domesticpower
Track Addict
twistedneck said:Most of the racecars that use a big opening front grill also have hood vents. All that extra air coming in needs to go out up through the hood vents not down toward the wheels causing lift. this was seen in the early days with the tiger racing hood.. starting 13 Ford added vents for the same reason, they are not cosmetic.
For even higher speeds you need to close the grill to outside air. you don't have to close it via the external surfaces just do what Ferrari does and create plastic sprung doors that close when there is enough force on the door to overcome the spring - presto - closed off grill at high speeds.
Easier said than done, anyone know of a way we can do this? PS. what is the best place to purchase the 302s grill?
Absolutely, a tiger racing hood is high on my list.
That's a good idea, I didn't think of that. I don't think Ferrari has grille shutters. Ferrari's active aero was to improve downforce if I remember correctly and if you're referring to the 458. The vanes were probably airfoil shaped and deflected at high speed due to increasing air pressure (dynamic) causing their angle of attack to change and increase downforce. This is all my opinion though, I don't know for sure how they work. Fabricating something like this would be very expensive because of all the aero testing and having to incorporate it in a grille or lower fascia somehow.
I would imagine the easiest way would be to machine a plate/flap into the shape of the grille, couple it to a small servo motor and connect that to an air speed sensor with a programable chip. Set the chip to signal on the motor at a certain air speed to close the plate/flap and reduce air. If someone can figure out how to tap into the car's speedo or OBD port for a speed signal to control the motor, that would be cheaper and save a few lb of wiring and controls. I would love to take on a project like that if I had the money for many trials and errors lol.