• Pinewood derby cars create an interesting competitive environment, in which racers try to build the fastest and coolest-looking car. Fortunately, there are a few things that you can do to make the car go just that much faster, and hopefully give your car a slight edge over the competition. With the tips in mind, there's still a lot of room for your own inspirations.
  
  

Design

• F1 cars are low to the ground and have sleek lines, which helps them go fast.racing car image by Goran Bogicevic from Fotolia.com
  
  If you look closely at a race car, like an F1 racer, you'll notice that the car itself is really low to the ground, and all of the lines are smooth and leading away from the front. These design elements make the car cut through the air, and that allows it to go faster because of lower air resistance.
  
  

Smoothness

• Rough wood can also slow the car down by a tiny amount--but in a race of split seconds, that can be the difference between victory and defeat. Use sandpaper to smooth the vehicle down as much as possible, starting with larger grit sandpaper and working your way to finer and finer pieces. If you plan to paint the car, you can smooth the paint out by applying a second coat while the first is still somewhat tacky.
  
  

Smooth Axles

• The wheels and axles can slow or even stop the car in its tracks, and are the most important part of the racer. You can help make the car roll smother not only by making sure the wheels aren't tacked onto the car too tightly, but also with some sandpaper. Sand the ends of the axles, to make the wheels roll even more smoothly, and also sand or ream out the plastic wheels for the same reason.
  
  

Alignment

• If the car doesn't roll perfectly straight, it will rub against the sides of the race track, which will also slow it down. Before you get to the race track, test drive the car by rolling it along the floor. Make sure it rolls perfectly straight. If it doesn't, remove the axles and reattach them straighter.