Number Plate Vs Airflow

[Johnny]

Hey blokes,

this is a little thing ive noticed just recently, would the number plate of a car (front bar) affect performance; response/temps etc

I had a chance to experience this just a few days ago when i changed my plates:

-When i bought the car, i had GARGYA on the front and didnt notice any issues etc etc.....

-Changed to GTR-13 which is quite a bit smaller and thus i didnt require to fit spacers and angle changes so the plate fits more aerodynamically.

Long story short, my car felt instantly more responsive and my oil temps/water temps went down about 2degrees; same as my knocks on full throttle (from 28ish down to 17now)

Believing it was simply a fluke, i tried my car on a hot day (37degrees) and the same result, normally my knocks would be about the 28-30mark on WOT, now only 21

Conclusion: the theory is all there; more air, less drag = better cooling which is great

-Johnny

[Swiper the Fox]

PROTIP: Left side gives better flow than right.

I'm starting to like where this thread is going...

i have a sticker made up with the right grade reflective material and the correct font for the numbers and letters. Its displayed on the passenger side of the front bar...i too noticed a difference.

Edited January 14, 2009 by DiRTgarage

[R34_Wong]

Mines left mounted! yay!

[bozodos]

HAHA f**k me, didn't think anyone actually did that to Skylines!

You sir, are a prince among men!

p.s you'd never catch me doing this lol

[Kinks]

I care --><-- this much.

All it means is that with a side mounted number plate you can afford to drive a little bit slower so everyone can see how siiiik you are, for the same air/water/knock/wank level

[Swiper the Fox]

I care --><-- this much.

All it means is that with a side mounted number plate you can afford to drive a little bit slower so everyone can see how siiiik you are, for the same air/water/knock/wank level

its done purely for purpose not for looks. My car is a racecar and is only road registered as a requirement for the class of racing i compete in. A numberplate that is restricting airflow at over 230klm/h is something that could mean the difference between winning and loosing a race as they are timed in 1000th's of seconds. It flying off at those speeds is something i dont want either.

grow up

Edited January 14, 2009 by DiRTgarage

[R31Nismoid]

^ i doubt it.

I probably should slimline, considering my entire plate virtually covers (mounts are right near the top)

Suppose there is a gain there, although i wouldn't expect anything to wet my panties for a street car as my temps are already 69-70 degree's in peak hour for water temp which is already decent enough

[HEKT1K]

grow up

lol nothing says GTFO like a pic of your own car in semi-liftoff

[dan_the_man]

no more whoring the thread please.

[bozodos]

All trolling aside, if you guys want to read a serious discussion on the reletive merits of mounting one's number plate to the side I can refer you to http://www.calaisturbo.com.au/showthread.p...+plate+mounting , it has the CT think tank weighing up advantages to disadvantages, something I'm sure the OP as well as the admins can appreciate.

It is my sincere hope that this post does not serve to inflame the vengeful wrath of the moderators.

[Guilt-Toy]

i chopped the whole front bar and had the WHOLE r32 gtr cooler exposed on my datsun 180b fj20 and it made a massive difference as well.

I could not believe it.

[sly32]

i had 1 of those sticker number plates on the front lip of my skyline, i got done once, drove past a cop and he sent me a fine in the mail, think it was $75, then down the coast i got pulled over, and he fined me $185 or something maybe more cant really remember and that was for "fake number plate" even though i had the correct numbers and letters in correct order, then he ripped the number plate off my car and gave me a $75 fine for no front number plate, i felt like shooting him the asshole,

more OT: i can see how in drag you would want your numberplate to be stuck on, every little bit counts as u said,

JV

[bozodos]

A drag car and a car with no front bar with the cooler totally exposed are completely different to a street car here. I've got slimline NSW plates on mine, if it weren't dark, I could measure exactly how far the plate is hanging down beneath the mounting place (GT-R front bumper mind you), but I doubt it would be in excess of 3cm.

The one and only difference I've seen to water temps is the amount of coolant actually in there! (assuming that the cooling system is working properly.)

This is from my experiences with street cars, not drag, drift or track cars.

[R31Nismoid]

^^ ducting and lining perhaps would work nicer that as the air is forced to go through rather than deviate... i could see benefits there for sure

[Bond]

I have a fairly small front mount and it sits higher off the ground than a lot of ones you see around and on the dyno it was still getting some heat soak at low power levels. I trimmed the bar a bit and moved the plate up so the bolts go through the centre of it rather than on top (exposed an area half the size of the number plate) and it now doesnt get the same heat soak.

[leeboi33]

fair enough it helps but only a little. driving the streets the heat wont be that bad , but if your pedantic why not run no front bar at all ( joking ) . and can i also mention goddam thats alot of records under that car musta taken ages to get it looking right

[Johnny]

Never argue with a man who has a 9second gtr which launches more like an f15 fighter jet

amen brother!!!

[Swiper the Fox]

fair enough it helps but only a little. driving the streets the heat wont be that bad , but if your pedantic why not run no front bar at all ( joking ) . and can i also mention goddam thats alot of records under that car musta taken ages to get it looking right

they are all broken records...i.e.the theme was record breaking GTR...there was 400 of them!

[Bakes]

Have you seen the number plates in Japan? They are huge.

Slim line NSW plate mounted in original position doesnt block off that much.

[Guilt-Toy]

edit.. Thread Nazi is lurking....