- MECHANICAL ISSUE CAUSES DAMAGE TO KELLOGG’S/CARQUEST CHEVROLET -

TEAM REPLACES PART AND FINISHES RACE IN 35TH PLACE

DARLINGTON, S.C. (May 10, 2008) – Casey Mears kept the No. 5 Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet in the top 15 for 156 laps during Saturday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup event at Darlington (S.C.) Speedway. But an unlikely chain of events late in the race kept Mears’ team from competing for its third top-10 finish of the season.

“We’re going to keep on working at this, guys,” Mears said over the radio following the race. “Luck has got to come our way at some point.”

Mears, who was consistently high on the speed charts all weekend, qualified 29th after making slight contact with the wall. The Kellogg’s/CARQUEST team members kept their focus on Saturday night’s race because they knew they had a great car in race trim.

In the first 50 laps, the strength of the No. 5 Chevrolet was evident. Mears advanced 12 positions in that time and prepared for his first pit stop of the night. The team made a slight trackbar adjustment and sent the Chevy back to the track with fresh tires. When green-flag pit stops had cycled through completely, Mears was running in 17th place.

The adjustments during the pit stop improved the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevy’s ability to turn throughout Turns 3 and 4. Mears continued to move forward, gaining three more spots to move into 14th, when the second round of green-flag pit stops began on Lap 114.

Throughout the next 75 laps, Mears moved between 16th and 14th place. The Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet’s handling remained consistent in Turns 3 and 4, but had become slightly loose in Turns 1 and 2. Not wanting to lose that consistency, the team opted for no adjustments throughout its next two stops.

Shortly after the team’s sixth pit stop on Lap 249, crew chief Alan Gustafson noticed a change in pitch of the engine as the car drove by. Mears also radioed to the crew that the cockpit of the Chevrolet had grown louder. Without any other issues arising, Gustafson thought there may have been a leak in the exhaust of the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevy.

Twenty laps later, the Chevy’s left front tire failed, and the momentum carried the car into the outside wall, causing significant damage to the right side. Mears entered pit road for new tires and repairs.

The team lost four laps while making repairs on pit road. Mears rejoined the field, but requested further adjustments to the Chevy’s tow to make it easier to drive on track. When Mears once again entered pit road, the pit crew discovered that a header on the Chevy was broken. Gustafson had Mears bring the car into the garage so the team could replace the broken header.

Once in the garage, the team realized that the broken header, which had to have occurred earlier in the race and caused the change in sound inside and outside of the car, had either punctured the left front tire or caused excessive heat which caused the left front tire to blow.

After spending time in the garage to replace the header, Mears re-entered the track and finished the race 35th. He is now 28th in the driver standings while car owner Rick Hendrick is 27th.

The Kellogg’s/CARQUEST team will compete in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Challenge at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 17. The race will air live on SPEED at 7 p.m., ET.