Fitted the DEL patent splitter today
Discussion
I've had pictures of his front air splitter from Del for ages, and actually had it made for ages too but with no idea how to control the downward movement.
Today I bit the bullet and finally got around to fitting his patent splitter so feel the need to acknowledge his idea
I've no idea if it does anything yet, the car is still on stands. Time will tell if it stops the rattling bonnet.
Cheers Del.
Today I bit the bullet and finally got around to fitting his patent splitter so feel the need to acknowledge his idea
I've no idea if it does anything yet, the car is still on stands. Time will tell if it stops the rattling bonnet.
Cheers Del.
I think you need skid blocks rather than a splitter 
Is that a cable control to lift or drop the splitter? If so where does the lift cable enter the car, and how and when do you operate it?
Could this be the Griffith equivalent of F1's F-duct
Still can't believe F1 drivers are covering/uncovering apertures with knees and hands under race conditions.
Could this be the Griffith equivalent of F1's F-duct
Still can't believe F1 drivers are covering/uncovering apertures with knees and hands under race conditions.
Nothing that clever I'm afraid Davep
The splitter is made of a piano hinge with a piece of ali attached to it. The hinge would allow the splitter to flip backwards without something restraining it.
The wire is the restraint and it is screwed both ends, at one end to a screw holding the hinge and at the other to a screw holding the mesh rad protector.
The reason its a wire is so that when the splitter is tucked up there is nothing to get caught as the wire will slide over anything.
I do like the idea of being able to operate it remotely
The splitter is made of a piano hinge with a piece of ali attached to it. The hinge would allow the splitter to flip backwards without something restraining it.
The wire is the restraint and it is screwed both ends, at one end to a screw holding the hinge and at the other to a screw holding the mesh rad protector.
The reason its a wire is so that when the splitter is tucked up there is nothing to get caught as the wire will slide over anything.
I do like the idea of being able to operate it remotely
Barreti said:
Nothing that clever I'm afraid Davep
The splitter is made of a piano hinge with a piece of ali attached to it. The hinge would allow the splitter to flip backwards without something restraining it.
The wire is the restraint and it is screwed both ends, at one end to a screw holding the hinge and at the other to a screw holding the mesh rad protector.
The reason its a wire is so that when the splitter is tucked up there is nothing to get caught as the wire will slide over anything.
I do like the idea of being able to operate it remotely
Good stuff. Sorry but I had an image of you driving along with the end of the cable held in your teeth and jerking your head backwards/forwards every time you encountered a speed bump, or when changing the angle of the splitter. The splitter is made of a piano hinge with a piece of ali attached to it. The hinge would allow the splitter to flip backwards without something restraining it.
The wire is the restraint and it is screwed both ends, at one end to a screw holding the hinge and at the other to a screw holding the mesh rad protector.
The reason its a wire is so that when the splitter is tucked up there is nothing to get caught as the wire will slide over anything.
I do like the idea of being able to operate it remotely
So on approaching a speed bump, for example, you align the car to ensure that the leading edge of the bump bears up against the wire and that raises the splitter, so as to clear the bump and prevent the splitter from being torn out. Wouldn't the lifter section of the wire be better placed in the centre of the splitter instead of offset to the near-side?
BTW if you intend driving on the Continent I believe splitter control devices are illegal in France, unless the driver is wearing a day-glo vest.
I've been thinking about a similar idea for a while.
My plan is to use a normal piano hinge like the DEL patent but in conjunction with one or more single action spring hinges rather than the cable idea.
http://www.sdslondon.co.uk/spring-hinges/single-ac...
As your road speed goes up the increased wind flow would draw the splitter down overcoming the resistance in the spring hinge.
Typically you can adjust the spring tension on this type of hinge so it should be possible to tune the splitter to lower fully at say 60mph.
A simple micro switch and bulb rig could be added to help tune the operation to road speed while getting the set-up to work correctly.
As soon as you slow to lower speeds the spring hinge will overcome the reduced wind flow and the splitter will retract back to its speed hump position.
To make the system work it would need to be set at rest with a small (say 1 cm) gap at the leading edge to catch the wind flow & start the process, but even with this it should still miss the speed humps at low speed.
Perhaps a rubber leading edge would be even better?
Once adjusted correctly the system has the potential to provide a "Best of Both Worlds" solution that is fully automatic & effectively controlled by road speed.
Constructive feedback welcomed.
My plan is to use a normal piano hinge like the DEL patent but in conjunction with one or more single action spring hinges rather than the cable idea.
http://www.sdslondon.co.uk/spring-hinges/single-ac...
As your road speed goes up the increased wind flow would draw the splitter down overcoming the resistance in the spring hinge.
Typically you can adjust the spring tension on this type of hinge so it should be possible to tune the splitter to lower fully at say 60mph.
A simple micro switch and bulb rig could be added to help tune the operation to road speed while getting the set-up to work correctly.
As soon as you slow to lower speeds the spring hinge will overcome the reduced wind flow and the splitter will retract back to its speed hump position.
To make the system work it would need to be set at rest with a small (say 1 cm) gap at the leading edge to catch the wind flow & start the process, but even with this it should still miss the speed humps at low speed.
Perhaps a rubber leading edge would be even better?
Once adjusted correctly the system has the potential to provide a "Best of Both Worlds" solution that is fully automatic & effectively controlled by road speed.
Constructive feedback welcomed.
Edited by Chimpaholic on Tuesday 1st June 16:17
I give it ten out of ten, although I am biased 
It's a reinforced industrial suction tube which I cut the end profile from my BMW E39 (thus saving millions of pounds in Teutonic R&D) into via a cardboard box template. I anchored/sealed it in place with a bit of carpet trim then sealed it to the body with black mastic.
It's exceptionally efficient, adding 10 degrees of cooling and stopping the bonnet lift completely. I've seen it in action on the MOT ramp when they use the slide jack and it just moves out the way then moves back.
It's a reinforced industrial suction tube which I cut the end profile from my BMW E39 (thus saving millions of pounds in Teutonic R&D) into via a cardboard box template. I anchored/sealed it in place with a bit of carpet trim then sealed it to the body with black mastic.
It's exceptionally efficient, adding 10 degrees of cooling and stopping the bonnet lift completely. I've seen it in action on the MOT ramp when they use the slide jack and it just moves out the way then moves back.
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