It happens in every branch of the sport, from club racing right up to the top levels of NASCAR, WRC, F1 and the like.
Remember when Tyrrell used ball bearings in a water tank to make post-race weight? They installed a 3.3-gallon water tank in the car and rigged a system whereby water was sprayed into the air inlet trumpets, which was legal - refueling was illegal then, but the Tyrrells would come in late in the race to have the water injection tank topped up. The mechanics, however, added the balls along with the water. Discovery occurred when a tank split in the pit lane at Brands Hatch in '84, scattering ball bearings all over the place - that got them banned for the rest of the year and their earlier results declared null and void. BAR tried the additional fuel ballast trick in '05.
A couple of the old NASCAR ones that really tickled me related to the weight game. Darrell Waltrip used to go through scrutineering with a set of wheels fitted that had several pounds of weight hidden in them; running slower in the early laps of a race, after the first pit stop with standard wheels bolted on, he would run a lot faster - it took quite a while before anyone cottoned on to that one. Another one involved the driver's helmet - include one in pre-race weighing with the lining filled with lead and then, just before the start, have a radio problem and use a second helmet weighing considerably less.....
It's all about that wonderful grey area of pushing the envelope and finding loopholes between compliance and cheating. I think NASCAR have even stopped calling it cheating now preferring to cal it "actions detrimental to the sport"
MG Mark
