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That is probably almost as likely to pull off right there. The quarter panels are thinnnnnn. Pretty good TIG weld though, especially considering how this that panel is.
I don't really understand how this helps at all.. You have essentially moved the mounting surface from the trunk which was minimally reinforced to handle the increased pressure of downforce, to the quarter panel which is not designed at all to handle the pressures of downforce.. Please tell me that you have reinforced inside the quarter panel...
you guys clearly dont understand the rigidity that a 1/4 plate of steel of that length adds, especially to an area that has many complex bends right at the peak. the peak of that panel , the bend to create the trunk itself and the triangle above the tail light make that part reasonably strong. further more adding the plate bar vertically further strengthens the area like a steel I beam.
You comments are all like i took that bar and welded it to just a plan ole flat piece of sheet metal. I dont know how you all can honestly think that would rip off or is any weaker then the trunk skin that your putting a total of 2 bolts through. Just how much down force do you think a wing adds? 2000lbs? i can stand on that part of the car without it denting or deflecting the metal and then i make it stronger by welding on something creating another axis of strength to only improve it further. You guys think our cars are made of paper?
The only thing to test is a torsion test from drag when i get the uprights bolted on there. If i can yank on it with 0 deflection at the top of the upright, then a slow increase of pressure over time wont bother it one bit.
p.s. yes there is a dent in the metal by the weld. that is not a warp from welding. it happened a long time ago due to a very heavy item falling off a shelf.
Yes from drag. But have you ever tried to rip a piece of sheet metal? Specifically over a 12inch length at once with a 3/8 foot print?
The body would need to deform along the entire length of that plate all together to deflect and fatigue the metal.
Now that is difficult enough on a perfectly flat piece of sheet metal. Now weld that bar not only to a flat at that edge there the metal is then bent at 90 degrees(think its more like 110 in the body) Which in itself creates lateral strength. then take a second 90 only an inch below that.
So now you need to bend 12inches of sheet metal along that length all at once that has a 3/8 footprint due to a 1/4plate at once. Then add in the 90 degree bends you would have to bend through in that metal on that edge where the 1/4 plate is and then add more bends at the aft end around the tail light creating more rigidity.
The only place there is any danger of movement is at the forward end of that 1/4plate. It is welded directly on the 90 edge of the trunk and there fore it would need to deflect the entire trunk edge the two 90 degree bends in that area.
This part is not just welded onto the middle of the sheet metal it is welded to an area that has alot of bends that add rigidity along its length.
Like i said at the end of my last statement i am going to yank on the top of the wing upright and check for deflection, and i wont be surprised if there is none. I would also not be surprised to see far less deflection here then a regular trunk mounted wing.
I'm just curious as to why you decided to go about it this way? Instead of the traditional route of running longer uprights down to the trunk floor. I'm just trying to see the advantages. The only thing I can see as an advantage is you still have moderate trunk access without removing the rear wing. Because if I'm not mistaken the reasons for not doing the traditional chassis mount setup would be cost, fabrication(not everyone is ready to hack up the body to run the supports), and trunk accessibility.
Not here to thumb down an idea, just trying to rationalize it.
Easy to return to stock, just cut the bar off.
More rigidity and less deflection then trunk mounting.
I run a CF trunk and we all have seen the wing rip off the back of the cyber evo at speed. So now i can run my CF trunk and not worry about that.
Trunk access/space - Can still put a tire, jack, jack stands in there.
Not have to relocate my battery again from where i currently fabbed it in which is right on the frame rail below that point
It is not a daily driven car but it does get used alot so i dont want to start hacking my car or trunk apart to put uprights through the car and worry about water issues and such.
My friend did this same exact setup with his STI and Kognition wing. No problems what so ever thus far.
Gave it some really hard tugs on the top back of the upright (where i could get the most torque on the body) before i put the wing element on. not a single mm of flex. Due to the uprights being a V pattern, no side shift at all.
Still waiting on my new CF trunk so i put the OEM back on with the type C spoiler for the time being.
the point is i get 0 deflection. in the metal. When trunk mounted i can literally see the metal skin flex. So if this doenst flex and the trunk skin did, i would think this is stronger. (very unscientific of course)
Kendrick has been driving his STI like this for 2 years and not so much as even a crack in the paint.
I am far less concerned about the wing mounted here then my old wing mounted to a CF trunk.
There are really two different things to worry about here, strength and stiffness.
Fatigue in this case really isn't about deflection but strength. Your highest stress is likely to be right at the front where the welds come together. You have a HAZ right at that point now too. Cyclical forces will build up in that tiny point until a crack forms. Once the crack forms, it will cause a higher stress concentration that will lead to that crack propagating.
On the plus side though...it's steel. It won't fail catastrophically. You'll see those cracks forming (if they do at all) long before they reach a point where it will tear the sheetmetal to the point of failure.
For stiffness, I like it. Those bar setups down to the chassis are more about stiffness then strength and you are exactly right, all those bends will provide a decently high amount of stiffness. For the aero load it's likely to generate, I bet it is perfectly sufficient to get the job done as well as a bar setup down to the frame rails.
Sure, a dedicated bar setup would be stronger and stiffer...but it's also heavier and more complicated.
Unless there is more not in the pics.
