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Article regarding Ford Engine Package . .

Things could get down and dirty over the next two months, and Ford teams will be banking on Doug Yates' new D-3 engine, which was so impressive the last time out at Michigan, to help turn the tide.

This has been a strange season for Ford teams on the Nextel Cup tour. Chevy teams generally have been on the mark every week, but Ford teams have been hit-and-miss - and usually too much miss.

How much will the new D-3 help here?

Perhaps Dale Jarrett will tell the tale. Jarrett would have won at Michigan three weeks ago if not for NASCAR's controversial "lucky dog" rule, which is roundly despised by drivers.

Can Jarrett follow that up? Or was there more at play at Michigan than just the motor? Is Ford's aero package all that it needs to be?

There are a lot of questions surrounding Ford teams.

Ricky Rudd said he's not sure that Fords will have enough to play the game at Chicagoland Speedway this weekend, but he's guardedly optimistic. "It doesn't look like any Ford has been a dominant car on this type of track," he said.

But the new Ford engine will turn more RPM, which should make it better off the corners.

"Horsepower anywhere you go is an asset, but it can be a detriment sometimes, too, because if you can't control it, it causes tire spin," Rudd said. "Still, I'm a competitor that feels 'Give me all the horsepower you can, and we'll figure out a way to get it to the ground.'

"Chicago is the kind of race track that has long straightaways, similar to Michigan in that respect. Motor will show up there, where at some of the other places, it won't show up as much. At Chicago you will be able to sense it. And I'm really looking forward to going back to Pocono (in two weeks). There is a place that really shows up power in the straightaway."

This track, Rudd says, is somewhat difficult to distinguish from the tour's other new 11/2-mile tracks.

"They all sort of run together after a while," he said. "I have a difficult time distinguishing Kansas and Chicago. They are very similar. The layout of the garages and motor-home lot are similar.

"If you wake up, and they spin you around, without reading the writing on the wall, you wouldn't know where you were."

For Jarrett, the time for "getting" is now, if he wants to make the playoffs. He's 177 points out of the top 10.

Was Michigan a turning point?

"We still have a ways to go," Jarrett said. "But we have seen some things over the last month that lead us to believe we're heading in the right direction.

"We've really been able to make some gains with our chassis, and the pit crew has been working well together and performing better on a more consistent basis.

"We're certainly going to be pulling out all the stops.

"This weekend's race should be a good test for how far we have come with our chassis program. We have some more tests lined up for the next month that should help us learn even more and make some gains.

"Once we get to where we are competing in the top-10 and the top-five on a regular basis, then we should be able to compete for wins on a weekly basis, and start worrying about contending for a championship, which is where we are hopefully heading."

Rudd said that NASCAR shouldn't have changed the championship points system.

"I've never been a big fan of the point system," he said. "I think the ones that are going to come out on the short end are the sponsors. They pay so much, and car owners are having a harder and harder time finding one. I think it is going to be a 36-race schedule for some and a 26-race schedule for others.

"I'm afraid the sponsors are going to step up and say 'You ran 26 races, and I'm going to pay you for 26, not 36.'"

• ?Mike Mulhern can be reached at mmulhern@wsjournal.com