2013 NASCAR: TRD’s Engine Woes Continue At Joe Gibbs Racing

May 31, 2013; Dover, DE, USA; Sprint Cup Series driver Matt Kenseth (20) during qualifying for the FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

After Joe Gibbs Racing totally dominated the early part of The FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks on Sunday afternoon, they were sent to the garage with engine failure. Home Depot Toyota driver Matt Kenseth was again leading a race with a strong race car, and blew an engine. Martin Truex Jr who also drives a Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing blew up as well. The common denominator for both race teams is TRD(Toyota Racing Development).

With teammate Denny Hamlin sitting on the pole, and Kyle Busch leading most of the early laps, it was no secret that all three JGR drivers were going to be running strong all day. Kyle Busch was able to salvage a fourth place finish, and MWR Toyota’s driven by Clint Bowyer and Mark Martin finished sixth and ninth respectfully.

"“Man it’s disappointing. I feel like JGR is three of the strongest teams in the garage — it seems like we have the best cars out there, equal to the best cars,” Kenseth said. “But you have to finish these things, obviously. There’s been some issues in that department. I’ve got a lot of faith in those guys, they’ll get it figured out.”"

Kenseth had engine problems at Daytona back in February, and Kyle Busch blew up 257 laps into the Coca Cola 600 last weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. TRD’s reliability problems go back to 2011 when Kyle Busch was basically taken out of the championship chase because of engine problems.

TRD is a an in-house tuning shop for Toyota, Lexus and Scion engines. Their purpose in life is to take engines from these manufacturers and add performance characteristics that achieve around 850 horsepower for NASCAR engines. They have not been able to get the job done without engine failures at critical times.

After Kenseth’s engine failure in his first JGR Points race at Daytona, the TRD team showed up in Phoenix in attempt to number one, figure out what happened to the Home Depot Toyota at Daytona, and number two, provide reassurance to the teams that they were working on the problems. But Kyle Busch, who qualified in the second row at Phoenix had to go to the rear for engine failure during a practice session.

"“This is a very emotionally charged situation that we find ourselves in,” David Wilson, senior vice president at TRD, said Sunday morning. “… The part that’s difficult is the timing of this. Ultimately it becomes a psychological challenge to keep everyone focused and confident. The bottom line is, we need to get some success under our belt, and go out there and win today, and that will start the healing process. In the meantime, on the engineering side, we’re working on this 24/7.”"

As a fan who would like to see a Toyota win a Sprint Cup Championship, especially after Denny Hamlin came so close in 2010, I have lost faith that it is going to happen anytime soon. I felt that when JGR brought Matt Kenseth on board, it was to win that all elusive championship in a Toyota. The Toyotas can compete with the Chevrolets in the speed catagory, but as long as race longevity is a factor, they will not lift a trophy at Homestead.

Joe Gibbs Racing has not won a championship since 2005 when Tony Stewart won The Cup in a Chevrolet Monte Carlo. As you might remember, Gibbs ran a Chevrolet in 2005 while they were waiting for the Toyota become part of the Sprint Cup picture. His prior championships came on a Pontiac platform with Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte.

Follow me at Spin_47