COT: Why it's come to this and where it all is headed (cont'd)

And now its NASCAR's turn.

First came the easy changes in the name of driver safety: softer walls at the tracks and either HANS or Hutchins devices for all drivers. Then came welcome improvements to helmets, seats and seatbelts. Even tire compounds changed to reduce grip and speed through the turns. The changes bought NASCAR some time, but the fact remained that NASCAR's current cars were still too fast.

Next came the hard part. A car that was (gasp) slower, but just as racy and entertaining as the old car. Enter the Car of Tomorrow, NASCAR's response to the paradoxical problem of racecar speed reduction. It's altogether too easy to find fault with any new racecar design. The COT is no exception.

Every great racecar begins life as an ill-handling pig. That's why shakedowns and testing are a necessary part of any successful racing program. Let's be clear here, the 2007 was a points-awarded shakedown session for the COT. With only minor changes, if any, to the chassis' specs expected for 2008, I suspect next season will be a continuation of that shakedown as well, but to a lesser degree.

The biggest change we can expect between this season and next will likely come from Goodyear. Extensive tire testing is planned during the offseason to help sort out new compounds designed to help teams cope with their biggest handling issues. That will be a big improvement, but it will only be an intermediate step. I imagine any major changes to the chassis will not come until after another full season's worth of data is gathered.

Keep in mind, though, that the goal will be not to make the cars faster, but to make the racing better. We've all heard the drivers knock the inability of the car to turn through the center of the corner. To overcome that, this weekend had some teams make the rear end so loose on entry that the car couldn't help but rotate better though the middle. Did you notice all that tire smoke? Other teams will crank in a ton of camber and lower the air pressure to get that right-front contact patch as fat as it can be. Are those the right ways to make the racing better or safer? Probably not.

Like it or not, NASCAR's slow and methodical approach to dialing in the car is probably the right way to go. NASCAR, the teams, the drivers and us fans will probably do best by taking the long-term approach to accepting the new car. We have to accept the fact that during this transition, the chassis will not always be perfect ... or all that good for that matter. If we stick with it, the racing will get better and it will get safer. Everybody wants it. The smartest people in racing are working on it. It will happen.

Campaigning only one spec of car will help immediately. After this Sunday's race at Homestead, teams will be able to focus 100 percent of their resources on the new car. That alone will spur advancements in the car's well-documented handling shortcomings. So let's take all the complaints, all the gripes, all the data we have on the COT and make an action plan out of it.

After its maiden season, we all know what to make of the COT. What we do not yet know is what to make it into. That we'll learn soon enough. Then it won't be long before we'll have it as good as we've had it in the past.

The opinions expressed are solely of the writer.