Tom;
You can certainly have too much downforce. It increases the load on the
tires, adds rolling resistance, and compresses the suspension near the
bumpstops. There's also a possibility that suspension geometry such as
toe- in, etc. will be affected. It also increases aerodynamic drag.
The goal is to have enough downforce to make the car stable and to
insure that there is no net LIFT.
Regards, Neil (no guru here) Tucson, AZ
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-land-speed@autox.team.net
[mailto:owner-land-speed@autox.team.net] On Behalf Of Thomas E. Bryant
Sent: Saturday, January 08, 2005 4:02 PM
To: Land Speed
Subject: Ground Effects
List,
I know this has been discussed before on the network, but I have a
question. A friend here in Redding is building a Modified Roadster
(front engined). He brought by a model he has been working on and
quizzed me about the ground effects. The underside of the car has a
opening at the front that narrows down through the tunnel to about half
its original induction width to about mid point of the car's underside,
then dumps into an boxed area the width of the car from there to the
rear. With the model setting on a flat board, using an air nozzle to
induce air at the front of the car, it takes a bit of effort to pick the
car up. The ground effects definitely is working.
His question is...can you have too much ground effects? I said that in
my opinion, the more the better, but after thinking about it I suppose
that more than needed would scrub off the speed potential. This really
isn't my area of expertise, what is the thinking of the "speed gurus"
out there.
Tom, Redding CA - #216 D/CC
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