Aeroscreen vs standard screen?

[fergus]

Post on behalf of a friend....

In an SLR, how much of a difference do you notice in acceleration terms when the standard screen is removed and replaced with an aeroscreen? Even though the aero jobbie has a slight lip to direct the airflow higher than the drivers ribcage, how much buffeting do people experience? Also, is it advisable to wear a helmet when going sans full screen? (in preference to just goggles)?

Thanks all.

PS What do 120mph flies taste like?

[L100NYY]

I would advise that you/he wears a helmet on the road as it only takes an errant stone (or big fly) to do some serious damage (trust me, I know)! Nothing beats the feeling of blatting a Seven on the road with the aeroscreen although I reccommend the interchangeable aeroscreen that Caterham produces as this gives the best of both worlds. The only difference you will feel acceleration wise will be the extra noise with an aeroscreen!!!

[charlie_pank]

You get to hear the induction noise much better too. A lovely rush of air from the intake just in front of you when you put your foot down.

[dino ferrana]

Driving with an aeroscreen is like a whole different world. The car is faster (equivalent to 20-30 bhp at 100 mph) and feels much faster as well. The whole experience is more exciting and more involving. There is less buffeting with an aeroscreen than with a windscreen without the sidescreens on.

I recommend you wear sunglasses at the very minimum when driving with the aeroscreen. A helmet is necessary for rainy days and makes long trips more comfortable.

[mav the wibbler]

equivalent to 20-30 bhp at 100 mph

From where do you get this information Dino??

[dino ferrana]

Mostly I make it up!

I have heard this said many times and having had a screen on my superlight and then removed it I believe it! On track the acceleration at high speeds is much improved.

[mav the wibbler]

You should try with a screen and hood. My car takes off like a scalded cat at 80+mph with the hood fitted.

Must be worth the same 20 - 30 bhp - Oh and with the hood up there is much more noise so it must be faster

>> Edited by mav the wibbler on Friday 18th June 16:12

[mikeww]

OK, my opinion for what it's worth.
On the track an aeroscreen is noticeably quicker especially above about 80 and well worth it.
On the road you will not really notice any performance improvement.I know some people like them for the road but I would much prefer a windscreen everytime.Personally I feel far too vulnerable and as soon as you use a helmet then you loose all the 'wind in your hair' benefit. Rain hurts!
MikeW

[mav the wibbler]

I'll be aeroscreening my SV for Track use only - Windscreen every time for the road for me

[droid42]

Dino,

You weren't that far off ... it's worth 18bhp at 100mph.

For a 170bhp'ish car, an aeroscreen adds around 15mph top speed.

Ian.

[Purple Cat]

My 1.8 Supersport(cica 150bhp) would hit the rev limmiter in 5th(top) with the aeroscreen which was an indicated 135 on the clock but would only get to 120 with the screen and not reach the limiter.

It also went round to 120 very quickly with the aero where as with the screen at 80 ish the screen acts as a wind brake and slows the car,I never timed the difference but would hassard a guess that the 0-100 time dropped buy as much as 3 to 4 seconds, well it felt like it anyway.

I only wore a helmet on motorways and when it was raining or at night, but I did invest in a pair of tough sun glasses. I always kept a good gap from the car in front.

If the car is not going to be used for touring I would highly recommend an aeroscreen, saying that I took mine on a few 3 and 4 day trips to France and had no regrets.

As for the flies they tend not to touch the sides so taste is not a consideration, a bee on the other hand much more fun when it is in your passengers mouth but they don't seem to mind being spat out.

[Pesmo]

Is it possible to buy a GRP aeroscreen that where you don't need to remove the wiper motors, or do you need to do that with all aero's ? If you can buy one who makes it ?

[Shaun_E]

Caterham make two interchangeable aeroscreens. The Carbon Fibre one is £550 with Spa C/F mirrors. There is also a composite one with cheaper mirrors for £350 - take a look on their online store (www.caterham.co.uk/onlinestores/index.htm) under Aeorscreens/deflectors. These both bolt onto the windscreenmounting holes and the mirrors are screwed to the deflector. They can be swapped for the windscreen fairly quickly.
There is also a carbon fibre aero available from here:www.easi-clad.com/pricelist.html which a few seveners now have - it is much deeper than the Caterham one and deflects the air better according to users.

[rubystone]

I'm told that Richard In France's interchangeable carbon aeroscreen fits far better than the Caterham one and is truly interchangeable very quickly - follow links on Blatchat for more detail.

[Shaun_E]

My second link above is to the RiF website.

[rubystone]

Ah, so that's what he calls his company - I didn't bother clicking your link Shaun.

[mechsympathy]

He's also developing one for SVs (I've just mailed him to find out how he's getting on). Which is nice.

[dino ferrana]

There is nothing wrong with the fit of the Caterham interchangeable one as far as I can see. I have a carbon one on my superlight which I had to replace recently after a passenger used it as a handle to get out and cracked it (he paid).

The design of them seems to have changed from the first one I had. The Carbon weave is now visible on both sides and the fit is absolutely fine!

[rubystone]

dino ferrana said:

There is nothing wrong with the fit of the Caterham interchangeable one as far as I can see. I have a carbon one on my superlight which I had to replace recently after a passenger used it as a handle to get out and cracked it (he paid). The design of them seems to have changed from the first one I had. The Carbon weave is now visible on both sides and the fit is absolutely fine!

Sorry - I didn't make myself clear - I was talking about the standard Caterham GRP interchangeable item, not their c/f one.

[dino ferrana]

Haven't seen one! Thanks for the correction.