Quote:
Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses
Race cars and street cars are very different. The TRD Griffon car was BUILT to go around Tsukuba. Race cars are use flat bottoms for aero; however, I don't see a flat bottom working well with a daily driver that's sitting at lights and traffic. Why? Flat bottoms generally have issues with cooling that require smart engineering to fix. You introduce one variable, it changes another. @ Turn in Concepts can attest to this: they put a flat bottom belly pan on their race car several years ago and subsequently ran into trouble with transmission and diff overheating during races because these parts didn't get enough airflow presumably. A street car might not car get as hot, but it certainly has even less of a chance to have effective cooling.
As far as the diffuser goes, there's been talk of the stock muffler aiding in reducing lift at the rear (posters and I believe someone tracked down an official comment). I didn't get a chance to drive the car much before switching out the muffler for a different unit, but it seems to me that the rear of the car has become less stable at highway speeds. It could to winter tires and a bad headwind, but that's what I feel. I'd like to see some definitive results on this. |
I have not switched out my exhaust yet, I'm getting ready to... BUT, that part I put in bold, winter tires DEFINITELY affected the feel of my car on the highway even at speeds as low as 65-70 mph. The car feels less stable on the highway for sure with my winter tires and I put them on when it was absolutely bone stock so I know it's the tires and no other modification. There is a good chance you are feeling your winter tires more than the aero differences caused by swapping your OEM muffler.