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-   -   Post your DIY aero pics (https://www.miataturbo.net/aerodynamics-119/post-your-diy-aero-pics-63769/)

hf-mx5t 07-05-2012 11:38 AM


Originally Posted by sixshooter (Post 899386)
Because you live inside arctic circle?

could have been why.. But norway is a loong country. i live at the southeast end. a good 14 hour drive south from the arctic circle ;)

summers are hot here too. not nevada hot. but hot :)

wildo 07-05-2012 12:25 PM

30 Attachment(s)
Some followup pictures from post #150, as requested.

Also some ground clearance test results.

The car:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

The combination front grill/air dam flange/brake ducts:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Under side of splitter
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Close-up of underside showing splitter seam, dzus fastner, pop rivets:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Splitter hook/hanger, on upper side (engine side) of splitter, at the tail-end of the splitter:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Chassis pins, welded in place, just behind engine mounts on sub frame. The splitter hooks hang from these pins:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Splitter hooks slipped over chassis pins. In a sharp front impact, the back end of the splitter should slip right off of the hooks (in theory!)
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Flat-bottom of splitter as viewed from the rear with the splitter hooks attached to the chassis pins:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Fabricated aluminum dzus panel attached to front fenders serve as attachment points for the air dam. Not shown are the aluminum support arms, similar to the stock steel rods, which brace these brackets to the frame and push the fender out a bit, providing more coverage to the front of the tires:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

PVC air dam. Seems to be a good mix of flexibility and rigidity. Lays flat and curls up easy, does not fold under air pressure. Top of air dam is attached to the front bumper. Middle, center of air dam is attached to the combination flange (grill/brake ducts), bottom of air dam is attached to splitter. The height/ground clearance of the splitter can be changed by using air dams of different lengths. The longer the air dam, the lower the splitter:https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Close-up of dzus fastner holding bottom of air dam to the splitter:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

Ground clearance testing. 1" thick strips of pink insulation glued in place. The idea is to test and see how close the splitter is getting to the ground. Can we go lower?:https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

No! The strips of insulation worked great. You can see where some were planed down quite a bit while others were completely untouched:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

This end got the worst of it. At this particular track (NHMS), there are two right-hand turns with massive transitions. The front-left hand side of the car is under heavy load here, and scrapes. The black marks are track rubber. The alumalite itself is lightly scuffed but otherwise undamaged:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

A reinforcement panel and 5 dzus fastners hold the two symmetrical splitter halves together solidly, and allow for easy break-down and transportation:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

All-in-all I'm very happy with the way things have come together. The combination of parts seems to work well and is by far the easiest front aero to install, remove, and transport.

Assembled and on the car, the parts are sturdy enough to hold up to track abuse without caving in or coming off. The air dam has some flex which should help absorb small impacts, but still does not deform at high speeds.

Next step is to work on radiator / engine bay ducting/cooling. The cardboard ducting I made a the last track event seemed to work well, and should be a good template/starting point.

- Will

Handy Man 07-05-2012 02:02 PM


Originally Posted by wildo (Post 899441)
Fabricated aluminum dzus panel attached to front fenders serve as attachment points for the air dam. Not shown are the aluminum support arms, similar to the stock steel rods, which brace these brackets to the frame and push the fender out a bit, providing more coverage to the front of the tires:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1341505542

That pic is full of win. First of all, that fabricated aluminum bracket is perfect... way better than my solution which is to just rivet the dam to the bumper (it keeps trying to come off) Secondly, I like your brake duct hose holder/tire rub protection. I need to add that same thing to my setup as well.

Thanks for the pics of the rear mounts, that makes a lot of sense.

Two more questions for you if you dont mind: 1. Where is your oil cooler and how do you have it ducted? 2. Whats the NACA duct on the passenger side of the hood for?

one-niner 07-05-2012 02:19 PM

What an amazing thread :)

I don't see a lot of diffusers and also no "splitter style" side skirts (I really have no idea what they are called). Looking at the miata, I would think that that curved bottom of the sides would suck in quite a bit of air, especially with the lower undercar pressure from a splitter.

Not worth it?

Leafy 07-05-2012 02:24 PM

If I'm in a class that allows side aero I would run the thick brush stuff popular with 70-80's F1. More reliable than the slider plates, and you know, actually does something. Diffusers, who's in a class they're actually legal?

Handy Man 07-05-2012 02:30 PM


Originally Posted by Leafy (Post 899502)
If I'm in a class that allows side aero I would run the thick brush stuff popular with 70-80's F1. More reliable than the slider plates, and you know, actually does something. Diffusers, who's in a class they're actually legal?

I can have side aero in SCCA SSM... but haven't found any good "thick brush stuff" any idea what to use?

Diffusers in SSM are sort of grey area. Bumper modification is legal, but under car aero isn't... and TBH I don't think a diffuser is really worth the effort or the stretching of the rules without a flat bottom anyways.

EDIT: This looks like it might work: http://precisionbrush.com/aircraft-h...or-brush-seals

Leafy 07-05-2012 02:32 PM

I didnt think side aero was legal in SM since its kind of pointless without at least a flat floor. I forget where to get the thick brush stuff. I'll have to ask Bill where he gets the stuff for the A-mods this sunday. But yeah, diffusers in SM are kind of gray, I never wanted to push the issue when I was in sm before But we might have to put it up to the SEB at some point, or just plead for them to open up under car aero.

Handy Man 07-05-2012 04:28 PM

Yea, I'm not sure how I feel about under car aero. The class is already a god damned arms race, so you might as well open up aero too... but on the other hand I'd really rather not do it (and have to deal with the additional cooling problems it would cause) so I don't mind it being illegal :P

Leafy 07-05-2012 05:25 PM

Yup its an arms race for sure. You have to look at it this way. There is no car built to the limit of the rules in SM, any car. Because no one is running carbon fiber control arms and billet aluminum hubs and uprights. But that really goes beyond the purpose of the class. It has street in the name, which means you should be able to drive the car to the event, swap tires and drive.

Handy Man 07-05-2012 07:22 PM

Exactly. All of us around here have no delusions about it. We are only competitive because we all have somewhat similar budgets and aren't that interested in out spending one another... but if some jackass decides to show up in a ZR1 tomorrow, we'd all be screwed.

Most of the records where set by a guy with huge balls in a busted ass C4 that he later sold for less than a good set of tires, lol

Leafy 09-19-2012 08:23 AM

1 Attachment(s)
Lets bring this back up. For some reason I thought it was a sticky.

Aero is happening here. Plywood splitter, going with 1/4" pine, extending 6 inches forward of the bumper and no wider than the bumper. Ok maybe 5.5 inches forward, dont want to be like dave. Air dam mounted in the same place as this car's sister CSP car, using the air dam as tire blockers as well. And in the back going with a custom made dual element wing. I'm going to make it by using the laser cutter to cut wing sections out of home insulation foam and run aluminum tubes through it for strength and alignment then throw a layer or two of glass over it, then gelcoat for smoothness. Its going to be either swan neck or end plate mounted because and surface disturbance on the bottom of a low speed wing just kills its ability to make downforce. My wing limit is 8 sqft measured by chord length, camber does not matter, and I'm limited to 2 elements. I can also use 15% of the wing area as canards and I plan to do so but they wont be done for iteration 1. We've also decided that since the sister car is 10AE blue with red that this car is going to be red with blue, mostly for the lols.

Here's the model of the wing. The best I could get in the simulation was 160 pounds at 60mph with 40 pounds of drag. 4:1 is better than I need I would have gladly made 200 lb of downforce and 100 lb of drag, but I just couldnt get any more downforce from it. As a bonus in low downforce settings it only makes 13 pounds of drag at 80 mph while still making 113 pounds of downforce, I feel that downforce number is a tad optimistic. The crux of the whole thing is going to be mounting it, swan neck is easy if you dont want to adjust the main plane angle. Endplate mount is easy to adjust the angle but putting a 60" wide wing on a miata with endplate mounts at SSM legal height means endplate mounts would only be 7 inches long but have to go outward 7.5 inches, and that would put an insane moment on the mounts to the chassis and likely just rip the mounts out of the chassis from the downforce. Anyways heres the wing, I need to get back to work.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348057395

vehicular 09-19-2012 12:15 PM

What did you use for your numbers? OpenFOAM?

Leafy 09-19-2012 12:17 PM

COSMOS. And I would not bet on them being 100%. I can change only a couple parameters and get downforce numbers anywhere between 47 and 300 with that same profile. Though my goals and conditions for this most mimic life, IMO, so it should be close.

ianferrell 09-19-2012 12:27 PM

Do you have a profile picture or files you could post? I need to cut me a foam core wing too, got all the stuff but stopped with the ebay wing.... need to get some foam and start cutting.

Leafy 09-19-2012 12:36 PM

I can. But not right now. I kind am running 3 different versions of solid works. 2010 at work, 2011 at home and 2012 at school. File is currently saved in 2011 and I'm currently at work. So yeah.

lightyear 09-19-2012 07:02 PM

1 Attachment(s)
I made one similiar, but 3 elements. Here is a wooltuft test. It works better than i could have guessed. Lots of understeer, even from under 50mph. I am making a new front diffuser/splitter to try get some steering back.


http://imageshack.us/a/img515/3900/meanmx5.th.jpg

uavjeep 09-19-2012 08:48 PM

this is my creation
http://www.casc.on.ca/forums/picture...&pictureid=184

foam core, swan neck mounting, 56" width, 11" cord, carbon end plates. im going to smooth it and add min 2 layers of carbon fibre and vac bag it this winter.

jpreston 09-19-2012 09:48 PM


Originally Posted by Leafy (Post 928604)
I'm going to make it by using the laser cutter to cut wing sections out of home insulation foam and run aluminum tubes through it for strength and alignment then throw a layer or two of glass over it, then gelcoat for smoothness.

What's your plan for keeping the resin from melting the foam?

lightyear 09-19-2012 10:06 PM

Epoxy doesn't melt foam........

uavjeep 09-19-2012 10:08 PM

If using an epoxy resin system like East Systems epoxy, it will not eat common household insulation. That's what I used on my wing just the blue stuff from Home Depot.

jpreston 09-19-2012 10:51 PM

14 Attachment(s)
I've been wanting to build some aero stuff all year, so when I saw that only 3 other cars were registered in my class for NASA Nationals and I wasn't going to be eligible for Hoosier contingency, I said what the hell and decided to treat nationals as a bit of a test day.

Note: I started on this stuff the sunday before nationals (which started Wednesday night), and since I don't have a truck, was limited to home depot parts I could fit in the trunk of my daily driver E30. None of this is a "final" product... just testing/playing around. Feel free to make fun of how jank the bumper is lol.

Dollars spent: $400ish for everything.- Got lucky and found someone that thought they were selling a "show" quality NASCAR wing for $300 on ebay, but it was a race quality one.
How effective:2 =slightly better.
Materials used: Below
Bracket location:Below
Tracks tested on: Mid-Ohio
Race/TT class built for: NASA TTE

Undertray: 1/2" Birch, mounted and stiffened with perforated steel angle from home depot. The perforated angle was actually pretty awesome- no drilling for mounting holes, and since it has so many holes it's surprisingly lightweight for steel. I removed ALL of the structure for the front bumper beam (including the two stamped metal boob pieces), and mounted the front of the undertray with 2 vertical pieces of angle. Rear is bolted to two of the factory tabs under the steering rack.

Bumper: Hacked up stock bumper. Air dam made from 14" wide aluminum roof flashing, which left 2" of ground clearance on my baby 13" tires. The roof flashing is way too thin and caved in at speed. I ended up buying more aluminum angle at home depot while at mid-ohio and adding a bunch of stiffening ribs to the back side, but it still gave up on sunday. Next attempt will be 1/8" ABS plastic. Also, 2" is not enough clearance with 700/400 spring rates. It hit the ground multiples times in the paddock, and my friends said they could hear it scraping in the braking zones while I was on track lol.

Wing: NASCAR element off ebay. Super nice wing. I drew it up in CAD so that I could get a good hole pattern arrangement with good adjustment, then made the mounts out of 1/4"x6" aluminum plate and 1/4"x2" aluminum angle bolted to the rain rails in the trunk. Extremely sturdy. I'll probably make a new set this winter to move the wing further back, since it looks a little weird in it's current location. End plates were made out of some 1/4" ABS plastic that I had laying around.

Hood: Radiator hole with aluminum angle bolted to the front edge to get a little lower pressure going, home depot louver on the header side, and NACA duct feeding the intake on the pass side. It looks pretty ghetto up close, but I saw a huge drop in IATs.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

Had to make it a proper '91! lol
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

And finally, why $12 aluminum flashing may seem appealing, but is actually a shit idea.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1348109500

Final impression: I tried the wing with my stock front bumper on thursday and the car had some scary understeer, as expected. Mounted the front end stuff on thursday night, pulled 2-3 degrees out of the wing, and the car felt good enough that I didn't adjust it the rest of the weekend. The GPS antenna on my DL1 died so I don't have any data from this event, but from watching RPM on my video, even with the wing and only 130hp, it looks like I picked up around 200rpm on the back straight thanks to the front end stuff. Looking forward to doing more testing next year.

jpreston 09-19-2012 10:57 PM


Originally Posted by uavjeep (Post 929095)
If using an epoxy resin system like East Systems epoxy, it will not eat common household insulation. That's what I used on my wing just the blue stuff from Home Depot.

Good to know. I was thinking the guys used epoxy on the foam mold for the seat we attempted to make for our SAE car, but maybe they used polyester. Or maybe it was just a different kind of foam. Whatever it was that they used, it did a number on the foam, so I just made a mental note to never mix resin and foam.

triple88a 09-19-2012 11:46 PM

I'm curious why isnt anyone doing any fancier body work? Like putting the corners on an angle to make the front more arrow like?

Leafy 09-19-2012 11:50 PM

I've used epoxy like the, west systems kit and it works fine. Polyester resin, like the bondo stuff you buy at autozone will melt it.

Also, for air dam material, you're basically a moron to not use this stuff. http://www.speedwaymotors.com/Colore...0-Ft,1557.html Enough to make enough air dams for you and all your friends.

triple88a 09-19-2012 11:54 PM

Epoxy would make removal/replacement difficult no? After all this is a track car.

vehicular 09-20-2012 12:17 PM


Originally Posted by triple88a (Post 929134)
Epoxy would make removal/replacement difficult no? After all this is a track car.


They're talking about composite wing construction, not epoxying air dams on.

lightyear 10-05-2012 07:57 AM

1 Attachment(s)
I have made another aero bit.

Cost $$ still rising

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349438238

I found with the slickback on the hardtop it allowed the wing to work better. So we will be testing the new proper fastback in a few weeks.

Leafy 10-05-2012 08:11 AM

God I hit the $$$$ this is costing significantly more than I intended and taking way longer. I thought I'd have the wing sections done by now. NOPE I just got the 2nd plane foam core together. Tonight should consist of homework and getting the main plane foam core together and hopefully getting a layer of glass on each plane.

hustler 10-05-2012 08:50 AM

lol @ trailer park wing.

lightyear 10-05-2012 05:42 PM


Originally Posted by Leafy (Post 935985)
God I hit the $$$$ this is costing significantly more than I intended and taking way longer. I thought I'd have the wing sections done by now. NOPE I just got the 2nd plane foam core together. Tonight should consist of homework and getting the main plane foam core together and hopefully getting a layer of glass on each plane.

Got pics of progress, and how you are going about building it. The best way is to cut the wing out of a block of foam, laminate the wing then put the scrap foam bits back on making it a block again. Then infuse it.

Leafy 10-06-2012 01:26 PM

But how do I put the scrap from the sheet that these were cut out back on them?

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349440195

charlie_91 10-07-2012 06:39 PM

1 Attachment(s)
Custom made front splitter.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349649540

To work better with the lip and seal better i fiberglass in an aluminum angle infront of where the lip sits to divert air over instead of through the gap. Its also strong enough for me to stand on and bounce up and down :)

Testing it out on thursday at Queensland Raceway so hopefully i can notice a difference :D

njn63 10-07-2012 07:50 PM

What hood is that?

hustler 10-07-2012 08:23 PM


Originally Posted by charlie_91 (Post 936698)
Custom made front splitter.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349649540

To work better with the lip and seal better i fiberglass in an aluminum angle infront of where the lip sits to divert air over instead of through the gap. Its also strong enough for me to stand on and bounce up and down :)

Testing it out on thursday at Queensland Raceway so hopefully i can notice a difference :D

Nice work, dude.

charlie_91 10-07-2012 08:45 PM


Originally Posted by njn63 (Post 936735)
What hood is that?

Thats just a stock hood that i cut up :)


Originally Posted by hustler (Post 936752)
Nice work, dude.

Thanks mate

sixshooter 10-08-2012 07:11 AM


Originally Posted by charlie_91 (Post 936762)
Thats just a stock hood that i cut up :)

Seriously? You bastard!


I need better skills and a spare hood to practice on.

motormechanic 10-08-2012 05:53 PM


Originally Posted by charlie_91 (Post 936698)
Custom made front splitter.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349649540

To work better with the lip and seal better i fiberglass in an aluminum angle infront of where the lip sits to divert air over instead of through the gap. Its also strong enough for me to stand on and bounce up and down :)

Testing it out on thursday at Queensland Raceway so hopefully i can notice a difference :D

how's it mounted?

charlie_91 10-09-2012 02:02 AM


Originally Posted by motormechanic (Post 937073)
how's it mounted?

Two centre mounts that are bolted to the front of the subframe, two side mounts that bolt up to the chassis rail, and the two at the front

motormechanic 10-09-2012 11:21 AM

did you build the mounts yourself or where did you get them?

ZX-Tex 10-09-2012 10:28 PM

4 Attachment(s)
Great thread, again!

For the earlier question about who allows unlimited aerodynamic mods, the TTS,U,R classes in NASA are set up this way. There are some minor restrictions, like no movable surfaces are allowed (and they just added that for 2012. Too bad, because I was contemplating a poor man's DRS). Anyway, a rear diffuser, undertray and side skirts would be class legal for my car, and I am considering adding all three for next year's racing season (in that order).

DIY aero summary of what I have so far:
- 3/8" birch plywood splitter (for some reason 3/8" birch is hard to find here now). DIY fabricated mounts attached to the tow hook attachment points, and Lowe's Racing aluminum turnbuckles attached to holes in the stock bumper. I can stand on it, works great, and it definitely balances out the rear wing.
- 1/8" ABS front air dam. DIY brake duct flanges made from PVC plumbing parts at Lowe's Racing.
- Fully sealed front nose using coroplast. All air flow is forced through the radiator. The car does not overheat on the track in South Texas 100F heat (320 RWHP LS1).
- Oil cooler duct made from coroplast. This made a big difference with oil temperatures versus just having it in the same place with no ducting.
- Rear wing is a NASCAR COT wing. I love it. It is attached to the trunk with aluminum L-brackets and some APR uprights I had from my previous dual-element wing. Since I gutted most of the trunk frame, I reinforced the mounts underneath with form-fitting thermoset structurally anisotropic composite (chopped fiberglass Bondo).
- The fender flares are Autokonexion Version 1 units.
- Hood vents are a Carbontrix hood vent, and side vents are very inexpensive plastic units available at larger boating supply stores.
- No rear window in the hard top yet. I have been holding off to build a fastback type unit and will be totally stealing, er I mean building a homage tribute of lightyear's approach. Like with the ABS air dam, I had been brainstorming this sort of thing, and now that someone else has done it I can see that it looks pretty damn cool and, more importantly, effective for a track car. I need to get with it already and build one.

All of this was tested to 145+ mph (5 Hz GPS logged with Trackmaster) which is the highest speed I have reached so far at the end of the front straight at TWS. Point being, it is all sturdy and it all works.

Total spent, say ~$900 with most of that being the cost of the COT wing, fender flares, and Carbontrix hood vent (impulse buy).
Beating up on TT NARRA Vipers worth a lot more money than my little Miata, priceless.


The splitter with the main supports visible, and the front nose cut off to make way for the ABS air dam.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349836131


Closer view of the nose
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349836131


Sitting on the grid waiting for my TT session at the TWS NARRA race. Holy $^it they required a lot of sponsor stickers.
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349836131


Yeah, I just passed that Viper
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Z...%2520Miata.png


Gratuitous podium shot. Me in second place on the left. Incidentally, first place in the middle is Chris, also in a V8 Miata, very nicely built and tuned by Perryrace at miata.net. Chris broke the TWS NARRA TT-3 class lap record, and spanked a lot of very expensive Vipers in the process. It was a glorious weekend for Miatas, especially considering I was a riff-raff poor-man racer compared to the serious $$$ hardware most of the field showed up with.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-b...dium%25201.jpg


Video of my fast lap for the weekend. There were at least two more seconds in the car, but I had been struggling with suspension tuning issues which I figured out too late (to get in some faster lap times). Instructing, driving, and tuning/wrenching as a one-man operation makes for a busy weekend. Whatever, good enough for 2nd place and some free Hoosiers. Ignore the dash speedometer because it is not calibrated correctly.

What is the point of all this information? DIY Aero FTW!

exST165 10-09-2012 10:54 PM

You need to take this beast to the 2013 Ultimate Track Car Challenge!

Thomas

charlie_91 10-09-2012 11:31 PM

2 Attachment(s)

Originally Posted by motormechanic (Post 937339)
did you build the mounts yourself or where did you get them?

The centre mounts that go to the subframe are from Henry at KazeSpec Engineering. These are the prototypes as u can see i had to space them up to ensure it was flat. The mounts that he will be selling have already been modified so no spacing required. He also offers front mounts and side mounts together as a whole package.

heres a few pics as i was building it :)

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349839896

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349839896

FatKao 10-10-2012 11:06 PM

Anyone ever used a spoiler on a track Miata? My car is a dual purpose CSP AX and HDPE car, wouldn't mind doing the CSP allowed aero but there isn't much info on spoilers out there.

triple88a 10-11-2012 01:18 AM

No no one has ever used a spoiler on a track miata.

Leafy 10-11-2012 08:23 AM


Originally Posted by FatKao (Post 938105)
Anyone ever used a spoiler on a track Miata? My car is a dual purpose CSP AX and HDPE car, wouldn't mind doing the CSP allowed aero but there isn't much info on spoilers out there.

I feel like the drag would kill you. The sister car did a back to back run test of full CSP aero and aero removed with no front bumper (because the splitter is permanently attache to it). With aero removed there was noticeably less drag even at atuo-x speeds, but the car was significantly less stable at speed. CSP aero makes sense for CSP, it doesnt for anything else.

Scrappy Jack 10-11-2012 08:59 AM


Originally Posted by ZX-Tex (Post 937624)
What is the point of all this information? DIY Aero FTW!

Great pictures and general write-up.

tzdevill 10-11-2012 08:59 AM

We can use mine as a template if you want! I have extra of the same material also you would just need mounts and stuff which is not big deal.


Originally Posted by FatKao (Post 938105)
Anyone ever used a spoiler on a track Miata? My car is a dual purpose CSP AX and HDPE car, wouldn't mind doing the CSP allowed aero but there isn't much info on spoilers out there.


StarletRick 10-11-2012 09:01 AM


Originally Posted by triple88a (Post 938134)
No no one has ever used a spoiler on a track miata.

Just made me lol at work. well done.

Midtenn 10-11-2012 12:35 PM


Originally Posted by triple88a (Post 938134)
No no one has ever used a spoiler on a track miata.


I could be missing the sarcasm here, but I know Emilio has used one in the past. Also the member "the pass" has/had used one in the recent past. I don't think they were at the angle of a CSP auto-x car, but they were on the car.

Scrappy Jack 10-11-2012 01:36 PM


Originally Posted by Midtenn (Post 938250)
I could be missing the sarcasm here, but I know Emilio has used one in the past. Also the member "the pass" has/had used one in the recent past. I don't think they were at the angle of a CSP auto-x car, but they were on the car.

I think he was trying to be sarcastic and was assuming wing = spoiler.

Ski_Lover 10-11-2012 02:11 PM

5 Attachment(s)
A spoiler would work on the track, but the DP/CSP spoiler like on my car would be way too big for track speeds. Here's my AutoX DP car with latest areo mods:

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349979104

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349979104

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1349979104

PS. For the track I kept my stock deck, and will someday get a wing.

nitrodann 10-11-2012 07:21 PM


Originally Posted by Ski_Lover (Post 938288)

:drool:

Dam that looks tough.

Dann

jpreston 10-12-2012 12:03 AM


Originally Posted by FatKao (Post 938105)
Anyone ever used a spoiler on a track Miata? My car is a dual purpose CSP AX and HDPE car, wouldn't mind doing the CSP allowed aero but there isn't much info on spoilers out there.

I've been meaning to build one all year but never got time for it. A long, low angle splitter has potential to be awesome on a track miata. You could definitely rig up a mounting system to use the same spoiler at a really steep angle for autox and then lay it down for the track. Give this book a try if you want to get a good idea where to start... I found it to be a very good starting point for learning aero stuff.


ThePass 10-12-2012 02:35 AM


Originally Posted by FatKao (Post 938105)
Anyone ever used a spoiler on a track Miata? My car is a dual purpose CSP AX and HDPE car, wouldn't mind doing the CSP allowed aero but there isn't much info on spoilers out there.

If you mean a real spoiler and don't actually mean wing, you can see my spoiler in my sig. Currently it is ~10" long in the center and sits at ~40* angle. I am going to either trim it down to 8" or decrease the angle to ~30*, but I am undecided between which route to go.

But anyways, yes - it's been done ;) A wing is far better, we all know that - more downforce with a much lower drag cost, but I had alumalite sitting around, not a $700 wing, hence the spoiler. It does work. What I would like to do in the future when I do get a real wing is to do a spoiler like mine but smaller with less angle in conjunction with the wing.

If you have anywhere near stock-ish power levels, I would recommend doing a spoiler with a very adjustable angle - you're going to want it fairly steep for autocross, but you're going to want to drop that sucker down to near horizontal for the track. Close to horizontal, it doesn't function to create any "downforce" but it does offer improved tail aero by effectively extending the length of the tail of the car. The boys at 949 have used spoilers in this way with good results - mostly to improve fuel consumption in Endurance Racing - but that says a lot. If it helps the car use less fuel, then that means it is reducing the drag on the car. This would be the optimal way to use a spoiler for a low-hp miata. At any significant angle, the drag is going to hurt your straight-line speeds enough to negate any benefits of more grip in the corners.

Edit: and to throw in one more bit of info related to spoilers, it's important to understand why/how they function, because they don't do what most people assume they do. (And I have derived this just from gleaning info from as many sources as I can so please, if I am incorrect about any of this, someone chime in and let me know) Many assume that the spoiler is there to "catch" the air coming down over the rear of the car and that the force of the air hitting the angled spoiler pushes down on the spoiler, which is mounted to the trunk, and therefore "downforce" is created. This isn't very accurate. The better way to look at it is that the entire car is an airfoil of sorts, because with all things aero, the whole picture must be looked at to see how one piece of the puzzle benefits the package. For the same reason that race cars apply slick under-trays to speed up the air travelling under the car - since fast-moving air under the car and slower moving air over the car creates a pressure differential and pulls the car downwards, a spoiler helps to stall that air moving over the car - slowing down the air going over the car helps to increase that differential between top and bottom of the car - so it adds to the whole package of attempting to create fast air under the car and slower air on top. Obviously though, slowing the air on top costs drag, while speeding the air under the car eliminates drag, so in terms of what is a "better" thing to focus on, under-car aero is going to produce the best improvements with less downsides than over-car aero.

-Ryan

FatKao 10-12-2012 03:26 PM

Yep, talking about a true spoiler.

Sorry, lost track of this thread for a few days. What I was hoping to do would me make two spoilers that use the same attachments or some trick attachments that I could swap out to change the AOA(?) between track and AX fairly easily. I agree on all points about undercar aero and wings over spoilers, but those are the prices I pay to keep the same letters on the side of my car. The main goals here would be drag reduction rather than down force. One other limit is that I can't go past the bumper when viewed from above so I may be somewhat limited in how much benefit I can get from extending the bodywork.


For those that have run large front splitters do you think I'd have any chance of getting a balanced car with a CSP splitter and a low drag spoiler?

Here is what comprises a CSP legal splitter, it's a bit less functional that I'd imagine most here have built.


A spoiler/splitter may be added to the front of the car below the
bumper. It may not extend rearward beyond the front most part
of the front wheel well openings, and may not block normal grille
or other openings, or obstruct lights. Splitters may not protrude
beyond the bumper. Openings may not be used for the purpose
of ducting air to the radiator or oil cooler, but they may allow air
to flow through a permitted oil cooler provided no ducting is used.
The spoiler may not function as a wing.
Something tells me I'm going to be buying a spare bumper skin and trying some stuff out when I hit the track next year, worst case being swap an OEM skin on if I can't get it balanced.

Leafy 10-12-2012 03:31 PM

If you make the normal csp style air dam along with the splitter, a normal csp style spoiler in the high downforce config is pretty even. If you make the Davis style csp air dam then you will make more front downforce than a normal csp spoiler makes rear downforce. Davis splitter V1 made WAY too much front downforce, so we had to drill may big bleed holes in the air dam to tune it.

With a low drag spoiler, good luck.

Scrappy Jack 10-12-2012 03:43 PM

Not super helpful, but fun to read:

Brokecore Miata aero build and testing. As far as I know, Jerry never really took the car to any "serious" tracks - mostly just fast autocross/mini roadcourse stuff.

ThePass 10-12-2012 10:39 PM

FatKao -

I definitely think you can make a splitter that fits within those rules that will have a benefit. In this instance, the fact that OEM miata bumpers curve backwards from the centerline of the car down is good because that gives you something like 2"-3" that you can extend the splitter out from the bottom of the bumper before it goes beyond the furthest out portion of the bumper. Obviously, it's not as optimal as a bigger splitter - nothing built to conform to a set of rules is - but it should definitely help, and in your case since you can't do much for rear aero to balance out a splitter, an "optimal" splitter would be too much.

Your biggest restriction for the back is if you're not allowed to have the spoiler extend further back than the rearmost part of the car. On the up side again though, the trunk lid edge sits a couple inches forwards of the rear bumper edge when viewed from above, so you can still hang it off the trunk a bit and be within the rules. So much for a near-horizontal spoiler of any significant length though.

-Ryan

Ski_Lover 10-14-2012 01:10 AM

I had planed what Ryan talks about, going with a shorter version, more raked, for my Track day OEM deck, but the 949 Supermiata wing sure looks tasty
http://949racing.com/Supermiata-GTC-...a GTC-200 Wing

v01canic 10-15-2012 12:40 PM

11 Attachment(s)
What are your thoughts between these two splitters/airdams

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1350319223
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https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1350319223
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