SuperTurbo Mini Project

Aero update

I was going to wait on my next update till I had everything mounted, but I realized that it might be better to explain my logic before you see the final product. Remember I'm going for *function* here, not aesthetics....really...


First, I will remind you about some early analysis I did about aerodynamic improvements. A couple of years ago I had a splitter on the front - mainly for aesthetics. However I noticed that although it was not really functional (i.e. you couldn't properly adjust the angle or alignment), it did have a positive impact on high-speed stability.

Moreover, given the fact that most of the weight reduction has been behind the center of gravity, I knew I had to compensate for the added front downforce with a rear wing that I could similarly adjust - both in angle & height. Moreover, I knew that by a proper placement of the rear wing I could also also reduce the drag on the rear end.

However it is difficult to balance both goals in a single wing element. So my idea is to use a double element rear wing. Here is a link to a simple CFD simulation I ran looking at the effects of a double element rear wing:

YouTube - lciscon's Channel

I was able to get both the splitter and rear wing fabricated by APR Performance. They produce real functional racing elements & were able to make customizations based upon my requests (e.g. making the rear wing 1' narrower than normal).

Right now I'll focus on the mounting of the splitter - the wing will have to wait for a future update. The splitter arrived about a week ago:



I wanted to mount it in such a way as to allow the bumper to "float". By building a simple aluminum bracket, I was able to create a solid structure to mount it to that was also weak enough to bend/flex if I hit something:







The bumper will slide in above this bracket. My next step is to fabricate/assemble/mount the front support rods. I'll post pics as I put them together.



Ok, here's a sneak peek at the rear wing sitting on the floor:



And wait till you see how I'm going to mount it....

 

Yes, I'm going to slot them a bit. I may also add some additional cross bracing to the bracket...I haven't decided yet...

Right now I'm trying to figure out better front support rods. I'd like to have somthing that has a bit of very stiff spring "give" to them.

 

I'd like to. First things first.

 

It's definitely interesting. Although it is a bit surprising that the G/G plots of the three tests are so similar:



If anything the Red test might have a bit more in the upper left quadrant...but the Blue (i.e. fixed wing) test seems to have better coverage than the Black.

One problem is that to be most effective the system needs to anticipate what's coming up before it happens. By the time it senses accelerometer changes, it's too late to get the bulk of the benefit.

Maybe if it tracked the driver's head motion, then it could anticipate....hmmm.....

 

Quick point of clarification/information:

The splitter was not a stock APR splitter. They will make a custom one if you send them an outline of the bumper. I chose to go with a customer splitter because I wanted it to extend below the bumper instead of just connecting to it.

 

Design of bracket to mount rear wing

Here's the design I've come up with for the bracket to mount the rear wing:



The next question you'll have is how does this connect to the rear hatch...good question! You'll just have to wait & see