RACE CAR AERODYNAMICS

By
Amar Jadhav
 OUTLINE
 15.1 Introduction
 15.2 Aerodynamic Design Modifications for Race Cars
 15.2.1 Rear Wing
 15.2.2 Front Wing
 15.2.3 Ground Effect

 15.3 Summary
 15.1 INTRODUCTION
 Race cars designed to achieve top speeds.
 Drag reduction was paramount.
 Maneuverability and stability, secondary.
 Fuel consumption, aesthetics not important.

 High top speeds +ve lift

 Inverted wings to generate – ve lift
 Opel’s RAK1, and RAK 2 first to deploy side wings

 High speeds achieved 1930-1960.

 Drag reduction wasn’t investigated
 Formula 1 pioneered drag reduction since then.
FIGURE 15.1 OPEL’S ROCKET POWERED RAK2
WITH LARGE SIDE WINGS
 Lift increases with angle of attack.
 Flow separation at large angles of attack drops lift

 Multi-dimensional flaps increase chamber of the airfoil

 Produces maximum lift coefficient
 In finite, 3-D wings, vortices appear at wing tips
 Vortices reduce wing efficiency and increase drag

 Lowest drag can be achieved with elliptical wings

 Wing dimensions are also important :

 Wings with greater surface produce more lift
 Wings with higher aspect ratio induce less air resistance
 15.2.1 REAR WING
 Jim Hall’s Chaparral 2E in 1966, was the first race car with a
rear wing.
 Wings were initially mounted high on the rear end to operate
in undisturbed flow.
 They are also mounted on pivots to change angle of attack.
 High mounted wings broke easily during races, and were
banned by the FIA.
 Ferrari, was the first to deploy rear wings on the Formula 1
circuit, during the Belgian Grand Prix in 1968.
 Modern rear wings produce 30-35% of the total down force on
the car.
 Typically two sets of airfoils are connected by wing endplates.
FIGURE 15.2 CHAPPARAL 2E AND FERRARI

Chapparal 2E Ferrari
FIGURE 15.3 MODERN REAR WINGS
1 : end plates
2, 3 : upper and lower
airfoils
4 : U shaped cutout
 Most of the down-force is provided by upper airfoil.
 Multiple high aspect ratio elements that prevent flow
separation are used.
 This maximizes –ve lift.
 Angle of attack is determined by racing authorities.
 Higher –ve lift is required for stability on tracks with
numerous turns.
 Hence, wing is set at higher angle of attack to achieve more
downforce.
 Lower angle of attack is deployed on tracks with fewer turns.

 Lower airfoil reduces total –ve lift produced by the

airfoil assembly.
 However, it creates a low pressure region just below the
wing.
 The end plates join the upper and lower wings.
 They also reduce the 3-D effect of the finite wing by
reducing air leakage around the tip.
 This also reduces formation of trailing vortices.
 The U shaped cutout also inhibits vortices by reducing
upflow from the rear wheels.
 15.2.2 FRONT WING
 Front wing produces 1/3rd of the –ve lift.
 Being upfront, it also guides the oncoming flow towards
the car and the rear.
 The front wing should reduce turbulence, as it reduces
efficiency of the rear wing.
 Lotus 49B deployed the first front wings in Formula 1
circuit.
 The Gurney flap in 1971 was the first well designed front
wing.
 This was succeeded by the elliptical wing in the same
year.
 By mounting the wing far ahead of the body, Ferrari
 FIGURE 15.4 MODERN FRONT WING

1&2 : Two element

airfoil
3 : Curved area under
the nose
4 : End plates
5 : Nose of the car
 Multi-element wings were deployed by McLaren in 1984.
 Angle of attack on the second wing was adjustable.
 This allowed the load on the front wing to be modified to balance
the car.
 In 1990 Tyrell raised the nose of its 019 to increase airflow
under the nose.
 This design avoids wing-body interaction.
 The front wing operates in undisturbed flow.
 This also increases the wing effective area.
 In 1998, width of the Formula 1 car was reduced.
 Consequently, front wings overlapped the front wheels.
 This created turbulence in front of the wheels.
 Aerodynamic efficiency of the wing decreased.
 Instead of reducing wing span, designers use wing tips to deflect
air flow around the wheels.
 15.2.3 GROUND EFFECT
 Lotus T78 and T79 were the first race cars to deploy the ground
effect on the Formula 1 circuit.
 The underbody was designed like an inverted wing.
 The nozzle shaped under part lowered the pressure under the
car, reducing lift.
 Side-pods were deployed to seal the gap between the bottom of
the side-pods and the ground.
 This produced 2-D flow and reduced the drag, while increasing
–ve lift.
 Skirts were also provided, which increased cornering speeds.
 However, due to safety reasons, they were banned after 1983.
FIGURE 15.5 LOTUS T79 AND UNDERBODY
DESIGN
 The car’s attitude relative to the ground determines the
flow volume underneath the vehicle.
 Very small ground clearance produces +ve lift.
 This is because there is no airflow between the ground and the
vehicle.
 Higher airflows produce under-body pressures, and hence
lower lift.
 Further increase in ground clearance lowers the flow
velocity, and increases the lift due to higher bottom
pressure.
 A diffuser at the rear can also increase –ve lift.
 The diffuser is designed to decelerate air flow from the
nozzle part without separating it from the tunnel walls.
 Flow separation would produce stalled conditions, which reduces
–ve lift and increases drag.
FIGURE 15.6 LIFT VS GROUND CLEARANCE

Diffuser on Ferrari F430

 Inverted wings installed close to the diffuser exit also lower
bottom pressure.
 The wing literally sucks air from the diffuser.
 Diffuser-wing combination allows higher air mass flow rate
through the diffuser.
 This produces higher –ve lift.
 Sharp edges on the vertical tunnel wall generate vortices
from entrained air.
 This confines air into the diffuser and reduces separation.
 Chapparal 2J in 1969 used a rear fan assembly to create a
downforce.
 Air was sucked by the fans under the vehicle, lowering the
pressure and hence lift.
 Such designs were, however, banned.
FIGURE 15.7 RACE CARS WITH REAR FANS

Chapparal 2J “Sucker” Brabham BT46 “Fan” Car

Car
 Barge boards were introduced in 1993 to smooth airflow
around the race car.
 Normally mounted between the front wheels and side
pods, they direct airflow into the radiator intakes.
 Bargeboards also produce clean air from the low section
of the front wing which is devoid of dirt and pebble.
 They also produce vortices, which seals the area between
the sidepods and the surface.
 They substitute skirts.
FIGURE 15.8 BARGEBOARDS ON MCLAREN
MP4/8
 15.3 SUMMARY
 Race cars are built for speed and
maneuverability.
 Speed and stability are achieved by lowering lift
and reducing drag.
 Common aerodynamic modifications are :
 Rear wings
 Front wings
 Ground effect
 Barge Boards