The same principles that loft a 618-ton Airbus into the sky also keep a Formula 1 race car glued to the track. Downforce is lift inverted, the net result of the pressure differential between the air flowing over and under a front splitter, a front or rear wing, or an entire car body. In a modern Formula 1 car, the diffuser can contribute more than 1000 pounds of downforce. The problem is that this extra stick also raises aerodynamic drag, so engineers have to balance their need for cornering grip and stability against their car’s targeted maximum velocity. What makes a diffuser a preferred aerodynamic device is its efficiency. In terms of beneficial downforce versus parasitic drag, a diffuser is vastly superior to any freestanding wing … More
Archive for the ‘Sports Car’ Category
Watch a nail-biting first time in a Ford Mustang. Unedited and filmed with a professional driver at Ford’s Lommel Proving Ground, Belgium.
“The motorist is a source of revenue,” says Richard Diamond. And it’s become his life’s obsession to change that.
By day, Diamond is the managing editor at The Washington Times. But by night, he is a relentless advocate for drivers. It started when he was 16 and got a speeding ticket from a California cop hiding in a speed trap. What Diamond considered an unfair tax and nasty constraint on his newfound mobile freedom has grated on him for 26 years. So Diamond launched into years of research on police ticketing strategies … More