Added an air dam to the '99 Metro

[Xist]

Nice! I should have installed brackets or something--I doubt that mine stays straight!

[BabyDiesel]

Originally Posted by Xist

Nice! I should have installed brackets or something--I doubt that mine stays straight!

If it is lawn edging, then it is a big NOPE! I could tell that the front of my air dam was getting pushed back while cruising. When I would arrive at my destination, the air dam would be shaped like this!

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^if this makes the slightest sense^

[Daox]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Mr Daox: can you do me a flavour and measure the overall width of your fancy new air dam?

And by that you mean the length of the lawn edging?

[MetroMPG]

Well, sure. The long measurement from wheel arch to wheel arch. I want to measure the edging I have left over from the Civic. And the Flea is currently sitting in Montreal, so I can't check that.

[MetroMPG]

5 inches of clearance on this one, vs. 6 on yours. I guess the edging is taller.

I'll dab black paint on the screw heads (stainless).

[ThePrudentNinja]

I wonder if the angle of the "air dam" would make any difference. I've noticed almost all air dams seem to be 90 degrees. I wonder how a 45 degree angle (in either direction) would perform.

See crude attached image. I spent a total of about thirty seconds on the image lol.

[Xist]

Metro, is that your first air dam on Blackfly?

The, I imagine that if you angle the air dam as you mention, first of all, it wold be difficult to shape, but I believe that even if it were 40% longer, so that it extended as low as a vertical one, it would just have air squeezing past it, instead of pushing it away from the dirty undercarriage.

[Daox]

Looks great Darin! How did you attach yours?

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by ThePrudentNinja

I wonder if the angle of the "air dam" would make any difference. I've noticed almost all air dams seem to be 90 degrees. I wonder how a 45 degree angle (in either direction) would perform.

Amateur ramblings:

1) Each would affect front end lift differently. The sticky-outy one (top) would probably reduce front lift more than the bottom one.

2) Those variations might raise or lower the stagnation point compared to a flat dam. I'm under the impression that the lower the stagnation point, the better. (My guess: the top, sticky-outy version is probably best.)

3) You'd hit the top one on far more grade changes, bumps & curbs than the bottom one (assuming same ground clearance).

4) As mentioned, a flat dam is far easier to DIY -- the front-to-side transition is a simple curve.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by Daox

Looks great Darin! How did you attach yours?

I didn't use brackets, because I wanted to support the shape of the dam over a wider area. So I cut a 1x3 strip of wood to match the curve of the bumper cover and then attached it to the bottom of the bumper. Then I screwed the edging into the 1x3. I'll post more details & pics when I update my air dam thread.

UPDATED: See post #89 in my original air dam thread for details.

Metro, is that your first air dam on Blackfly?

Nope! First was a cardboard prototype made years ago that was only on the car for a short while. Check earlier in this thread - I posted a pic & link.

If your question is meant to imply I don't get things done in a timely matter... I'll answer that later!