Rear Spoiler more than good looks?

sraper · Post by **sraper** » Thu Sep 05, 2002 12:07 pm

Just wondering do any of the rear spoilers offer any handling improvements, i.e. better road holding? Or are they purely a style thing?

willie · Post by **willie** » Wed Sep 11, 2002 8:44 pm

wayyyyyyyyyy faster bhp 100+ (i wish)

sraper · Post by **sraper** » Thu Sep 12, 2002 2:38 pm

Was thinking more of better road-holding

Would be nice if it made it go faster. Not that I have broken any speed limits!!! Thats ilegal isnt it?

Vince · Post by **Vince** » Thu Sep 12, 2002 2:40 pm

Most spoilers are tiny. At anything below 100 mph their effects are trivial on handling. Even above that speed you'd be hard pushed to attribute any handling effect to them. An exception is obviously the 'tea tray' spoiler a few people have fitted. These probably mess up the handling even at legal speeds (in the same way as strapping a barn door to the boot would).

The main place the have effect (on some cars and probably not the 206cc) is to deflect spray thrown up behind the car away from the rear window.

Vince.

Alex LS · Post by **Alex LS** » Thu Sep 12, 2002 3:05 pm

Even a tiny spoiler can have a dramatic effect on the airflow.

Look at the spoiler they started fitting to the Audi TT, for example. It's only tiny, but without it the back end slides all over the place at high speed.

col · Post by **col** » Thu Sep 12, 2002 3:58 pm

did they not start fitting that spoiler to TTs which had had the recall work done to them so that potential future buyers would know

Derek · Post by **Derek** » Fri Sep 13, 2002 10:11 pm

didn't they fit it so it wouldn't roll over ?

col · Post by **col** » Tue Sep 17, 2002 12:24 pm

Maybe fitting the spoiler was the recall work!

Alex LS · Post by **Alex LS** » Tue Sep 17, 2002 12:37 pm

It was indeed, AFAIK.

paul_y3k · Post by **paul_y3k** » Tue Sep 17, 2002 1:02 pm

yep the whole point of the spoiler was to keep the car on it's wheels rather than it's roof at high speed. Basically they found that above 120mph thnigs tended to get a bit hairy.
There were originally two options on the recall. One to have the spoiler, or you could have some lead sheets placed in the boot to provide more weight to stop it happening. The lead option was cause the designers didn't want to spoil the look of the car as it's supposed to be smooth. Due to the fact the boot space is very tiny anyway (you think we have problems) most people went for the spoiler and it now seems to be standard on new ones.

so now you know !

col · Post by **col** » Tue Sep 17, 2002 4:40 pm

so i was right in the first place then!!

Alex LS · Post by **Alex LS** » Tue Sep 17, 2002 4:48 pm

Yes and no. They started fitting them to those that had the recall work done because it was the recall work, not necessarily to let future owners know. If the latter were the case, they'd have fitted the spoiler whether or not they stuck the extra weight in the boot (which would have meant adding the extra weight was a waste of time and money).