coca-Cola 600s. Credit: Autostock

Johnson's first car a consistent winner

Hendrick driver aims for third straight Coke 600 win

It was built in 2001, well before Chad Knaus or Jimmie Johnson even cashed a paycheck from Hendrick Motorsports.

It's just a car. A four-year-old one at that. But for the past two Coca-Cola 600s, it's been the key ingredient to Jimmie Johnson's hold on Lowe's Motor Speedway, and despite massive rules changes over the winter, it'll be the car that Johnson will drive this weekend.

Johnson enjoyed his trip to Victory Lane in 2003 ...

It's not the car that Johnson ran last weekend in the Nextel All-Star Challenge. Johnson wouldn't risk wrecking that one eight days before a 400-lap points race.

"This is the first car that was ever built for Jimmie," said crew chief Chad Knaus. "It's a very good, adjustable car."

Adjusting will be key for all the teams on Sunday, as the event will be the first Nextel Cup points race on the newly-milled surface at LMS. To get more practice, Johnson has entered Saturday's Busch event. It will be just his second Busch start of the year.

"The old track you had a good feel how much the track would change. Right now it's an unknown," said Knaus.

Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 will be Johnson's fourth, and he has led a staggering 701 laps, including 334 last year.

It was a showing that left his colleagues struggling just to stay on the lead lap with him.

... and again in 2004. Credit: Autostock

"You don't see that very often," Michael Waltrip said.

"It was a rocket," said Joe Nemechek.

"We were so far behind that I never got to race with him," said Matt Kenseth.

The event couldn't come at a better time for Johnson, who is in the midst of a mild slump. He hasn't scored a top-five in a month, although he still holds the points lead by 41 over Greg Biffle.

Johnson: Preferred groove moving up

Johnson says the surface change has led to a faster line in the middle of the track. In the All-Star event, the outside lane was the preferred groove, especially on the restarts.

"The bottom lane may work decent, but the middle of the racetrack was where to be," Johnson said.

The surface improvement has led to higher speeds at Lowe's Motor Speedway, and Johnson says the race will only get quicker after the sun sets, which typically happens around Lap 130.

"(During) daylight hours, it's going to be tough to hang on the car," Johnson said. "When night falls, it'll be fast. Tires would wear out quicker in the day than at night."

Extended tire durability in the second half of the race could lead to single-file racing after dark. "There is a lot of things making it into a single-file track," Johnson said.

Get ready for a long night -- maybe

Even though this weekend's event is the longest on the NASCAR schedule in mileage, it can still be a far cry from the mentally and physically draining marathons sometimes seen at Pocono or Darlington.

"(At) Darlington, you're flirting with the wall every lap and I think it wears on you a little more than 600 miles at Lowe's does," said Johnson.