When the wheels come off: Lessons from Sonoma on racing, resilience, and engine oil

I went to Sonoma for a NASCAR race and found out heat is the bad guy, fluids are the secret weapon, and Valvoline's engineers are basically mad scientists with pit passes. We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. A tire is making decent progress coming out of a turn at Sonoma Raceway --except for the fact it's no longer attached to Cody Ware's No. 51 Ford Mustang. Crowds gasp, cars swerve, and the wheel menacingly rolls off, then on, and then off the track again before it finally collapses. I've never related to a tire more.