Why do sports cars want low weight but high down force? It seems contradictory
In: Engineering
At a standstill there is no downforce but also very low air resistance. Getting the car moving quickly depends entirely on power to weight ratio and grip. At speed, drag is he main limiting factor. A little extra weight won’t reduce top speed very much, because t it will make the car take longer to get there. Another big limit is wheels and tires. Cars from the likes of Koenigsegg and Bugatti are pushing g the limits of the speeds we can get a road tire to handle without catastrophically failing. In general making components lighter and stronger lets us push them faster without breaking.
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