Rad airflow thoughts
Discussion
When I was laying under the car doing the chassis this winter, in one of my butterfly mind wandering moments I was poking around the chicken wire in the hole under the rad - not the hole behind the number plate, the one underneath - and it strikes me as odd that air gets into the rad at all through here. Especially considering there is sometimes a splitter just in front of it.
It this hole there to get airflow to the rad, or is it there to let pressure from the front number plate hole escape?
I was wondering why the chickenwire isn't a flat ali plate with louvres - of the type seen on an e-type bonnet - to scoop air up and possibly provide the same airflow characteristics that the splitter produces.
It this hole there to get airflow to the rad, or is it there to let pressure from the front number plate hole escape?
I was wondering why the chickenwire isn't a flat ali plate with louvres - of the type seen on an e-type bonnet - to scoop air up and possibly provide the same airflow characteristics that the splitter produces.
Edited by Barreti on Monday 30th March 11:54
On the precat the hole behind the number plate is much smaller. Also the spoiler, when fitted, should be behind the large hole underneath - not in front. The spoiler serves two purposes:
1) to channel air up into the hole (which then goes through the rad)
2) to raise the air pressure in front of the spoiler which also enhances air flow through the hole.
So I'm 99% sure the hole is for air in - not air out. Most of the air flow should come out over the bonnet, but I guess a lot goes in to the engine bay and back out around the bellhousing due to lower pressure under the car (when moving).
1) to channel air up into the hole (which then goes through the rad)
2) to raise the air pressure in front of the spoiler which also enhances air flow through the hole.
So I'm 99% sure the hole is for air in - not air out. Most of the air flow should come out over the bonnet, but I guess a lot goes in to the engine bay and back out around the bellhousing due to lower pressure under the car (when moving).
Are you thinking of the ram air thingy that CliveF produced LG?
I thought of that at first then realised it was for induction.
If I could find something ready made to have a play with I'd give it a go Matt. Just need to find some ali plate with louvres.
I thought of that at first then realised it was for induction.
If I could find something ready made to have a play with I'd give it a go Matt. Just need to find some ali plate with louvres.
Edited by Barreti on Monday 30th March 12:50
griffter said:
On the precat the hole behind the number plate is much smaller. Also the spoiler, when fitted, should be behind the large hole underneath - not in front. The spoiler serves two purposes:
1) to channel air up into the hole (which then goes through the rad)
2) to raise the air pressure in front of the spoiler which also enhances air flow through the hole.
So I'm 99% sure the hole is for air in - not air out. Most of the air flow should come out over the bonnet, but I guess a lot goes in to the engine bay and back out around the bellhousing due to lower pressure under the car (when moving).
Although mine is a pre-cat I've got a 500 front end so the number plate hole size isn't an issue. It just struck me as odd that we have this dirty great hole under the rad at an angle which isn't conducive to scooping air up, so I wondered what it was there to do.1) to channel air up into the hole (which then goes through the rad)
2) to raise the air pressure in front of the spoiler which also enhances air flow through the hole.
So I'm 99% sure the hole is for air in - not air out. Most of the air flow should come out over the bonnet, but I guess a lot goes in to the engine bay and back out around the bellhousing due to lower pressure under the car (when moving).
All the pictures I've seen of spoilers have been in front of the opening. What you say makes sense but I've never seen it.
Probably helpful with a precat front end but not so sure on a 500. More likely they didn't want to change the mould too much so left the hole. Could be used to direct cold air to the engine bay but still nowhere for it to escape (unless the bonnet has been modded, in which case unlikely to be needed.
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