Roadster guys step inside

Dave Steltz · 10-13-2010, 01:51 PM

So there's been a couple of topics about areodynamics and the fact that roadsters are not, and although they are very smooth and round (and mine has the "areo" nose on it) for some reason they are kinda a brick...

So that being known, I saw on one of the comp roadsters ( I think it was the one Pete Biondo was driving) they have louvers on the back of the front fenders...any one have them and saw a difference with and without ? Being that I'm rebuilding mine I was thinking about adding them...

FYI it also had them on the rear fenders but they were covered up on the inside so I'm assuming that they were not usefull....

Tom Goldman · 10-13-2010, 05:25 PM

Dave , consider the Brogie Mark V body. ...It was probably the most "aero" of all '27 Fords.....It was pinched and had the fenders slotted for air escapement......When I mounted the Y2K Vette body on Iggy's Brogie , he picked up substantial MPH ,despite the addition of over 100# of weight.............There is also substantial drag on the back of the traditional roadster body due to the large area enclosed under the wing by the spill plates........Lots of full bodied cars are affected by wind . ..some ,like my Willys ,were almost as bad as a roadster. ......My '58 Vette is far from being a good aero car ,but it is barely affected by the wind.................Tom

Duane Dagostino · 10-13-2010, 08:12 PM

Same engine in a Stage 5 Brogie w/slots and Suncoast '27 w/ NACA ducts..same m.p.h...in a "63 vette roadster(now Szilagyi's) + 4-5 mph...'27's seem to pick up more from a tail wind then the vette...head wind affected the '27's more...also had a stage 1 Brogie with no holes or slots and you could watch those fenders shake...I would look at molding in a NACA dust...can't hurt...

Charlie Yannetti · 10-13-2010, 08:21 PM

Hey Dave.. funny you should bring this up.. I was recently in a conversation with Charlie and Fred Bauer at C&F Race Cars.. I was talking about adding power to my Aero (NOT) Roadster, but I was concerned about the effects it might have on the front fenders with increased MPH.. they said that they might add an addition mounting tab on each fender, but that when they added louvers to Vinny Barone's roadster, there was no problem.. Barone is going 172 to 173 in his car which is very much like yours.. I've watched it from th top end and it has no fender issues that I can see.. you might want to give them a call.. 845-635-9088.. tell them Charlie sent ya..

Dave Steltz · 10-13-2010, 09:37 PM

When I first raced my car, a friend stopped over after watching a run and said on the big end the fenders (the part right behind the wheel) were flapping like wings !!!! So I added a couple of braces and that stopped..and I dont have any issues with it being unstable, but I figured that the fenders are probably like two parachutes, catching all that wind....I think I'm gonna add them certainly cant hurt...

Tom Goldman · 10-13-2010, 10:00 PM

Since you will be starting with some fresh glass up front ,take a look at how the wheel openings are finished on some of the newer Vettes ,and all the F/C bodies. .....A little fiberglass lip at the edges of the openings makes a huge difference in helping direct the air around the back of the wheel openings. ......Tom

Adger Smith · 10-14-2010, 09:58 AM

I have a '27 roadster built by EasTexas Race cars and it has the louvers on the front fenders, in the panel along the top of the running boards & on the rear fenders. It also has a long belly pan. (no diaper needed). It is identical to the Roadster that Richie Stevens had some success with in Comp. Don't know how it works, havent run it yet. I had the Comp roadster that Vinny and Sal were World Champs with in the 90's. It had louvers all over it. It always drove well. I didn't notice any problems with wind. It crashed because of steering failure. Now the little wife isn't too happy about this new roadster. It needs a new home.. anyone interested?

sg5985 · 10-14-2010, 08:43 PM

My 27 roadster has 2 slots running full length down the back of the fender. It takes a lot of strength out of the fender, but the fenders don't seem to be affected at all by the wind. No shaking or vibration.

3258 · 10-26-2010, 10:37 AM

While you are on the topic of roadsters, what are the pro/cons of running a roadster (of any body style) vs a door car in S/G or just bracket racing? Anything from driving to working on them to transport etc?

Dave Steltz · 10-27-2010, 03:55 PM

I've had door cars, and now a roadster...

I dont think there is any advantage as far as storing, transporting, working on, stuff like that...its pretty much a tube door car with no roof..

But for racing, I like the "I can see" factor, kinda like a dragster, you have no blind spots, no windshield posts, etc, you can see your own fenders....

plus there always the bugs on my helmet !!!! ahhh fresh air....

10-13-2010, 01:51 PM	#1
Dave Steltz Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 323 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Roadster guys step inside So there's been a couple of topics about areodynamics and the fact that roadsters are not, and although they are very smooth and round (and mine has the "areo" nose on it) for some reason they are kinda a brick... So that being known, I saw on one of the comp roadsters ( I think it was the one Pete Biondo was driving) they have louvers on the back of the front fenders...any one have them and saw a difference with and without ? Being that I'm rebuilding mine I was thinking about adding them... FYI it also had them on the rear fenders but they were covered up on the inside so I'm assuming that they were not usefull.... __________________ Dave Steltz 135G SG/SP/SST BIAECH Racing Team

10-13-2010, 05:25 PM	#2
Tom Goldman VIP Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Allentown,PA Posts: 2,469 Likes: 875 Liked 842 Times in 233 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside Dave , consider the Brogie Mark V body. ...It was probably the most "aero" of all '27 Fords.....It was pinched and had the fenders slotted for air escapement......When I mounted the Y2K Vette body on Iggy's Brogie , he picked up substantial MPH ,despite the addition of over 100# of weight.............There is also substantial drag on the back of the traditional roadster body due to the large area enclosed under the wing by the spill plates........Lots of full bodied cars are affected by wind . ..some ,like my Willys ,were almost as bad as a roadster. ......My '58 Vette is far from being a good aero car ,but it is barely affected by the wind.................Tom __________________ Tom Goldman 1500 SG , 1506 STK

10-13-2010, 08:12 PM	#3
Duane Dagostino Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Fl. Posts: 74 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside Same engine in a Stage 5 Brogie w/slots and Suncoast '27 w/ NACA ducts..same m.p.h...in a "63 vette roadster(now Szilagyi's) + 4-5 mph...'27's seem to pick up more from a tail wind then the vette...head wind affected the '27's more...also had a stage 1 Brogie with no holes or slots and you could watch those fenders shake...I would look at molding in a NACA dust...can't hurt... __________________ Duane Dagostino 1821 S/C, S/G

10-13-2010, 08:21 PM	#4
Charlie Yannetti Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Alpine, NJ Posts: 566 Likes: 187 Liked 191 Times in 82 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside Hey Dave.. funny you should bring this up.. I was recently in a conversation with Charlie and Fred Bauer at C&F Race Cars.. I was talking about adding power to my Aero (NOT) Roadster, but I was concerned about the effects it might have on the front fenders with increased MPH.. they said that they might add an addition mounting tab on each fender, but that when they added louvers to Vinny Barone's roadster, there was no problem.. Barone is going 172 to 173 in his car which is very much like yours.. I've watched it from th top end and it has no fender issues that I can see.. you might want to give them a call.. 845-635-9088.. tell them Charlie sent ya..

10-13-2010, 09:37 PM	#5
Dave Steltz Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 323 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside When I first raced my car, a friend stopped over after watching a run and said on the big end the fenders (the part right behind the wheel) were flapping like wings !!!! So I added a couple of braces and that stopped..and I dont have any issues with it being unstable, but I figured that the fenders are probably like two parachutes, catching all that wind....I think I'm gonna add them certainly cant hurt... __________________ Dave Steltz 135G SG/SP/SST BIAECH Racing Team

10-13-2010, 10:00 PM	#6
Tom Goldman VIP Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Allentown,PA Posts: 2,469 Likes: 875 Liked 842 Times in 233 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside Since you will be starting with some fresh glass up front ,take a look at how the wheel openings are finished on some of the newer Vettes ,and all the F/C bodies. .....A little fiberglass lip at the edges of the openings makes a huge difference in helping direct the air around the back of the wheel openings. ......Tom __________________ Tom Goldman 1500 SG , 1506 STK

10-14-2010, 09:58 AM	#7
Adger Smith VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Texarkana Ark/TX Posts: 2,446 Likes: 575 Liked 880 Times in 311 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside I have a '27 roadster built by EasTexas Race cars and it has the louvers on the front fenders, in the panel along the top of the running boards & on the rear fenders. It also has a long belly pan. (no diaper needed). It is identical to the Roadster that Richie Stevens had some success with in Comp. Don't know how it works, havent run it yet. I had the Comp roadster that Vinny and Sal were World Champs with in the 90's. It had louvers all over it. It always drove well. I didn't notice any problems with wind. It crashed because of steering failure. Now the little wife isn't too happy about this new roadster. It needs a new home.. anyone interested? __________________ Adger Smith (Former SS)

10-14-2010, 08:43 PM	#8
sg5985 Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 16 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside My 27 roadster has 2 slots running full length down the back of the fender. It takes a lot of strength out of the fender, but the fenders don't seem to be affected at all by the wind. No shaking or vibration.

10-26-2010, 10:37 AM	#9
3258 Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 23 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside While you are on the topic of roadsters, what are the pro/cons of running a roadster (of any body style) vs a door car in S/G or just bracket racing? Anything from driving to working on them to transport etc?

10-27-2010, 03:55 PM	#10
Dave Steltz Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 323 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Roadster guys step inside I've had door cars, and now a roadster... I dont think there is any advantage as far as storing, transporting, working on, stuff like that...its pretty much a tube door car with no roof.. But for racing, I like the "I can see" factor, kinda like a dragster, you have no blind spots, no windshield posts, etc, you can see your own fenders.... plus there always the bugs on my helmet !!!! ahhh fresh air.... __________________ Dave Steltz 135G SG/SP/SST BIAECH Racing Team