TurboWagon
Member
- :
- 2008 Mazdaspeed3
I'm gonna jump on this sh*t-show before its too late and throw in my $0.02.
I am a big fan of aerodynamics on a car. I'll agree that my Protege does not need a huge DTM-style wing on the back with an adjustable front splitter and diffuser plates underneath. On the other hand, I will admit that once I hit 90-mph+ The steering becomes slightly twitchy, and the car DOES feel lighter. I put the 01+ front lip on the car and I noticed a small difference, but nothing to shout about. Mazda has already shown that they wind-tunnel test their cars through the MP3 and MSP. Both the MP3's and the MSP's wings generate positive aerodynamic effects and the front clip is designed to do the same.
Anyways, its a safe statement to make that most OEM wings are effective at speed. What speed you ask? Well any airfoil generates lift / downforce the instant air starts moving over it. This also causes drag. Cars like the MS3 DO need aerodynamic aids to keep it true on the highway. It's a 150+ mph car for goodness sake! Most airliners are up at that speed, so what do you think is keeping your car on the ground? Those APC wings you see can probably be set up to generate the proper amount of downforce (providing its adjustable) but the coefficient of drag they add would nullify the results. Again, OEM spoilers / wings are designed to be as efficient as possible.
Granted, physics has shown us that you don't need a wing / spoiler to keep you on the ground in your car anymore, but it is a tried and true, cheap version of doing it. I'm sure Mazda didn't want to design (or spend the money on) a full undertray with a front splitter / diffuser, NACA ducts, and rear diffuser, so they went with the cheaper, but still effective option.
And guys, instead of knocking people who are throwing an opinion out there, prove them wrong in a civil manner with numbers and knowledge and not profanity. Oh, and especially don't knock guys like Brian MP5T who have put tons of money, time, and emotion into their cars and know what they're talking about. You can learn something from, them...
-Jeff
Thank you Jeff, for giving one of the most educated responses thus far. This was what I was originally expecting the conversation to turn to and it went horribly wrong.
However, maybe some people should limit their arguments to private messages seeing as while Brian MP5T has contributed a good deal of information to the thread he has also had quite a bit of other nonsense along with Ryz, dkswim and myself to some degree.
I would just like this to stay on topic. Seeing as it hasn't been locked by moderators just yet, with more posts like FlyinHawaiian maybe we can keep it that way.