Just past four in the afternoon, fully half of the field lined up behind pit road, past the fence that separates track from garage. The line of cars moved 10 feet or so, paused for a few minutes and moved again, all to arrive at the small tent at the end of the line: NASCAR's pre-race inspection area.

The first look by NASCAR's officials came just as each was about to enter the tent, as one official checked pressure on all four tires. NASCAR issues a range of tire pressures, and each one must be within that range to be compliant.

Each car was then pushed up a ramp to a raised inspection area where officials looked more closely. Once a car came to a stop, four stands were placed on each of the corners to measure height. Crew members made quick adjustments to their car, proving the height would not change during those adjustments. The raising of the hood provided the onlookers with a glimpse of each car's engine.

With height requirements satisfied, the car was pushed farther down the platform to a scale. Each tire rested on a small piece of metal that was connected to the scale; the information was then displayed on a laptop on the far side of the tent.

The process lasted no longer than a few minutes. Because both of the races at Richmond are impound races, there are but a few adjustments that can be made after qualifying. With such tight controls, there is little reason to recheck cars that have gone through inspections earlier in the weekend.

The two Richmond races make up nearly half of the five impound races on the schedule. The other three are restrictor plate races; the lone exception is the Daytona 500, where qualifying happens over the course of several days.

"The other three [restrictor plate] races, it reduces the time and the cost," said Scott Maxim, a track support manager for Hendrick Motorsports, as he walked along with Jeff Gordon's car, the last in line. "Here, probably a big [reason] is that it's a two-day show. An impound schedule is conducive to a two-day event."

After the cars exited the tented area, they were pushed on pit road, were they awaited the command to start the engines. NASCAR's next lookover might come after the race, when selected drivers' rides are inspected.

Even if it takes until next week, there's always another inspection not far away.