Right, so I've dumped the plastic plate piece and cut the front plate down to illegal proportions, and attached it to the bottom piece of the front skirt. It slopes back slightly. Not sure if it looks best there yet - neone else done the same ?

 

Am thinking of moving it to the white section below the black piece right on the nose, so that it protrudes over the top section of the lower intake.

 

I'd post a pic, but not taken one yet and haven't attempted [laziness] to master my scanner/posting pics yet.

One point,

 

You may well have decreased the drag co-efficient by 0.000000000001 or something but I think the overall effect will be a negative one The problem is that by moving the number plate the air flow to the intake, radiator etc has been changed and may well cause turbulence, causing power drops...

 

Just a thought though...

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

Ah but Andy, isn't that negated by the reduction in mass ?

Miaouww !!

Originally posted by andyduff:

The problem is that by moving the number plate the air flow to the intake, radiator etc has been changed and may well cause turbulence, causing power drops...

 

But might it also not have improved airflow and reduced turbulence ? There are 2 air intakes, one of which is largely blocked by the normal number plate.

 

 

Surely we'd be better off ditching the front plate altogether, no restriction in airflow then! After messing around in there with mine ive relocated mine to inside the boot till i can be arsed to screw it back on, i think it looks much better apart from the two horrible bits of metal that the plate should screw on to. Having said that whats the point of paying hundreds of pounds for a private plate and then just displaying the back one, which looks cack because its square.

 

Doh, I'll go get my screwdriver!

 

B19RKS

 

By the way ive not reduced mass by removing front plate as its in the boot! But will it upset the weight distribution??!!!!!

 

And id of took a picture of it without the plate but i havent really got a 300zx!!!(sorry nelson, only messing!)

 

Thats where ours is, it doesnt block the lower air intake as much as it looks, and the top one is completely open, whereas a UK car has it almost completely blocked off. BEsides, this is where the number plate is located in japan so it cant be detrimental to the airflow i suppose??

 

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Why dont you just put the plate in the boot of your car, drive around with no plate on till you get pulled, then say it fell off and you are going home to put it back on now. Then put it on, take it to station with producer that you will get, everyones happy, then take it off again.

 

Ay with another great idea ™

Has anyone ever considered they wind tunnel test the car with the number plate on (as they actually do) to get the optimal settings to start with?

moving a number plate will not change your drag coefficient enough to notice period.

Originally posted by Clarkey:

 

Thats where ours is, it doesnt block the lower air intake as much as it looks, and the top one is completely open, whereas a UK car has it almost completely blocked off. BEsides, this is where the number plate is located in japan so it cant be detrimental to the airflow i suppose??

 

If you look at the 2 places where the Number plates are, the original position hardly blocks anything, only a thin strip in the middle leaving the whole of the area below free.

Looking at the white Z, a larger portion of the plate is blocking the air flow. Yes the strip at the top is free but to the expense of blocking a larger area, nearly all, below.

 

Personally the best place for it is where it is.

 

Stuart

LOL, I like the boot idea !! Is that a dig at me about how to deal with an illegal plate when plod has a go which I said in a previous thread ?

 

I take it you are joking ?!!

 

 

Originally posted by 300z:

Has anyone ever considered they wind tunnel test the car with the number plate on (as they actually do) to get the optimal settings to start with?

moving a number plate will not change your drag coefficient enough to notice period.

 

I think you are wrong here, Warren. All the pictures of the 300's relating to development of the car in the enthusiast's companion have no number plate, and that includes a wind tunnel picture.

 

Aerodynamics is very complicated, but a flat object on the front of a streamlined car is almost certain to increase drag. As I have said before, because a modification makes only a small improvement, this does not make it worthless, especially if the mod costs nout !

 

 

No sly digs there im afraid, if id have known, I would have made a bigger point about it! hehe, cant see the thread you are on about though Nelson, must have forgotten it or missed it, sorry!

 

But its a way to get round it, at least you dont need to worry about illegally spaced numbers or plate sizes, just carry the fully legal one in the boot! simple. Although, you may have to make it look like it fell off! heheh

Check me ride pic's,front,I made my number plate fit the panel.Not blocking any thing.I thought it looked quite neat.

 

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Vinz - what do you mean - looks like it's blocking the upper air intake 2 me !!

For FEEEERKS sake Lads get a bluudy life!its only a firkin number plate,what with all the crap about drag & turbulants etc.Its only a car FFS not a Space Shuttle.You'al be sugesting putting a pointy front on it next and heat resistant tile's.Cuuuuuum Arrrrrn.

 

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Originally posted by vinz:

For FEEEERKS sake Lads get a bluudy life!its only a firkin number plate,what with all the crap about drag & turbulants etc.Its only a car FFS not a Space Shuttle.You'al be sugesting putting a pointy front on it next and heat resistant tile's.Cuuuuuum Arrrrrn.

 

 

bwhahahahahahahahahaha Vinz i dont think that could have been said any better

You have heard of the Darwin awards right, and im pretty sure this thread is going in it this year.

 

by the way when im going above 50 mph i switch my radio of because the aerial then goes down and i get a better CD any one tried this ?

 

The plastic bit that the plate goes on weighs 200g - thats 0.2 kilograms !!!

 

I like to think of my car as a space shuttle I have you know !!!!! :-P

 

Sings..."Fly me to the Moon... !!"

Good evening Warren. How are you ?

NELSON(sorry about thee eye)If , at the end of your next journey may I sugest you eat your 200gram number plate,dump the 10 lb of shit you seem obviously to be full of,and let us all know if your return journey was any faster.I dooooont think so!!!

 

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Change your Auto Box to a Manual and im pretty sure 60 odd kilogrammes and the gain you get from less drivetrain loss would far outweigh moving your number plate two mm to the left , which could actually be detrimentle to your aerodynamics (as do you really know that much about aerodynamics in the first place)and of course youd remain legal.

 

A car is a collection of compromises. Different cars have different priorities. You could lose a lot of weight from a 300ZX by taking out all kinds of things, but if those things are useful/nice then it's not worth it, unless that floats your boat.

 

Any small mass reduction is, in my opinion, worthwhile, if it makes the car better without detracting from it in any other way. This is applicable in this case - I quoted the 0.2 kg as a joke, but it is a small saving. Going on about mass of driver and his lunch is stupid, as that argument could be used against any mass reduction mod !!

 

Vinz -why are you so angry ?!!

If you don't like my mod, ignore it, go to another thread !!

 

 

look where they are as standard on thai cars, this is the same as on japanese cars, go figure

 

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Correct Clarkey, mine is mounted there on my Jap import.

 

Looks like that orange one has eaten it's plate!

Might mount mine like that when I've got the Scarab front on...

Well you can understand Vinz rection.

I have nothing against you personally but to me you seem not to like the car we all love. All you seem to do is post things that makes the Z a Z,

According to you

Its too heavy,

Tyres not wide enough and have too high profile (But when you found the stock alloys where designed for a reason you liked them)

Its not aerodynamic enough, light washers cause soooo much turbulence

The number plate is in the wrong place,

Its not powerful enough,

Its needs a rediculas wing on it FOR SAFTY, but a molded one isnt good enough you have to have a racing one, cos thats what the pros use.

 

To me it really sounds like you slag off every aspect of the car and that you know more than the thousands of Japanese engineers who designed the car from stratch taking into account the weight, safty, power and cooling, amongst other things you dont even think off, from the start. Using thier years of education and experience with the latest computers, wind tunels and expertese of the time to make the best car they could within the laws, budget and time scale they had.

 

As you said

"A car is a collection of compromises. Different cars have different priorities."

But the heavy T-Tops is a main feature of the Z, if you dont like it import a hard top,

The heavy rear HICAS makes the Z,

The nice interior and electrical seats, windows, mirrors etc. make the car more enjoyable.

Its heavy V6 engine makes the Z,

Its twin turbo makes the Z,

Its aerodynamic shape makes the Z, and made if faster than Supra, Skyline in the speed record.

 

If you want a light car, get a Smart Car,

If you want a powerful car get a Lamborghini Diablo VT-TT

If you want a safe car, get a Volvo,

If you want a car with a rediculas wing, get a Supra,

You want a car with basic features, get an Elise.

 

 

I didn't realise I was annoying a lot of people. I can be quite a direct and candid person, that's just me. But most of the things I suggest/talk about are probably done by many people who post on here. Some subjects may be delicate issues between members, but we are all adults, we should all know that we all have different ideas/tastes and accept the differences.

 

Don't get me wrong -I love the car. I'm just a perfectionist and like many on here, like to try and make it better. I try and talk about technical issues of making the car better rather than subjective likes/dislikes like colour, as that is down to the individual.

 

I don't underestimate the technology in the car, but there were many compromises made due to costs and regulations and possibly time. These can sometimes be addressed by modifying the car. The headlight washers are not present on the US cars, so there can be no harm done by removing them !

 

Also please bear in mind, I OFTEN ASK QUESTIONS OR SUGGEST A MOD NOT BECASUE I NECESSARILY WANT TOT DO IT, BUT BECAUSE I WANT TO THINK ABOUT ALL ANGLES AND POSSIBILITIES. IF YOU DON'T AGREE, IGNORE ME, IF YOU LIKE/AGREE WITH MY SUGGESTIONS, DO THEM !! SIMPLE!!

 

Wouldn't this place be boring if we all just said "yes, the 300Zx is perfect. Why change anything ?" " Hi, how is your 300ZX today, hope you haven't done nething to it !!"!!

 

Clarkey - my number plate is in the same place, only it's just attached to the lower part of the skirt.