Rubbing flared wings

[Simon Jackson]

When I turn into a shrp corner under load, the tyres rub on the wing. This has caused the RHS to start cracking. First of all I want to stop teh prob before I repair. I was going to put spacers under the wing supports to effectively lift the wings up.

 

Has anybody else had this prob and sorted it.

 

Cheers

 

 

Simon

[deanteam]

I had this problem. I tried 'lifting' the wings but the best solution are stiffer springs.

[Dirty Den]

I have this problem too, but only with the steering on full lock. I just try to avoid turning in with full lock.

 

Den

 

teeth.gif - Self portrait - still unable to remove the smile!

[Graham Sewell]

There are four approaches to this problem - each getting a little more drastic...

1. bend the wing stays upward to give additional clearance (this is what Caterham do behind closed doors)

2. change to lower profile tyres

3. change to heigh adjustable dampers and raise the car by 10mm

4. change to cyle wings

 

Low tech luddite - xflow and proud!

[ashaughnessy]

Altering the car's handling with stiffer springs, modified ride height or different wheels/tyres just to cure this wing rubbing problem seems absolutely daft to me. Its like the old woman who swallowed a fly, and ended up swallowing a spider, mouse, horse, etc. just to catch the fly.

 

Insert a washer under the stay just where the stay goes over the chassis rail. If the stay is tight and the washer thick enough, it will jam there quite nicely. This will raise the stay by a couple of mm at that point, which will raise the wing by quite a lot. This is what I did about ten years ago and the problem has never re-occurred. Or bend the stay upwards.

 

Anthony

[Graham Sewell]

I didn't say that option 2-4 were sensible, but if you are considering 'upgrades' then it might be a nice side effect....

 

Low tech luddite - xflow and proud!

[Dave H]

I think you need to consider why the car is doing this. If its just started, then perhaps the springs are shot - in which case option 3 isn't daft. If you've changed something, like new higher profile tyres, then option 1 or 3 (or 4 if you want to be silly) are all viable (so is 2, but that would be a retrograde step).

If it's been doing it for a while, then raising the wings (option 1) is probably best.

 

Dave H

[CHRIS CLARK]

.....................and on no account turn to the 'Dark Side'. That is to say the Cycle Wing Sect'.

 

The Clamshell Club is where the Superior wing can be found!!!

[Violet Elizabeth]

Also might be worth checking if there is any problem with the brazing where the stay is attatched to the chassis. My right wing started to rub on tight left handers, but put it down to the tyres. Turns out the stay was starting to come away from the chassis and was allowing the wing to droop a bit.

 

Of course if you try to bend the stay upward the joint weakness immediately becomes apparent !

[deanteam]

Changing springs is not such a daft idea, when you think that maybe when new, the wheels did not rub on the wings. Springs do get tired. That was the problem with our car. Also if the car is rolling that much that it touches the wings then the suspension angle changes must make handling interesting. I find that putting spacers under wings not necessarily solving the fundemental problem.

[ashaughnessy]

Well, in my case the fundamental problem was that the wing stay was too low. Putting a space under it to raise it therefore cured the fundamental problem.

Anthony