Me and my Aero

[mr_hyde]

Outstanding results!  You will be glad you did that if you end up out at the track in an 85* day in July.  You will also quickly find the aero benefits when you go out in the dry.  It takes a long time to learn to trust it!

[joeereid]

  The track/weather conditions were actually conducive to my particular  "what's gonna fly off at what speed" testing requirements. Lower car count and everybody's gotta run slower so I'm not holding anybody up while I tip-toe around the track anticipating possible catastrophic failure at any second. Those 85* days can't get here soon enough.

[millsj]

   sounds like a great first session. I will second Hydes comment that it takes a while to learn to trust the aero and convince your brain that you aren't going to go flying off the track. I'm still not 100% there. My sense of self preservation keeps stepping in. 

[joeereid]

Pesky "will to live" has been impacting my lap times since day one. Might have something to do with my avatar pic...which is from day one!

[mr_hyde]

My sense of self preservation keeps stepping in. 

Mine costs me at least 2 seconds a lap wherever I'm driving...   

[joeereid]

Day two of testing completed last week. Pacific Raceways this time. I set the wing at 1* AOA. Splitter on holding up nicely. Car feels definitely more "planted". No oddball behavior noted i.e.; under/oversteer so that's good. Observations; firstly, I think I'm gonna need more torque(preferably)or HP, kinda running into a little bit of an "increased drag" issue on the front straight. Gonna try it again with the wing back at 0* AOA next time out. I think it will still be generating DF with the Gurney Flap at that angle.
 Secondly, on another note, first time out with the new Adjustable Hans Device set to 15*, way more comfortable than the fixed 20* versions I tried last season. Lastly, by new Bell Sport Mag is a little bit too snug. The next size up is way too loose so I may grind away a little of the styrofoam innards to relieve the pressure points. Smashing it down with a ball peen hammer in the pits offered some relief but need a more "dignified" solution than a hammer.
So how to get more HP/torque from the stock turbo/ECU...hmm, I wonder,where would one go for advice regarding my quandary....

[SilverMiataRacer]

millsj has also noted a loss of straightaway speed with the aero but has been able to steadily decrease his lap times as he trusts the aero more and more.  More HP on the straight would be nice to overcome the drag but there is a lot of laptime to be had by working on the turns.

[millsj]

And the slippery slope continues.   

When I first installed the aero, I lost about 5 mph down the straight.  Roebling is a high speed track and I am approximately 100-105 mph when I get straight exiting corner 9 heading down the straight.  I used to top out at 125 mph.  I have since gained about 3 mph back on the straight due to faster corner speeds in turn 9.  If I remember correctly, laps times were about the same with the lower top speeds, but are now faster with the gained confidence in cornering speeds.  The car still has more speed, but I don't have the nerve at the moment.  Large slip angles at 100 mph is not my comfort level.   

At the last event, I had messed with the front splitter (lowered it) and I ended up with a loose car.  I dialed in a little more wing, which fixed the oversteer issue, but it did drop my top speed on the straight.  I think you will find that small changes in the wing or splitter will make a difference in handling and drag.

I'd agree with SMR that you probably have more time in improved driving (comfort level with the aero) than you will by reducing drag.  If the car is pretty neutral, I'd be temped to leave the aero alone and work on gaining confidence and push the envelope slowly in the corners.  Just don't push too hard since the consequences of an off are now much greater.

[04TitaniumGrayPhilly]

All the more reasons not to add aero (and more confusion and factors) to my car right now.

[millsj]

When you are new (and even experienced) in the track driving world, the best money you can spend is on seat time.  The biggest mod performance wise if to yourself. 

['95MSM]

You guys are getting it figured out.

I was just reading about the LMP1 rules changes for next year. They are taking away power, and Porsche responded that the cars will be slower in the corners as a result. Why? The fastest lap requires a critical balance of power to downforce to drag. Decrease power and the cars need to be trimmed out for less drag to get the best lap time. You get less drag by tuning out some aero.

Now go hire 40 engineers so you can compute the optimum balance at each track you drive.

[joeereid]

 If cheap, easy HP was readily available I'd take it but the car has just been so darn reliable on the track for 9+ years I hate to mess with a good thing. This is one of the things I love about my approach to the Sport driving theater, the little bits that can be worked on with your brain from behind the wheel at speed. It's not all about lap times for me ....it's more about why it's my lap time. More time with the aero is definitely something I'm looking forward to working around/with.
 Talking with my mechanic at the shop today he asked if i'd gotten my tire temps...Doh! Could have possibly gotten some data there as well. However, seeing as how I just switched to NTO1/15"s at the end of last season, after 8 years on the 17"s, I don't really have any comprehensive data to compare against/with. Oh well, something else to dink with next time out.
I'll be posting a "Wanted, 40 engineers" ad on craigslist shortly....

[mr_hyde]

Fortunately, Pacific will be the worst-case for your increased drag factor.  You should find that ORP has almost no drag penalty and a ton of downforce benefit.  The Ridge is the most fair between the two.  Portland will have a small drag penalty but isn't nearly as fast as Pacific or the Ridge.  Adding power is going down the rabbit hole.  Your car will start breaking and the mods to deal with more power all end up with a comma in the price tag.  Your formula works - stick with it!   

[joeereid]

Fortunately, Pacific will be the worst-case for your increased drag factor.  You should find that ORP has almost no drag penalty and a ton of downforce benefit.  The Ridge is the most fair between the two.  Portland will have a small drag penalty but isn't nearly as fast as Pacific or the Ridge.  Adding power is going down the rabbit hole.  Your car will start breaking and the mods to deal with more power all end up with a comma in the price tag.  Your formula works - stick with it!   

Agreed, and point re; reliability well stated. A hardtop may be good for a little less drags well. Still debating whether I want to stick with the 3.9's or go back to the 3.63's. Have to look at the gear calculator again and see if there's any better pull there re; gearing...I dunno. Pretty much ran all of Pacific in 5th except 3rd~4th out of the T-3B hole and 6th thru T-1 with the 3.9's.

['95MSM]

Fortunately, Pacific will be the worst-case for your increased drag factor.  You should find that ORP has almost no drag penalty and a ton of downforce benefit.  The Ridge is the most fair between the two.  Portland will have a small drag penalty but isn't nearly as fast as Pacific or the Ridge.  Adding power is going down the rabbit hole.  Your car will start breaking and the mods to deal with more power all end up with a comma in the price tag.  Your formula works - stick with it!  

Add Spokane County Raceway to your itinerary and every other Pac NW track will move down the rankings a notch. Most cars are at max velocity for 300 to 400 yards. Its a FAST race track. Plus free lodging an hour from the track.