DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Not all teams are happy with their individual setups. And not all manufacturers think the Chevys, Dodges, Pontiacs and Fords are all on an even playing field. But compared to last year, most drivers seem to be pleased with the new aero rules NASCAR developed last last season for restrictor plate racing.

"(The new rules package) definitely puts more emphasis on the drivers," said Tony Stewart, whose car was sent airborne in a 21-car wreck in last year's Daytona 500. "When we passed today, we had to move up and down the racetrack. It gave the ability back to the drivers instead of being at the mercy of the air."

	The Fords, like the one driven by Ricky Rudd, will get an extra quarter-inch off the spoiler.

Drivers have frequently criticized restrictor plate setups, saying the cars were bunched too closely together, leading to huge wrecks like the one seen last year at Daytona. The car setups often made it difficult for drivers to maneuver around to avoid such wrecks and to put distance between themselves and other cars. After the Fall race at Talladega last year and in response to driver and team complaints, NASCAR eliminated the thin metal strip across the roof of the cars and increased the rear spoiler angle. The air-catching upright bend also wasl be removed from the top of the spoilers.

"With last year's package, I felt like the car was driving me and I was just riding along," said Stewart. "This year I feel like I'm at least in more control of my car. It doesn't mean that it drives perfectly, but at least I felt like I was in control of what my car was doing.

"It's nice to somewhat control your own destiny, where in the past you got in line and hoped for the best and hoped that your line went better than the other two lines out there. At least now you can race guys more one-on-one. It used to be that you were either on the inside line, the middle line or the outside line and hoped that your line was faster than the other two.

"Now, it's putting a little more individuality into it."

Mark Martin was among the Ford drivers offering strong criticisms toward NASCAR before the league made a modification to the Ford's spoiler heights on Sunday night. But like Stewart, Martin saw improvements with the overall package as opposed to 2001.

"I think it was good," said Martin. "There's no comparison to 2001. Last year was just ridiculous and this year it was OK. It was the way racing should be."

One of the key issues here is safety. While fans might enjoy seeing a massive pack of cars running close together, the possibility of a massive wreck created by those packs is just what drivers try to avoid.

"(Now it's) definitely safer," said Jeff Gordon. "Before, it was a white-knuckle deal. But whatever conditions they put us in, we'll adjust to them."

Another aspect of the packs created by resitrictor plate racing is the inability of the stronger cars to pull away from the pack. But the new rules seemed to have remedied that problem to some extent.

"One real good thing that's come out of this is that the good guys are able to work together and get away from the rest of the pack," said Dale Earnhardt Jr., who finished second in Sunday's Bud Shootout.

Earnhardt Jr. was among a lead pack of just five cars, including race-winner Stewart, Gordon, Ken Schrader and Sterling Marlin. "Not that we don't want to be associated with those guys, but sometimes it's difficult to race when the leader swaps places with the 18th-place car on the first lap.

"Now, it's more back in the team's hands and the driver's hands. It's more difficult to pass compared to last year when you could blow by five or 10 cars in a corner or straightaway if you got a good push. Now, we have more control over what's going on."

Marlin, despite thinking that the Dodges might need some setup help to compete on Sunday, expressed similar sentiments.

"I'd rather wrestle five guys instead of 20," he said. "The good handling cars are going to come to the front. We got rid of that one big pack of cars, and that's what we're after. It worked out about like I thought it would."

The idea that the driver has more control over the car obviously sits well with the competitors. But how much difference does the driver make?

"Apparently not a whole lot because I didn't win the race," joked Earnhardt Jr. "(Seriously), the guy with the better race car is going to have the better opportunity. Last year, as long as you made the field you had a chance to win the race.

"There are some things with this package that the driver can do as far as saving the right front tire. We're now more involved in how the car handles and how it feels and how much that matters in the long run. Last year, the car was just planted to the ground and you just rode around. I saw Bobby Labonte spin out in front of me today and I thought that was kind of crazy.

"I almost lost it on the inside of Jeff in Turns 3 and 4 (but I saved it). So I made a difference there."

Gordon's reply?

"Thank you."

Despite drivers having more control in their cars during the race, the potential for a last-lap battle among a big group of cars still exists -- although the aero package might have a little less to do with it this year.

"With this package here, the dangers are what we create," said Earnhardt Jr. "So I think there will be a better avenue to place the blame on someone. I noticed that you can be real aggressive with this package and the cars don't get that upset when they're beside each other."

Stewart agreed with Earnhardt Jr.'s assessment that the potential of last lap problems will be less.

"You're not having the closing rates that you had last year," said Stewart. "If anything, in my opinion, I can honestly say that I think it's going to make it a safer race for us.

"I told (crew chief) Greg Zipadelli after we had our Happy Hour session for the Shootout that I didn't feel like I ever had to hold my breath because I felt uncomfortable out there. It was the first time I've felt comfortable at a restrictor plate track in two years now."