APEowner
Well-known member
Re: My car is on Top Gear this week (kind of)
Just so Jack doesn't have to brag on himself -> Big Willow in 1:26.141
Just so Jack doesn't have to brag on himself -> Big Willow in 1:26.141
Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT The 12-Gauge Garage
- Thread starter Jack Olsen
- Start date
Workspaces sized between 265 and 485 squarefeet.
jayz66ragtop
Well-known member
Re: My car is on Top Gear this week (kind of)
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Dial it back a little. I was talking about the Camaro. I'm well aware of 1. Willow Springs, I use to live about five miles from it and have driven on it at speed and 2. Jack's car.
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TRWham
Well-known member
Re: My car is on Top Gear this week (kind of)
One of my old race cars was a VW GTI that had been used by VWoA in a national commercial. We bought it from them for $1. Oddly, it had been used to represent a Golf GT, which was new at the time, so the trim had been changed. We had to change it all back to satisfy SCCA despite the only difference being color.
One of my old race cars was a VW GTI that had been used by VWoA in a national commercial. We bought it from them for $1. Oddly, it had been used to represent a Golf GT, which was new at the time, so the trim had been changed. We had to change it all back to satisfy SCCA despite the only difference being color.
OP
Re: My car is on Top Gear this week (kind of)
Here's my second dose of fame for the week, being lightly mocked by Adam Carolla and company on his CarCast podcast.
"Find that guy."
Here's my second dose of fame for the week, being lightly mocked by Adam Carolla and company on his CarCast podcast.
"Find that guy."
Last edited:
Iron-Iceberg
Well-known member
Re: My car is on Top Gear this week (kind of)
Thought that was you when I heard the podcast. Haha. I’m surprised you haven’t run into Adam before. He has a couple pretty cool cars
he races.
Thought that was you when I heard the podcast. Haha. I’m surprised you haven’t run into Adam before. He has a couple pretty cool cars
he races.kjdhawkhill
Well-known member
Re: My car is on Top Gear this week (kind of)
“Lightly mocked.” [emoji317] I can’t imagine Corolla performing anything any more friendly than that.
I’ve never listened to his podcast before, and have no additional reason to now, but I would imagine he’s really just expressing his exasperation with your intimate knowledge of your home track.
Anytime I ride mountain bike behind someone on a new-to-me trail I find it hard to believe how some people have some sections so well memorized. I get exasperated.
Also exhausted, but that’s a lack of dedication to fitness and form.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Here's my second dose of fame for the week, being lightly mocked by Adam Carolla and company on his CarCast podcast.
"Find that guy."
“Lightly mocked.” [emoji317] I can’t imagine Corolla performing anything any more friendly than that.
I’ve never listened to his podcast before, and have no additional reason to now, but I would imagine he’s really just expressing his exasperation with your intimate knowledge of your home track.
Anytime I ride mountain bike behind someone on a new-to-me trail I find it hard to believe how some people have some sections so well memorized. I get exasperated.
Also exhausted, but that’s a lack of dedication to fitness and form.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
OP
Wait, now I see that I ended the clip too early. They went on to play quite a bit of my Willow Springs guide. For what it's worth, here's the longer version of my (sort of) appearance on CarCast with Adam Carolla:
Ole Slewfoot
Well-known member
Maybe those guys need their eyes checked, it sounds like most of their trouble comes back to being unable to see landmarks
markviii
Well-known member
Hi "Mr Personality" (they were definitely off the mark with that comment!),
That video commentary by Adam Carolla and company is sooo bad. It doesn't make me want to listen to anything they have to say. Maybe they're not as bad as that all the time, but ...
Chris
That video commentary by Adam Carolla and company is sooo bad. It doesn't make me want to listen to anything they have to say. Maybe they're not as bad as that all the time, but ...
Chris
langss
Well-known member
Jack: Having watched all your video's, but never having actually driven the track, I would have to say I my self might not be able to follow all your "Landmarks", but having watched the "Video" even in fun, I think its kind of poor taste to PoPo something that works for you. Its been some time now but I made so many trips from the SFV to Los Osos that I could tell where I was and what time it was without actually looking at a clock or a road sign/mile marker/call box. So I can fully appreciate the fact that with all you have going on at speed, you have managed to pick out items that are in your vision path, process them and link them to a specific action. I hope to meet you at a drivers meeting and just be lucky enough to have not gotten in your way as you were going by.
OP
Carolla was at a car show with me this weekend, although I didn't see him.
What I did see were so many great air-cooled Porsches that my brain kind of boiled over. I knew it would be overwhelming going in, so I made myself a quick iron-on t-shirt.
Here's a link to a gallery of other photos from the show by the same photographer.
https://goo.gl/hXaLjf
What I did see were so many great air-cooled Porsches that my brain kind of boiled over. I knew it would be overwhelming going in, so I made myself a quick iron-on t-shirt.
Here's a link to a gallery of other photos from the show by the same photographer.
https://goo.gl/hXaLjf
gasgas17
Well-known member
There are so many cool Porsche's there!
horizontallyopposed
Well-known member
Carolla was at a car show with me this weekend, although I didn't see him.
What I did see were so many great air-cooled Porsches that my brain kind of boiled over. I knew it would be overwhelming going in, so I made myself a quick iron-on t-shirt.
Here's a link to a gallery of other photos from the show by the same photographer.
https://goo.gl/hXaLjf
It was cool to run into you on Sunday Jack and have a quick chat while enjoying some shade (and catching flack from the security guard for sitting on a pile of lumber). So many unbelievably cool Porsches.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
OP
My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
The video site Petrolicious contacted me a few weeks ago and said they wanted to do a video about my garage, which I was happy about. But they wanted to find out if there was anything I was currently working on that they could shoot to show me actually doing something in the place. Well, the little shop recently saw a Miata engine swap and a few small projects for my kids' school and my Jeep and Mercedes -- but the Porsche has been reliably reliable for so long that I feel like I've got to knock on some wood before I type another sentence.
(There -- did it.)
But there was one thing. I bolt on goofy aero pieces for track days. I put on a big rear wing and also a blunt front end with a front splitter. It's easy to put the wing on before I head out for a track day, but I can't do that for the low front splitter, which is just too low for urban driving, and the pieces take up a LOT of room in the car for my drive to the track. A passenger riding with that stuff is just about out of the question. And I've had some ideas about how I might be able to make some slight improvements in the front end design while also making the thing more compact.
Plus, it bottoms out sometimes at very high speed bumps on the track itself, and has been sharpened to a ragged knife's edge in front -- which means it's about time to make a new one even if I can't make it more compact.
Here's what it looks like when it's all put on the car. Not pretty -- but pretty effective:
So I told Petrolicious I would be making some ugly aero stuff.
Anyone curious about the function of a splitter? As the car speeds forward, air hits the front end. Some goes above the car, some goes below, and a lot shoots to either side as it wraps around the car. In doing so, it piles up like plowed snow, and a splitter does two things with this high-pressure air. Most basically, it 'splits' the airflow so some goes above the hood (and to the sides) and a separate segment goes under the chassis. But the high pressure air being compressed by the speeding car also puts downward pressure on the splitter's flat surface, which pushes the nose of the car down, creating relatively penalty-free downforce.
If you have an overhang from the car up above the splitter, then that high pressure air is also pushing up on that piece of the car, so a flat nose is preferable to one that leads up above -- which would happen if I simply bolted a piece of plywood to the underside of my bumper.
In any case, here's the stuff I've needed to fit in my car for the drive to the track. It's broken into a left-side and right-side piece because otherwise it wouldn't fit anywhere. But it's still big and frustrating stuff.
My first idea was that the vertical wall part of the design didn't need to be permanently attached to the horizontal part. The three-dimensionality of those two pieces being mated together was what made the thing so space-filling. So I used some rivet-type nuts to make it so I could just screw the vertical piece on after I bolted on the horizontal piece. A bonus was that I could now get a much clearer view of the bolts for the horizontal piece as they mated up with the inset nuts in the underside of my front bumper.
Here's just the horizontal piece, which is now much easier to bolt on:
I also added a vertical piece at the far ends of the splitter. Because a lot of the airflow is rushing sideways as it moves to the sides of the car, a vertical wall where it's unloading at the sides allows even more high-pressure air to be held up on those corners, for a little bit more downforce without the drag penalty of canards.
Here's the new two-piece setup all on the car for a test fitting:
I cut the aluminum up for the Petrolicious cameras and did some test fitting. Then I was able to test fitting it all inside the car. The good news was that the front vertical pieces now fit inside the trunk -- even with all of the stuff I normally carry up there for track days.
I also re-did my bolt-on rear diffuser. It puts two air guides down under the rear of the car and feeds high-pressure air into an expanding piece just behind my muffler where the air pressure allegedly lowers and ***** the car downward. Here's what it looks like when it's on the car:
Previously, the side pieces were connected to the horizontal top piece rigidly. Now I used piano hinges, which meant the whole package could also fold flat and fit inside the trunk.
Boom. Now that piece also fit inside the trunk.
Here's what I already carry in the car for a track day:
Here are the front verticals and redesigned diffuser packed in there:
The horizontal front splitter pieces were still too big for the trunk. But they could either ride on the passenger seat or (with a little fiddling) fit in the back seat area around the cage.
Front seat stowed:
Or in back:
The video site Petrolicious contacted me a few weeks ago and said they wanted to do a video about my garage, which I was happy about. But they wanted to find out if there was anything I was currently working on that they could shoot to show me actually doing something in the place. Well, the little shop recently saw a Miata engine swap and a few small projects for my kids' school and my Jeep and Mercedes -- but the Porsche has been reliably reliable for so long that I feel like I've got to knock on some wood before I type another sentence.
(There -- did it.)
But there was one thing. I bolt on goofy aero pieces for track days. I put on a big rear wing and also a blunt front end with a front splitter. It's easy to put the wing on before I head out for a track day, but I can't do that for the low front splitter, which is just too low for urban driving, and the pieces take up a LOT of room in the car for my drive to the track. A passenger riding with that stuff is just about out of the question. And I've had some ideas about how I might be able to make some slight improvements in the front end design while also making the thing more compact.
Plus, it bottoms out sometimes at very high speed bumps on the track itself, and has been sharpened to a ragged knife's edge in front -- which means it's about time to make a new one even if I can't make it more compact.
Here's what it looks like when it's all put on the car. Not pretty -- but pretty effective:
So I told Petrolicious I would be making some ugly aero stuff.
Anyone curious about the function of a splitter? As the car speeds forward, air hits the front end. Some goes above the car, some goes below, and a lot shoots to either side as it wraps around the car. In doing so, it piles up like plowed snow, and a splitter does two things with this high-pressure air. Most basically, it 'splits' the airflow so some goes above the hood (and to the sides) and a separate segment goes under the chassis. But the high pressure air being compressed by the speeding car also puts downward pressure on the splitter's flat surface, which pushes the nose of the car down, creating relatively penalty-free downforce.
If you have an overhang from the car up above the splitter, then that high pressure air is also pushing up on that piece of the car, so a flat nose is preferable to one that leads up above -- which would happen if I simply bolted a piece of plywood to the underside of my bumper.
In any case, here's the stuff I've needed to fit in my car for the drive to the track. It's broken into a left-side and right-side piece because otherwise it wouldn't fit anywhere. But it's still big and frustrating stuff.
My first idea was that the vertical wall part of the design didn't need to be permanently attached to the horizontal part. The three-dimensionality of those two pieces being mated together was what made the thing so space-filling. So I used some rivet-type nuts to make it so I could just screw the vertical piece on after I bolted on the horizontal piece. A bonus was that I could now get a much clearer view of the bolts for the horizontal piece as they mated up with the inset nuts in the underside of my front bumper.
Here's just the horizontal piece, which is now much easier to bolt on:
I also added a vertical piece at the far ends of the splitter. Because a lot of the airflow is rushing sideways as it moves to the sides of the car, a vertical wall where it's unloading at the sides allows even more high-pressure air to be held up on those corners, for a little bit more downforce without the drag penalty of canards.
Here's the new two-piece setup all on the car for a test fitting:
I cut the aluminum up for the Petrolicious cameras and did some test fitting. Then I was able to test fitting it all inside the car. The good news was that the front vertical pieces now fit inside the trunk -- even with all of the stuff I normally carry up there for track days.
I also re-did my bolt-on rear diffuser. It puts two air guides down under the rear of the car and feeds high-pressure air into an expanding piece just behind my muffler where the air pressure allegedly lowers and ***** the car downward. Here's what it looks like when it's on the car:
Previously, the side pieces were connected to the horizontal top piece rigidly. Now I used piano hinges, which meant the whole package could also fold flat and fit inside the trunk.
Boom. Now that piece also fit inside the trunk.
Here's what I already carry in the car for a track day:
Here are the front verticals and redesigned diffuser packed in there:
The horizontal front splitter pieces were still too big for the trunk. But they could either ride on the passenger seat or (with a little fiddling) fit in the back seat area around the cage.
Front seat stowed:
Or in back:
OP
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
But last night I looked at my left-over piano hinge from the rear diffuser and got another idea. I cut the front splitter pieces in two, front to rear, and then hinged them. Now they could be tucked into the front footwell, each folded in half.
Here's the hinge:
Here's what it looks like in place:
Easily fits in the front seat footwell:
No, wait, I did a little puzzle-playing and learned they could now fit inside the trunk as well.
All in, and the trunk still closes easily:
My goal was achieved. I could now drive to the track with a completely empty passenger seat and all my bolt-on stuff stowed inside the trunk. I'm going to test the new pieces at the track next week, and then (possibly) have Petrolicious shoot the stuff in use at Willow Springs next month.
What can you take away from this set of pictures and text? Probably nothing. The number of guys devoted to bolt-on aero pieces like mine are pretty small. It might be just me. But I enjoyed the process enough that I thought I'd post it here.
Thanks for reading -- and how 'bout those stone chips?
But last night I looked at my left-over piano hinge from the rear diffuser and got another idea. I cut the front splitter pieces in two, front to rear, and then hinged them. Now they could be tucked into the front footwell, each folded in half.
Here's the hinge:
Here's what it looks like in place:
Easily fits in the front seat footwell:
No, wait, I did a little puzzle-playing and learned they could now fit inside the trunk as well.
All in, and the trunk still closes easily:
My goal was achieved. I could now drive to the track with a completely empty passenger seat and all my bolt-on stuff stowed inside the trunk. I'm going to test the new pieces at the track next week, and then (possibly) have Petrolicious shoot the stuff in use at Willow Springs next month.
What can you take away from this set of pictures and text? Probably nothing. The number of guys devoted to bolt-on aero pieces like mine are pretty small. It might be just me. But I enjoyed the process enough that I thought I'd post it here.
Thanks for reading -- and how 'bout those stone chips?
Last edited:
alwaysFlOoReD
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Thanks, good read. It's always interesting to see others solutions, even if they don't apply to me.
Thanks, good read. It's always interesting to see others solutions, even if they don't apply to me.
LS6 Tommy
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Jack, your resourcefulness and KISS design savvy never fail to impress me. Excellent solution!
Tommy
Jack, your resourcefulness and KISS design savvy never fail to impress me. Excellent solution!
Tommy
4xdog
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Interesting post, and clever thinking, Jack. Who knows what ideas it will give people to start folding things we think need to be rigid.
It will be most interesting to see how the new designs hold up to stresses on track. Keep us updated.
Interesting post, and clever thinking, Jack. Who knows what ideas it will give people to start folding things we think need to be rigid.
It will be most interesting to see how the new designs hold up to stresses on track. Keep us updated.
Joe Reed
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
You know you're going to draw a crowd at the track as you load all that stuff back into the car
Reminds me of a 7-day trip my wife and I took several years ago in a '95 Miata. We spent a few days in Gatlinburg, then on to Atlanta to visit friends. In addition to all our luggage for the trip, cooler, etc., I was also delivering 4 stained glass window panels that I had made for our friends.
When we were checking out of the hotel in Gatlinburg, I rolled the loaded luggage cart up to the Miata and it looked impossible that all that stuff could possibly fit into the car. After a bit of time carefully fitting everything into every nook and cranny in the trunk, behind the seats and on to the package shelf it all fit - barely.
That's when I heard applause....a group of people on a balcony above me gave a standing ovation
You know you're going to draw a crowd at the track as you load all that stuff back into the car
Reminds me of a 7-day trip my wife and I took several years ago in a '95 Miata. We spent a few days in Gatlinburg, then on to Atlanta to visit friends. In addition to all our luggage for the trip, cooler, etc., I was also delivering 4 stained glass window panels that I had made for our friends.
When we were checking out of the hotel in Gatlinburg, I rolled the loaded luggage cart up to the Miata and it looked impossible that all that stuff could possibly fit into the car. After a bit of time carefully fitting everything into every nook and cranny in the trunk, behind the seats and on to the package shelf it all fit - barely.
That's when I heard applause....a group of people on a balcony above me gave a standing ovation
EOC_Jason
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Very cool stuff. Always enjoy reading your posts about your 911 and the track.
Very cool stuff. Always enjoy reading your posts about your 911 and the track.
langss
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Nice job. I hope it meets or exceeds your expectations.
Nice job. I hope it meets or exceeds your expectations.
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Speaking of trailers....put that thing ON a trailer and bring it over here and we'll go out to Inde and drive!
https://www.indemotorsports.com/
Speaking of trailers....put that thing ON a trailer and bring it over here and we'll go out to Inde and drive!
https://www.indemotorsports.com/
1/2 Cup
Member Emeritus
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Jack Olsen top job.
Jack Olsen top job.
MVLUV
Active member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Always enjoy reading your posts Jack. I see your stone chips as an important part of the cars charm.
Evidence it is a well used and developed tool.
Always enjoy reading your posts Jack. I see your stone chips as an important part of the cars charm.
Evidence it is a well used and developed tool.
stonesg
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Beautiful job Jack.... But I'm cringing..... The Fates..... They don't care about no stinking wood knock.
:/
Beautiful job Jack.... But I'm cringing..... The Fates..... They don't care about no stinking wood knock.
:/
58Yeoman
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Very cool.
Very cool.
Makoto
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Dude, I'm such a massive fan of what you've done with your 911. You and Singer are huge inspirations for me.
Dude, I'm such a massive fan of what you've done with your 911. You and Singer are huge inspirations for me.
Thirdyfivepickup
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
I take away two things...
#1 I applaud you for actually DRIVING your car to the track.
#2 I need breakfast because the bag that has the JACO logo looked a lot like TACO to me.
I take away two things...
#1 I applaud you for actually DRIVING your car to the track.
#2 I need breakfast because the bag that has the JACO logo looked a lot like TACO to me.
EarlyBroncoGuy
King Of The World
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2013
- Messages
- 923
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
I remember packing everything for a week long vacation for my wife and I into our '85 Toyota MR2...that took some creativity. With the front trunk, rear trunk, and doors open and stuff all over the ground it looked as if the car had gently exploded.
I remember packing everything for a week long vacation for my wife and I into our '85 Toyota MR2...that took some creativity. With the front trunk, rear trunk, and doors open and stuff all over the ground it looked as if the car had gently exploded.
lml999
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Yes...there are some pretty cool trailers on the market for carrying 4 race wheels and a cooler. OP could probably build one from spare parts sitting around.
I've seen commercial hitches for later model P-cars; I assume something could be made up for the OPs!
Yes...there are some pretty cool trailers on the market for carrying 4 race wheels and a cooler. OP could probably build one from spare parts sitting around.
I've seen commercial hitches for later model P-cars; I assume something could be made up for the OPs!
teamextreme
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Nicely done. My only comment; it's a frunk, not a trunk! Coming from a fellow owner of a vehicle with a frunk, though not a P-car.
Nicely done. My only comment; it's a frunk, not a trunk!
Coming from a fellow owner of a vehicle with a frunk, though not a P-car.Ipassgas
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
I want to say, I like the stone chips. At least on your car. On mine . . . not so much.
I want to say, I like the stone chips. At least on your car. On mine . . . not so much.
bczygan
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
A Harbor Freight jump pack???
Jack!
Bill
A Harbor Freight jump pack???
Jack!
Bill
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Well, seeing how close the seat is, I'd guess you're about 5'9".
Honestly though, it's great to see another car guy working on his stuff and looking outside the box, by trial and error.
Great to see another Jack Olsen thread.
What can you take away from this set of pictures and text? Probably nothing. The number of guys devoted to bolt-on aero pieces like mine are pretty small. It might be just me. But I enjoyed the process enough that I thought I'd post it here.
Thanks for reading -- and how 'bout those stone chips?
Well, seeing how close the seat is, I'd guess you're about 5'9".
Honestly though, it's great to see another car guy working on his stuff and looking outside the box, by trial and error.
Great to see another Jack Olsen thread.
bczygan
Well-known member
Re: My bolt-on 911 aero: it will never be pretty, but now it's much easier to pack
Bill
Bill