First time out with aero

[Sergmann]

I went to the dark side this winter and bolted a wing and splitter to my car. I have my first track day of the year this weekend and am searching for advice on how to initially setup the wing. For reference I went with the nine lives racing wing in 67" width with standard end plates and a home made splitter which protrudes 3.5" form the front bumper. At the moment I have the wing setup @ 0 degrees AOA. 275/35r18 NT-01 tires. My plan is to run the car this way and see how it feels. Adjust as necessary based on under/oversteer conditions. Does anyone have advice on this or any suggestions on initial setup? picture for reference.

[MD_M3]

Most people i know run 0 deg unless you have massive front aero

[eacmen]

Most people i know run 0 deg unless you have massive front aero

Concur. Most new wing owners try to max out the rear downforce, big mistake. Looks like the nine lives folks actually posted testing data which is nice of them. At 0 AOA you're still getting a good amount of DF. When I first started driving with a wing my top speed was affected about 5mph until you start to trust physics I would expect the same.

Is the front splitter chassis mounted? Hard to know how much front downforce your diy splitter will make without wind tunnel or ride height sensor telemetry.

Pay attention in your high speed braking zones, the wing should help stabilize the rear end of the car under heavy braking. And obviously fast sweeping turns you should pay close attention to the steering feel, if the steering feels light even if you arent understeering that is an indicator that you might need more front grip and to dial back the rear DF.

Change one thing at a time. I suffer myself from trying to fix multiple things at once, make one change between sessions to see how it feels. Hell you could even take the wing off and keep the uprights to see how much different the car feels with the wing between sessions.

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

I’m in the same situation... getting the BW front and rear kit installed and can’t wait to get back on track and start figuring out where the new limits are.


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[eacmen]

I’m in the same situation... getting the BW front and rear kit installed and can’t wait to get back on track and start figuring out where the new limits are.


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I have the BW front and rear aero pkg with their single exit diffuser.

I run the rear wing at 0 deg AOA.

[Sergmann]

update: I did just as described and set the wing at 0 degrees AOA. After two sessions I went to the next adjustment down but didn't bring an angle finder so I'm not sure where it is now. I finished the day with it set that way and turned my fastest lap of the day.. The car definitely feels far more stable especially in high speed braking zones. I beat my personal best lap time but 1.12 seconds and gained almost 3mph at the end of the front "straight" (Palmer Motorsports Park doesn't really have a straight). As for the splitter it is mounted with the buildjournal mounts but isn't the most rigid thing (alumacore) so I'm sure there is plenty of room for improvement. All in all I think the aero will improve the car but it was already faster than I was before I added this stuff.......

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

All in all I think the aero will improve the car but it was already faster than I was before I added this stuff.......

This resonates with me to the core... lol.

[bigjae46]

I have a 6" front splitter and some angle on the wing...I think it was about 8 degrees the last time I checked.

Front stiffness is important. Carbon does make a significant difference over plywood. I started with aluminum mounts and have switched to steel mounts from the front rebar attachment and gas shocks on the edge. Those mounts are steel plates with an adjustable steel eye which attaches to the splitter with clevis pins. I do need to switch to a lower rated shock so there is some upward give.

I made all of my own stuff. I can remove the splitter in about 5 minutes or less.

You won't immediately get much improvement with aero. I was under driving the car and still do. My tires went from lasting maybe 8 days to about 11-12 days. It took about a year (8 events) to get everything dialed in. Most of the adjustments have been to the mounting and reliability.

Here's a video of an F80 running me down in the straights and how much I gain in the turns...

[eacmen]

When you guys are measuring wing angle its relative to the rake of the car, right?

I usually put the angle finder on the frame of the car then measure the wing angle relative to that.

Doing my first auto-x this weekend. Going to add a ton of wing angle.

[bigjae46]

When you guys are measuring wing angle its relative to the rake of the car, right?

I usually put the angle finder on the frame of the car then measure the wing angle relative to that.

Doing my first auto-x this weekend. Going to add a ton of wing angle.

I just measure the wing. That’s all the matters


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[sc_tr0jan_m3]

like this...

[bigjae46]

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[eacmen]

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Nice setup.

What is the purpose of the gas shocks? They look like hood struts.

[AXDB]

I have the BW front and rear aero pkg with their single exit diffuser.

I run the rear wing at 0 deg AOA.

What mounts did you get? The new slotted ones?? I can’t stand making adjustments on the damn things. Mind sharing a pic of your locations on the uprights?

Also how are you efficiently measuring.

[eacmen]

What mounts did you get? The new slotted ones?? I can’t stand making adjustments on the damn things. Mind sharing a pic of your locations on the uprights?

Also how are you efficiently measuring.

High rise mounts from BW. Since I am doing auto-x this weekend I have it at 10 deg relative to the ground. At the highest setting on the wing.

I have the fan clutch tool that is basically flat tool steel that I tape to the wing with angle finder.

Normally I am at 2-3 deg angle relative to the ground.