NASCAR Pit Rules--What are they?

Does anyone have a link to the NASCAR rules regarding pit stops and how it affects a race cars' position during a race?

It seems like some guys pick up places during a pit stop and others lose spots. Why would some drivers elect to pit by themselves? Why would some drivers elect to pit during a caution?

It seems like some guys pick up places during a pit stop and others lose spots.

A driver leaves the pit as soon as he's finished. Some finish more quickly than others.

Drivers pit under green out of necessity.

Driver pit under yellow because the cars on the track are moving much more slowly and cannot pass.

I think you may run into difficulty here. NASCAR does not make its rules available to the media or general public. I guess it's so they can tinker with the rules to produce the best product. If I find anything, I'll let you know, but it doesn't look promising.

Ping.

Some partial, unofficial answers...

Pitting under green is always allowed. At the plate tracks (Daytona, Talledega), you usually don't want to pit alone because you'd lose the draft. Depending on the track, you'll pit under green either because you're almost out of gas or your tires have given up grip.
For the first lap or two under caution, the pits are closed. If, for some reason, you come in while they're closed, you'll restart at the end of the longest line.
The first lap under caution that the pits are open, they're usually open for lead-lap cars only (unless NASCAR calls a "quickie" caution. As Petronski said, this is the only time under caution you can pass someone, either by taking fewer tires than somebody or by having a faster pit crew.
After that lap, the pits are open for everybody.
As for pit penalties, there are 2 major ones. The first is speeding in the pits (speed varies from track to track). If you're caught under green, you have a drive-through penalty (drive through the pits at pit-road speed, but you don't have to stop in your pit stall). If it's under yellow, you start at the tail end of the longest line.
The second is pitting out of the pit box. As long as the only tire that is out of the pit box is your right-rear, you're safe. Otherwise, it's a 1-lap penalty.

Hope this helped.

I would love to get my hands on an official rulebook. I would imagine you could buy one but it wouldn't be much good for long.

Nope, not a NASCAR Rule Book, you MUST be a car owner that has paid to have a car number for that season to get a "rook" book. Not available online to look at even. Of course since NUTSCAR changes the rule every few minutes these days it really don't matter.

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