Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

I'm the one selling the grand espace (see ads) and I thought I better provide the proof that I really am building a race project - so here it is

Basically its an S3 hardtop with an ally floor and the front and the back sections are 1 piece.
There's a lot of metalwork involved but the cage triangulates the whole set up so it should be very stiff.

2L BDA engine 5 speed ZF box, Sierra diff, dual wishbone etc etc. I'll probably run around 10" and 11" slicks like the previous owner but havent sorted them yet.

I'm just about to start riveting the floor which will be a big step forward from all of the mock up work Ive been doing for the last few months (to check everything fits).

With a big push now, I might just be out next year - here's hoping

Gavin

what a great project --true race car engineering ---ed .

Very nice Gav, more pics please.

Doug.

Obviously never been near a wind tunnel.

Basic laws of Physics, Mr Bond.

Gav really like the front splitter -I thought of one for the front of my car for the street [kind of 'boy racer' ]--but are you supposed to be on the green part of the track ?? I found the little furry creatures just hate that not to criticize but might there be too much wing on the rear giving some serious under steer by loading the rear tires too much ?? the formula 2000 cars here use a wing about half that for a 1200 pound car -if your in the 1400 pound area it may be a detriment to handling -- there is also a big drag factor there ------ed

Ed you're right it should be on the dark stuff but its the best photo I have of the car in action.

Aerodynamics? wind tunnel? you're right - the car hasn't seen anything like that although in discusion with the previous owner who now runs the Cummings car (in a Donnington GT type spec) he said that the car sticks so well that fast corners can be frightning because it just sticks all the way through. he was running 11" rears and 10" fronts on very hard springs.

I've just resolved the rear suspension travel problem that I gave myself - when the metalwork was done, I used a 12" Koni race damper with 3 1/2" travel. The suspension isn't geared and because I want to be able to run is hillclimbs, the travel wont be enough. Decided to run the front really stiff (450 to 500lb) and the rear soft (300 - 350 lb) with long travel.

As to wings - I need to comply with a height limit that is quite onerous so it will be quite close to the boot line. I'm not certain what to run. I do have a carbon Honda F1 wing which weighs next to nothing and without the second plane looks about right but I think I'll run without first and work up to it.

The air dam is not pretty at the moment. I am just about to start work on that end. I have to fit the engine and box to make sure the top pulley clears the bodywork then sort out the shape.

I'll dig out some more photos and post them.

As an aside, how do I link a photo to my details (author in the top lh corner) - I wanted to post a photo of my Sprint negotiating the semi circle at Prescott.

Thanks
Gavin

gav wrote:As an aside, how do I link a photo to my details (author in the top lh corner) - I wanted to post a photo of my Sprint negotiating the semi circle at Prescott.Gavin

If you mean add an avatar then:
User control panel....Profile.....Edit avatar .....browse.......Then upload your pic from your picture folder.

I always get a bit excited when I see pictures of "modsports" elans.
I missed out on seeing them live when they were racing in GB.
Is a new historic race series running or being planned for "modsports"?

Cheers
John

I was serious about the front splitter I really like it and it should work fine -----I experimented with side winglets in plywood but they just looked good and were not functional at daily street speeds -----keep up the good work ---- In the FV BRD body development days we used wool tufts about 4 or 5 inches long taped to the body and aimed large fans at the car in the shop to see the turbulence patterns and air flow patterns we also drove the car wetted down on dusty back roads keeping a keen eye out for Officer Bob and photographed the car in the rain to see the air patterns on wet race weekends . On dry race weekends we put drops of oil on the car before a session and read them when the car came in to visualize laminar flow . [much like reading chicken entails ] very VooDOO like and much to the amusement of some competitors , developing pure race cars is best fun you can have after the obvious ---ed

Ed

I agree - the sooner I can get out there the better. My problem is young children and funding - usual story I guess

Great ideas for areo testing - they are definitely worth a go.

Crude i realise but the photo below shows the basic nose section which i now need to develop. The splitter i have weighs a ton and I need to make a lighter version but it is good for mocking up if nothing else.

As the exhaust runs through the passenger side, I aim to flat bottom with a diffuser at the rear to meet up with the bottom of the boot floor.

I'll have a go at digging out some more photos over the next few days.

All the best
Gavin

ps thanks for the info on the avatar - lets see if it works...

oops

More information and pictures: http://www.imps4ever.info/tech/windtunnel/index.html and http://www.carbonweezel.co.uk/testing.html

This method is far better than drops of oil or water...
You won't need a windtunnel for testing, an airfield and calm conditions are quite perfect.

For the underbody lining I would use a 6 or 8mm sandwich foam with one or two layers of glass laminated with epoxy on each side. This would be stiff enough and absolute lightweight.


Your car reminds me of a project I did for a customer, several years ago:

More pictures of this project can be found here (Sorry, all descriptions are in german).

dietmar

dietmar

Thanks for the links - they are really helpful. And for the suggestion for the splitter make up.

I wish I could afford a carbon shell. As it is, I will start with a heavy ish centre section until I can afford to have it moulded and for a new centre to be made lighter. I will have a light nose and tail because I will have moulds for them.

As an aside, can I use a mould made of grp for Carbon or does it need to be strengthened?

Thanks again
Gavin

Remember the splitter will lead a hard.life when you go off track so you. Need something sturdy that won't fold up or distort .ed

gav wrote:I wish I could afford a carbon shell. As it is, I will start with a heavy ish centre section until I can afford to have it moulded and for a new centre to be made lighter. I will have a light nose and tail because I will have moulds for them.

A lightweight grp body will do a proper job. Carbon is much more expensive but the advantage in weight isn't that much compared to a part made of epoxy and cloth.
For example think of a bonnet made of steel, the same bonnet with comparable strength made of grp (polyester, chopped strand mat) is about half the weight. Going to epoxy/cloth you will get about 1/3 weight of the original bonnet. A carbonfiber part will weight one-fifth of the steel counterpart.

As an aside, can I use a mould made of grp for Carbon or does it need to be strengthened?

Of course you can, but it is always good to reinforce a mould to get it more rigid. Just think the mould was bended while laminating and you will need to deform the carbon to mount it, it will act like a spring and possibly damage the mounting points over time.

@ twincamman: I would prefer to to the mounting of the splitter as some kind of a rated break point. If you hit a curb or get of the track it's better loosing the splitter, than having a smashed one hanging under your car.

dietmar