240z aero analysis and testing
 

Spotted this in a thread at CR. Guys did a bunch of aero work and testing on some 240z's. Not directly applicable obviously but some of the results were interesting. It's a couple years old and may be a repost but here's the thread...

Windtunnel Test Data - HybridZ

On the testing data chart the most startling test results were with the blue car with hood and fender vents. Blocking off the vents resulted in 100lbs more front end lift and another 8hp to maintain 120mph. The vents aren't huge but really improve air flow at high speeds by not trapping air in the engine compartment. That car needs a lot more rear wing to balance out the splitter in front.

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Anyway. All you SoCal track rats need to find a tunnel, get together and do some of this same testing on the Miata!

I've spent the morning looking for wind tunnels. In for group buy.

a lot cheaper alternative would be to use a scaled down version of a wind tunnel with a good model maker to build the car and some optional equipment to test out. hoods, wings and such. it sounds funny but i bet it would be cheaper than a real wind tunnel and hourly rate. the mini wind tunnels (like most real ones) are used to test new aviation designs for small planes, exec. jets and experimentals. although if this guy tested an old 240sx, maybe it's doable now. where did this guy go? how much did it cost?

You get what you pay for, though. The interaction between the roofline and wings on our cars is quite complex - the entire goal of a wind tunnel is to get real life data. If computer modeling were accurate enough, wind tunnels wouldn't exist - but NASCAR uses them, aviation uses them, etc.

Better yet, I don't know if they exist, would be a wind tunnel with a rolling road. That way the interaction of turbulence from spinning wheels in the wheel well could be calculated also.

would rather do real car testing but i'm afraid to find out what the cost would be. although, after seeing those old ass 240's in there, it doesn't seem like it could have been too crazy expensive. i know there's alot of wind tunnels on the east coast because of nascar teams and stuff. check this bad mofo evo out.

YouTube - CYBER EVO - TSUKUBA TIME ATTACK 2008 - (1 OF 2)