Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

I'm not real hip on the factory spoiler that can't decide if it wants to be a spoiler or not. I wouldn't mind adding one of these spoilers and disabling the OEM spoiler somehow.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

I think consideration must be made towards the type of adhesive used to secure this spoiler cap onto the spoiler, as you wouldn't want it coming off at high speed! I would have thought that it's gonna need more than just double sided tape.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

The 3M double sided tape is designed to hold trim pieces down on automotive applications. You can glue a piece (properly, 3M surface prep, etc) and then proceed to hang from the piece with all of your body weight and it wont come off.... Any other method of attachment would require the drilling of the spoiler, which would not be easily repairable after the fact. Plus I'm sure you are aware of how hard it is to get oem parts...

I held the gauge pods down on the dash of my 240 with the grey 3M tape, its so strong it pulled the material off of the dash frame

Its also used on our Z06 to hold the carbon fiber trim pieces on the car (rear wing, rear carbon lower valance, carbon fiber rocker panels)... 220+mph and they stay attached.

The 3M tape is a lot stronger than you think, when properly applied

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Infinite,

I got some real 3M tape with my mopar rear diffusers and that stuff seemed really strong! I then bought some off Ebay for other bits and bobs and it was nowhere near as strong. :(

I take it your 240 was a Nissan (Silvia) - I had the UK version 200sx turbo S14a - awesome car! :D

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

yea, the real stuff is super strong.
IIRC the grey is stronger than the black. they both use acrylic adhesives but the black is foam based.

I have an s13 coupe. Its not a silvia, as we got the ka24de and crappy pop ups. But I'm in the process of building a mosnter SR for it, 650rwhp on pump gas. PLus caging it, etc.. RHD conversion, silvia front end and what not

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

You can pull the fuse for the motor but the spoiler switch will blink once you hit 62mph and it wont stop until you cut off the car.

Or you could pull the spoiler assembly off and remove the motor and simply make brackets to hold the spoiler down but you'd need to figure out how to get around the ecu side of the spoiler, unless you simply pulled the switch off out of the dash and pulled the led out.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Plus, you lose function of your wiper blades. Not good.

Easiest way to disable the motor is to tie the limit-up switch with the ground. The car thinks the wing is always up, and won't ever bug you for it again.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Except on an 04. Removing the fuse does nothing else but cause the red light to blink on the switch.
It's so low on the dash, I never even notice it.
If it really bothers you, a 1/4" square of "silver duct tape" should solve the problem.;)

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Re: 3M Double sided tape

Aside from properly prepping the surfaces, another thing you should do to get the best bond is us 3M Adhesion Promoter (06396). It makes a BIG difference.

You should be able to find it anywhere you can buy the 3M double sided tape. If they won't sell you one or two individually (each is a little foil pack with one pad), stop by a local body shop and ask them to hook you up.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Was this your inspiration?
2005 Startech Chrysler Crossfire V8 6.1

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Yes. I always like the look of the startech spoiler so I wanted to make my own version

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Looks like you did a nice job.:)

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

In the shop manuals, Section 23, page 116, it says; the extended airfoil exerts 40 lbs of downward force at 80 MPH.

Information you just can't live without.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

So my questions would be:
Is 40 lbs of down force anything significant or meaningful?
Does it have some actual impact on the car?
How much additional down force, if any does the added spoiler add?
What impact on the car/performance would this additional down force have?

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

40lbs of additional downforce in a street car is huge.

Keeps the car stable at high speeds
And they list speed at 80, downforce increases exponentially with speed.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

All I know is the SRT spoiler added an immediate and noticeable amount of downforce. So significant, in fact, I can feel the difference at speeds as low as 70.

At speeds north of 130 (on Mexican roads) the car squats noticeably, confirmed by my buddy who was cruising alongside.

While the N/A spoiler stabilizes the rear at speed, the wing simply plants it. I have noticed a drop in mpg to the tune of 1-2mpg avg per tank since the spoiler install. This is consistent with research that +fireamx conducted a couple of years ago. He drove to the Dragon with the spoiler up, and drove back with it disabled (down). Gained roughly the same mpg as I lost by adding the bigger wing.

IIRC he averaged 30-31 mpg on the return trip, 29-30 on the trip there. I average 27-28 mpg.

The difference is that I have no "pucker factor" when I take that long sweeper on Mexico's 840 at 130mph. She simply squats, and goes. :cool:

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

I find it hard to believe you had a hard time doing this before the wale tail install. Additional downforce, absolutely, doing anything but giving you more drag, not likely until 150MPH+ IMHO.

I think the SRT wing on your car looks great, but I do not think the functional benefits are huge over your OEM spoiler in an NA, but I have been wrong before, thats for sure ;)

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

I'll simply say this: most people will agree that in order to truly give a fair and honest opinion, you must have experience in both areas. I do

Mine came from the factory with the flipper, as did every other N/A. I installed the wing for aesthetic reasons more than anything.

I've driven like a hellion both before and since the install. The car was MUCH more stable after the install, with the wing being the only change, all other areas remaining constant. So, gather what you wish from my report but I can feel the difference, both in drag and stability. There's really nothing to gain by BS-ing you about this, and I'm not claiming to have re-enacted the SLS tunnel video.

With the extra downforce AND lower center of gravity from the lowering springs, my car is rock-solid on up to the governor.

Thank God for nice Mexican highways.

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Tazz has the Startech wing on his XF too and he said it was a noticable difference, logically especially in fast cornors.

So it seems like the wing actually does something......

Re: New Spoiler Cap
 

Since HyprLtH20 wants to be in the business of aftermarket parts for our X-Fires, maybe he can take my design and turn it into a product. Performance wise it does absolutely nothing for the car except fill the holes on each side of the tail pipes. The bottom plate is parallel to the road and the verticals are just that vertical. For those who like the look, I have ordered some material to make a 3M stick on version so the bottom heat shields don't require removal. Screw backup will be included.

The fiberglass version on my car now has just come from a 130 mph drive in Mexico and showed no adverse effects on the cars stability. For those who will ask, the whole job from raw materials to finish and on car took 3 hours.

The 3M stick on version, should take a whole 10 minutes to install. Should the tape give way at 160 mph, the only thing behind you will be Camero's, Mustang GT's and Vette's, so who cares.