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UHMW (or similar) plastic plates/panels are frequently used to protect suspension, fuel tanks, fuel/brake lines and other "less critical" components. They are usually used to deflect rocks and debris from damaging lines, hoses, fasteners, pivots, etc. Attachment is usually less sophisticated and not as critical as engine protection. It's not uncommon for zip-ties to be used to hold this protection in place.
Aluminum or steel plates are the usual choice for engine/sump protection. A rigid structure with ease of removal/installation are the primary criteria for these plates.
Sure enough that fits the description of this 951 rally car for this area a few years ago.
When I want to see some of the best race builds now, this is where I will look. I find some of the BRZ diffusers interesting because they seem to have 2 levels to them (not sure why), but in that way my 944 application and the BRZ are similar. Because they aren't running a rear bumper they can go bigger then Ol' Wilson.
I latched onto the concept of blending or entraining the above tray air with the below car air out of necessity, in hopes proper engine bay cooling can be obtained. So far so good, temps are low but then again, it ain't hot out.
-With suspension you can corner balance & adjust spring rates & shocks to tune your handling.
-But you can also tune your downforce with the topical solutions (canards, spoilers, etc)
Did you know you can also change the "balance" -for lack of a better word- of the downforce underneath the car? Yes you can.
For instance if your backend feels too light & loose, then you can incorporate a low point in the rear (naturally our 944s have this anyway, so it would be easy to simply smooth it over & then add a diffuser-John Stahl, I've been thinking about this...). Or if your front end floats you can in corporate a low spot in the under tray towards the front.
So in the last video, our friend Kyle mentions 180kph, and that might seem high to a non-big track racer... understandably so, but consider this:
Driving on the hiway at 130 kph and you have 50 kph wind (130+50=180kph) now even in daily driving, on a very windy day on the hiway you might encounter 180 kph.
Well, I've made a bit of a fool out of myself again, I suppose.
Originally my intension was to reduce underbody turbulence/lift/drag which would make the car more efficient at being quick and handle better as a result with the benefit of under body protection.
It appears as though I've gone overboard in my expectations. Let's face it, most the time Wilson is not going fast enough where the aero is going to help that much.
So the argument Aero vs. Suspension? Suspension destroys aero 9 outta 10 times.
If I remember correctly there was one guy who had access to a wind tunnel and took his 924/44 for tweaking. Look for the info on 924board, if memory does not fail me he documented the whole thing there.
Noah, love the continued effort. So cool you're trying all of these different things. Keep it up! I'm totally jealous!
I'm sure you've read just about everything on aerodynamics by now but check this page out. I stumbled across it when I was dialing in my suspension earlier this year and noticed the aerodynamics section. Near the end he has graphs and pressure plots on a Miata with different aerodynamic enhancements showing the benefits and downsides to all of them. Again, not sure how much it'll add to what you've already read but I thought it was pretty good as both this guy's personal S2000 and the Miata example are fairly similar to our 944s.
Well, I've made a bit of a fool out of myself again, I suppose.
Originally my intension was to reduce underbody turbulence/lift/drag which would make the car more efficient at being quick and handle better as a result with the benefit of under body protection.
It appears as though I've gone overboard in my expectations. Let's face it, most the time Wilson is not going fast enough where the aero is going to help that much.
So the argument Aero vs. Suspension? Suspension destroys aero 9 outta 10 times.
I wouldn't call that foolish. It isn't a bad idea either. An improvement is an improvement. Sure, you can't go chasing ground effect in a rally car but it doesn't mean it isn't worth pursuing aerodynamic improvements. Seems like it has worked out great so far. You did say you could feel the diffuser working which is just awesome to hear. Why not add some sort of big front diffuser a la Audi S1 E2 Quattro or S2000 CR and the deeper, more aggressive 924 Le Mans rubber rear wing? Even something like Randy's (?) modified wing from "How effective is your aero?" could probably be an improvement to your setup thus far. You yourself sent us that article in the other thread that showed the improvements of just a splitter on an S2..
These came though for me. As mentioned I like the Sachs for the street but Now I'll have Bilstein up front & the back. The literature says these have bumpstops inside. Look at the quality! This double tube design seems like a high end rally type design.
These came though for me. As mentioned I like the Sachs for the street but Now I'll have Bilstein up front & the back. The literature says these have bumpstops inside. Look at the quality! This double tube design seems like a high end rally type design.
These are Mono Tube Street Bilstein's, Not a twin tube design like some Koni.
The bare metal portion at the top is the shock absorber which contains gas, Oil and the valves workings.
Inside the bottom Yellow casing is the Piston Rod which you can see screws into the bottom cap. The Upside Down orientation assists in less Unsprung weight.
11-13-2016, 11:06 AM
