i was woundering does the spoiler creates downforce @ 45+ miph? or its just for looks?
thanks

 

if it does create any downforce it will be a disadvantage to us since we are FWD. Now if we had something to create downforce on the front of our cars that would be great.

 

It's just for looks.

 

thanks for the replies...

 

I dont get why people say that downforce on the rear of a car is a bad thing for FWD cars. Its not like when you are going over 70 mph in your maxima you need downforce on the front tires to keep them from spinning when you accelerate, i mean come on our 190 hp and 205 lbs of torque can barely chirp second. I think any downforce anywhere on the car is a good thing when you are going fast. no matter if you are fwd, rwd, or awd. however i doubt it creates any significant downforce whatsoever.

 

yeah, but if you have the downforce on the rear and little downforce on the front especially on a FWD car, at high speeds wouldn't you experience alot of understeer since you have little grip on the front end compared to the rear if you are going around a slight bend or a sharper one?

 

I think what A32Matt was implying was that if you had a significant amount of downforce on the rear, it would raise the front a little bit. (like a wheelie) Which would be bad for a FWD car.

The reason spoilers were invented was for RWD cars. Since the engine was in the front along with most of the tranny weight, the rear was quite light in comparison therefore easy to lose traction on turns which is bad if those are the drive wheels. Spoilers create a downforce on the rear wheels helping RWD cars to stick to the turns and continue to accelerate longer.

Since our cars are FWD, there already is a lot of weight on the drive wheels and a spoiler isn't really needed for the drive wheels to hold their ground. A rear spoiler wouldn't hurt though as it would provide the same benefits as for a RWD, helping the light rear stick to the ground.

The stock spoiler on our Maxima and most cars is flat on top and underneath having absolutely no aerodynamic effect on the car. In order for a spoiler to do something it either has to be angled to some degree OR be curved upwards like an upside-down airplane wing.

There are spoilers for the front on FWD car. If you get a body kit or a lip on the front bumper, it may provide a very small downforce on the front just because it's closer to the ground and generally has a slight point to it. This force is generally minimal, if any, and again, usually just for looks but there are race body kits that do provide significant downforce on the nose, sides and rear of a car.

 

Sorry I couldn't find a more modern car as an example but anyway. You can see the rear spoiler is practically vertical on this Trans Am, giving great amounts of downforce to the rear wheels. And under the front bumper, just ahead of the front wheels, you can see the front spoiler that actually wraps out from underneath onto the front fenders giving downforce to the front wheels. These spoilers actually do something and are not just for aesthetic purposes. I'm sure there are body kits and certainly wings for modern cars that will actually do something other than look good.

 

Just as a point of interest. I once saw a documentary about the design of honda/acura NSX, in that case they used a high speed camera to show the side view of an aggressive launch. And from those high speed shots, you can clearly see the downward push on the vehicle caused by the spoiler. And also, I heard that with F1 cars. When they go fast, technically there is so much aerodynamic force that they can drive upside down on the ceiling of a tunnel and won't fall?

 

it's like in NASCAR, they can get penalized on some short tracks if their rear spoilers are at an angle greater than 55 deg. because if the downforce is greater, they are able to go faster which is an unfair advantage. if you look at their spoilers they are almost vertical too, like the Trans Am Igobuk has shown.

 

95% or spoilers you see are for looks, RWD or AWD stock spoilers may have purpose. they are 100% looks on a FWD car.

 

hmm interesting coments... i dunno guys i think it might provide some downforce.... but i could be wrong... look @ this link... it has that angle to it too...

4th Gen SE Spoiler

 

Get a couple of fat chicks to sit in the back, you'll get all the downforce you need.

 

wat about stillen lip?? or thats for sho too?

 

That's a good one

 

lol damn straight

 

So there IS more than one use for fat chicks huh?
And I thought they were just for those lonely days.
Oh...they also can cook.....