What is it on the top of the roof that looks like an upstanding flange? It is located at the outboard edge, near the top of the window and runs the length of the roof. There is one on each side of the car. NASCAR
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04-23-05, 09:30 PM
bedstor
I think it's the roof flaps safety devices you need the info for? I found a well explained section towards the foot of this page ,together with a clear photo

04-23-05, 10:00 PM
edgeview
Bedstor, the flange that I am referring to runs front to rear at the outboard edge of the roof; windshield to back-lite. Great site anyway, thanks.

ev

04-25-05, 02:12 PM
edgeview
The flange looks like a weld flange, but I have never seen an outboard standing weld flange. Makes sense for a race car. Maybe areo dynamic?

04-26-05, 02:40 PM
Kendor
Those are side air dams. They help keep the car straight on the straights and help it turn in the turns. Usually there is one each on both the inboard and outboard sides of the roof, with the outboard dam being a little taller.

04-26-05, 08:18 PM
edgeview
Thanks Kendor, that would have been my guess.

05-01-05, 07:06 PM
Walks On Water
OK, here it goes right from a car design engineer.

bedstor, that was a very good site.

Those little ridges have very little to do with racing the car whether on the straight or in a turn.

What it does do is help keep the car on the ground during a spin. Engineers do everything possible to make cars aerodynamic within the rules of the sanctioning body. This keeps coefficient of drag as low as possible to increase speed.

This design also creates down force to keep the car on the track without adding weight. This design works great in a forward direction but in a spin, the race car can lift off. I think we have all seen that.

When the car starts in to a spin, those little ridges create vortexes of air or turbulence on the roof to apply down force as the car side slides through the air stream. I think you have also seen the “Trap Door” on the roof. This allows the air in the cockpit to dump out so it does not create lift and creates drag to push the car down if it should start going down the track backwards.

While these cars all have roll cages to protect drivers, I think you have seen how violent these spinouts can get even with all those safety features.

Here is a fun fact. Indy Cars or Champ Cars, what ever they are calling them these days, have so much “Down Force” that under the right conditions at race speeds, can travel upside down in a tunnel driving on the roof of the tunnel. In simple terms, if the car weights 2000 pounds, there can be as much as 3000 pounds of down force. More then the car weights. Whether it’s NASCAR or INDY Car, those wing and wicker bill settings are closely guarded secrets.

05-02-05, 11:15 PM
edgeview
Kendor, do you understand what Walks On Water is saying? I have read his post several times and am not sure what he is saying.

Walks On Water, you are talking about the roof flaps that give down pressure when going in reverse?

edge

05-03-05, 09:22 AM
Walks On Water
I am sorry for the confussion. It is hard for me to put in words what was told to me.

Let me just say that those little fins running from front to back cause turbulance when the car starts to get sideways creating down force that is lost helping to keep the car down durring the side slide. As the car gets around the roof vents open to break the wing effect the roof has even more. Both, together, help keep the car from taking off like an airplane. Even with all this, at 200+ mph, under the right circumstances, you still can get LIFT OFF if air gets under the car.

I am only repeating what was told to me. I have been trying to get him to come on and write it himself.

05-03-05, 01:35 PM
bedstor
This page explains the aerodynamic setup of the modern Formula 1 car
The same info is valid for any similar bodied car such as the Cart series
The Rear diffuser (the tail wing) does much of the straight line stability job as those gutters plus the "barge boards"(skirts) which are mounted under the side pods.
More info here

05-03-05, 02:26 PM
edgeview
Thanks Water, I'm just slow. bedstor, great sites, thanks.

edge

This message has been edited. Last edited by: DorianGreyed,