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There have been claims that the rear wing on the NASCAR Car of Tomorrow (COT) race car causes lift in the condition where the car spins during a crash and is traveling backwards down the track at high speed [1,2]. When enough lift is generated, the race car can lose control and even become airborne. At least in part, to address this concern, a new rear spoiler was designed by NASCAR to replace the wing and prevent this dangerous condition. This paper looks at the flow characteristics of both the rear wing and the new spoiler using particle image velocimetry (PIV) to provide qualitative analysis as well as flow visualization. In particular, the interaction of these downforce devices with "roof flaps" (which are designed to prevent lift) is explored. These experiments are done in a continuous flow water tunnel having a cross section of 1.0 m2 using a simplified 10% scale model COT body with either a wing or spoiler attached.

Water tunnels are used for a variety of research purposes including hydrodynamic and aerodynamic studies. In order to meet the technical needs of the research topics, a water tunnel with a one square meter cross section has been designed to reach one meter per second flow rates in a continuous flow environment. The primary mode for achieving this Re = 106 system is an extremely high flow rate pump combined with an ultra high efficiency flow path. The tunnel will weigh over 24,000 kg and will have a test velocity of 1 m/s. The tunnel is under construction in the University of North Carolina at Charlotte Motorsports Research facility and the expectation is that it will be operational in January of 2009.