MYRX

I was at Road Atlanta today watching SCCA racing and TT. While walking around checking out the many corvette race cars, I noticed that about 1/3 of the cars with rear wings had the supports mounted to the frame, (SPO and T1 class), while the other 2/3's with the rear wing seemed to have the wing support sandwiched with a plate to the storage deck lid. No issues with either that I could see while watching them on the track.

So, is there a proper mounting method, or is it personal choice depending on your confidence level? Obviously, those that chose the method of sandwiching the wing-support to the deck lid had an easier task, thanthose that removed the rear section and welded the support to the frame and then had to do some cutting.

I am just curious, not mounting a wing anytime soon. Just something I noticed at the track today.

WNeal

No doubt the best method is to go to the frame for a couple of reasons:
1. Downforce directly to the frame and hence the wheels
2. Allows you to place the wing back a bit behind the car. My understanding is that the wing should actually be as far back as possible and not sit "over top" of the car.

However<
I have mine mounted to the deck with steel supports underneath. We also placed a camera on a buddy's car with the exact same mount, looking at the wing and the supports.
this was at VIR and he was easily doing 160 on the back stretch. NO movement of the wing and/or deflection of the deck surface. I am completely satisfied that my wing is very secure. Just from the difference in the handling, the force has been transmitted to the tires where it needs to be.
It was also exponentially easier to mount, not that it should really play a part in your decision.

As for performance, I can only speak to what I have on my car and it made a very definite difference for the better.



I guess you have to judge foryourself as to how much better the frame mount is compared to the deck mount.
In my limited experience, I would guess not a huge amount at all.


there will certainly be disagreements with this post but I have found that experimenting with things and doing things to your car the way you want just adds to the fun of the sport.

JMHO on the subject.

Woods

Some are indeeed bolted to just the decklid. However, some may only look to be only bolted to the deck lid but have the bracing to the frame under the trunk itself. The Fulcrumaero wing has the support structure under the trunk, close the trunk and secure the wing with bolts to the support structure.

TheSkunkWorks

Agree the best is to mount directly to the frame, and in any event very securely mounted (inspect frequently).

To elaborate on location, placing the wing too near above the rear deck will negate generation of negative ∆P beneath it. In the event sufficient volume cannot be had between the two, moving it rearward is a good alternative, but it still needs to be up in clean air to work properly.

WNeal, I'd suggest installing larger end fences which extend a tad further down and with the bottom edge running level to the ground would go a ways towards reducing "spill".

WNeal

Thanks for the advice,
I reversed them after this photo was taken and they now extend down much further. Looking forward to see if it makes a difference my next w/e on track


BTW,
I have also seen a huge difference in price. Carbon Fiber etc. Believe it or not, I paid $50.00 for this setup from Ebay motors.
even if it got broken in shipment, who cares.

I figured I couldn't lose and in the end, have seen a very good difference.

MYRX

Thanks for the responses. Like many discussions, more questions arise. What is the proper height from the deck? You mentioned "clean air". So where is the ideal location? From what I observed yesterday, most of the deck mounted wings came from one OEM supplier with braces that must have been included. The rear wings that were mounted to the frames, came from various suppiers and were installed at different heights, although not that much of a variance. One of the fastest cars in the Time Trials, C6Z06 had a frame mounted rear wing, that was much smaller in width that most, yet he was turning equally fast lap times.

Is installing a wing, a try and test until perfected operation? The wing subject interest me a great deal. I need to do a bit more research.

AU N EGL

Wings also need a front splitter to balance the car. Extractor hoods and side skirts also help.

John Shiels

WNeal from what I have seen or read the end plates I see are to small no matter what way you put them.

Wings higher have cleaner air and work better in clean air. Farther back the air is cleaner also. Mounting to the frame solid will prevent AOA or angle of attack from changing. You will not see the AOA changing as it doesn't have to flop around to change.

Some groups / race organization don't allow the wing past the rear of the car or over the roof top. To mount to the frame you need not slot the rear fascia but you can sandwich the rear fascia and have bolt holes and a cleaner look.

As said above a big wing needs a decent splitter. When it all works properly then you need a stiffer suspension.

Jason

Wing, splitter, hood, shocks, springs. Now test enough (need equal tires for data to be meaningful, only time tires are equal is when they are brand new) to try all the possible combinations on all the tracks you run (in all weather conditions). Wish I had a large fortune to turn into a small fortune racing.

WNeal

John,
Luckily I am just up the street from the shop that built my cage. I can easily rectify the end plate size by taking one of the current ones down to them. I give em 10 minutes and they can make some that are 2-3 times larger

Falcon

Here's a concept about wing plates that I found interesting:

John Shiels

Their is not tons of testing involved if you go with a known set up.

MYRX

So, where do I find the proper known set-up? Seeing so many versions, styles, etc.....whom do you trust? I am an old-aged rookie (56) trying to learn fast without a ton of trial and errors.

John Shiels

ACP makes stuff that has all worked well in World Challenge cars for years. corvetteracebodies.com

that is what I have.

Painrace

I have done a ton of wind tunnel testing and I can tell you anything that changes can make a lot of difference. Going with a company that has a lot of experience might be a little more costly initially but most likely their system will work. However, you must have a complete system. I have seen guys add wings and slow down a lot because thay add rear down force and add front lift. conversly, adding front down force can add rear lift. As an example, if you have a front splitter and hook up the air scoops to the brakes you will increase front down force a bit. The stock Z06 has over 500# of lift!

Jim

SouthernSon

I even saw a porshce at the track with vortex generators lined up on the backside of the roof. I wish I had taken a picture but no camera at the time. I have no idea the benefit derived from those on track.

davidfarmer

mounting to the decklid is fine UNTIL YOU HIT SOMETHING! DE/TT you are probably fine, if you are wheel-to-wheel in a vette (or other composite deck'd car) you better put something to the frame.

I have first hand experience here.....

Falcon

What keeps the deck mounted wings from experiencing lateral movement?

The uprights are levers and when moved laterally set up quite a bit of force that would work like moving a paperclip rapidly back and forth until it snaps. On most I've seen there is nothing to stiffen them diagonally. Seems that problem could be easily solved with a small guy wires running between the diagonal corners.

There is a popular video of a wing that let go at ~130 mph while entering the uphill esses at VIR. That was an ugly mess.

I was behind a couple of Porsches at VIR in March that had deck mounted wings with no diagonal support. The moved so much laterally I got scared they would break off. Wallyman even mentioned it to them when in the paddock, and they didn't seem too concerned.

Obviously, that attitude endangers a bunch of innocent racers following behind.