This content is not included in
your SAE MOBILUS subscription, or you are not logged in.
The Aerodynamic Stability of a Le Mans Prototype Race Car Under Off-Design Pitch Conditions
Technical Paper
2000-01-0872
ISSN: 0148-7191, e-ISSN: 2688-3627
Annotation ability available
Sector:
Event:
SAE 2000 World Congress
Language:
English
Abstract
The current generation of sports racing cars such as those competing under the Le Mans “LM”P and “LM”GTP regulations are particularly sensitive to the pitch of the vehicle. This is a consequence of the low ground clearances that must be adopted to maximise the benefits that can be gained from ground effect and of the very large floor plan area of these cars. To achieve optimum cornering and straight line performance the suspension characteristics are often tuned to the aerodynamic forces in order to reduce the pitch and hence the drag of the vehicle at high speeds whilst retaining relatively high downforce when cornering.
A series of accidents at the 1999 Le Mans 24-hour race have highlighted the potential instability of these vehicles which resulted in the catastrophic ‘take-off’ of one of the “LM”GTP cars during the race and others during qualifying and the pre-race ‘warm-up’. The data presented here have been extracted from a detailed experimental study of a typical “LM”GTP car under design and off-design pitch conditions including extreme cases of nose-up pitching moment to assess the onset of instability i.e rotation leading to take-off. Additional data are presented to demonstrate the influence of possible regulation changes upon these parameters.
Recommended Content
| Technical Paper | Aerodynamics of Race Car Liftoff |
| Technical Paper | Sports Prototype Race Car Optimization |
| Technical Paper | The Mulsanne Straight at Le Mans, 1956-1969: Suitcases, Elevons and things that Go Bump in the Bodywork |
Authors
Citation
Dominy, R., Ryan, A., and Sims-Williams, D., "The Aerodynamic Stability of a Le Mans Prototype Race Car Under Off-Design Pitch Conditions," SAE Technical Paper 2000-01-0872, 2000, https://doi.org/10.4271/2000-01-0872.Also In
SAE 2000 Transactions Journal of Passenger Cars - Mechanical Systems
Number: V109-6; Published: 2001-09-15
Number: V109-6; Published: 2001-09-15
References
- Katz, J. Race Car Aerodynamics- Designing for Speed 0-8376-0142-8 1995
- 1998
- Dominy, R.G. Hodson, H.P. An Investigation of Factors Influencing the Calibration of 5-Hole Probes for 3-D Flow Measurements ASME Journal of Turbomachinery 115 513 518 1993
- Dominy, J.A. Dominy, R.G. Aerodynamic Influences on the Performance of the Grand Prix Racing Car Proc. IMechE Part D 198 1 7 1984
- Dominy, R.G. Ryan, A. Sims-Williams, D.B. The Influence of Slipstreaming upon Race Car Performance IMechE, Autotech 1999
- Wright, P. Cleared for take-off Racecar Engineering 9 7 16 18 1999
- Racecar Engineering 9 36 1999