Making Functional Carbon Fiber Rear Diffuser and Flat Floor - E55 ASL Part 20

Finally time to start putting all the bodywork together. 2 panels down 20 more to go.
Hamid's Instagram (Graphic Designer): / golestanifarhamid
ASL Playlist: • New Project Starting S...
Patreon: / sk8215
My Instagram: / shehryar8215

[@paint4pain]

"I'm not that good at CFD... So I built models and a wind tunnel in my basement" ...Bro, you modeled your diffuser with foamcore, hotglue, bbq skewers, and weed scales. I am impressed AF by your resourcefulness. You could have filmed those carbon fiber tests and done a "project farm" style video. I'm sure a bunch of us would want to see that. I didn't know that you could use foam inserts without vacuum bagging, I thought it wouldn't wet all the way through. Could you have used wet layup with honeycomb material?

[@Turbochargedtwelve]

Foam is much easier to work with than honeycomb. Honeycomb really does have layer bonding issues and it’s best to use a thicker resin or add micro balloons to the resin to increase the bond area with it. Foam was a great choice here.

[@xfmotorsports]

This foam doesn't soak up resin. It's a little different from other core materials, I'll mention it more in the next video

[@Qgal5kap123]

weed scales.. lol

[@GrantOakes]

Nicolas, the resin doesn't soak through the foam core, just the surface and depending on the type cell structure, may penetrate slightly. With an open cell type foam a slurry can be made by adding micro balloons (microscopic hollow glass spheres) to the resin and coating the surface of the foam and allowed to cure. That will seal the foam and prevent the resin from soaking in once the fabric and resin is added.

[@tomahoks]

And I know He’s a young man and all, but Bendpak please, send the man a lift!

[@ROBERTS604]

For real! Everyone go drop comments on there ig.

[@Vlammenzee]

That graphic design of the car looks incredible, loving the front/rear lights.

[@michelevitarelli]

Someone get this guy a car lift already.

[@alternergysolartech]

And a million subs

[@410kane]

He should install some of those race car air jacks

[@caribou919]

>I made a small wind tunnel in my garage bruh

[@Conservator.]

(In his basement 😜) But yes amazing indeed.

[@MIMCKMedia]

haha so good

[@21aronapple]

Not only that went to the point of measuring the downforce on each axle to see what was gonna give him the best possible setup. Dude just rocked my mind with cardboard and a fan lol

[@ajhartmanaero]

when I cut carbon, I hold a shop vac and handle of the tool at the same time in a way that the shop vac nozzle sucks up a lot of the dust as you cut.

[@drivejapan6293]

yeah carbon dust will destroy electronics if not contained.

[@ajhartmanaero]

@@drivejapan6293 good point as well.

[@borderwave2]

@@drivejapan6293 It will destroy your lungs too...

[@nicofonce]

...and preferably somewhere outside

[@mariusah91]

A even easier way is to use a skillsaw with a suction attachment, Then you will get a line as straight as a arrow, and no dust.

[@antalbodnar3188]

Best series on KZbin! The car is almost done I'm so sad I don't want this series to end. I wish you made enough money from KZbin to keep making cars.

[@iancrosson9513]

You think someone as skilled as him will ever be done! Bah, never.

[@StephenJohnson-jb7xe]

I was thinking something similar but once it is done we get to see it racing and further development as the bugs are dealt with.

[@xfmotorsports]

It's really only the beginning after it's done. More track days, racing events and probably a whole lot more future developments!

[@douglasharley2440]

@@xfmotorsports WE CAN'T WAIT! thanks, for everything.

[@AmethystCAE]

Man do I get excited when you upload.

[@fabiano3807]

when you are cutting carbon, sprinkle soapy water or water to catch the dust too!

[@tristanscott4118]

This is a ton of work for one guy!

[@douglasharley2440]

and he shoots the videos, and edits them, and clearly dude's got a 9-5...he's an inspirational MACHINE!

[@user-oj4xh8cg2l]

for the next version, one can avoid extra resin by adding "tear veil" on top (it absorbs the extra resin and as it names implies one justtear it away when polymerised) - also, more importantly, pockets between the top and the bottom layer of carbon fiber (to bond them together) is what would make the sandwich resisting delamination...

[@shred1894]

For the side skirts, you could use brushes like Indy cars used to do

[@if7142]

Garden edging is another inexpensive easily sacrificial material.

[@volvo245]

HDPE would probably resist abrasion the longest and cause least amount of drag when in contact with the tarmac.

[@_Bram]

Last tip :-) Avoid aluminium hitting carbon. When aluminium hits bare carbon and water comes in between, the aluminium will be gone in no time.

[@TheHeretic435]

Why?

[@_Bram]

Why? Because carbon is a conductor and you will get a potential difference between two materials.

[@ultralinx200]

Interested! Gonna try it

[@964cuplove]

Check out this guy, building planes rather than cars, but doing a lot of CFK work on „scrappy“ also explains how to avoid carbon Aluminium contact etc. kzbin.info/door/Svdee86uThqIrloZjWwNVg you can also see him vacuum bag a lot and/or at least scrape of excess resin as much as possible ! Too much resin isn‘t just weight, also a pocket of just resin will br brittle and crack , if water enters the crack, the aging will start, much worse if it freezes at any point in time....

[@TheGheseExperience]

I love how involved the community is getting, I hope some of that concept car transfers over to the real E55 ASL

[@AnttiBrax]

That's some grade A reverse psychology... "Just don't anybody go and donate money as MiyataDriver75." 😉

[@lor.ei.5454]

I already donate money as Miata driver 56

[@1malditoPerro]

I don't get it. And I'm curious

[@xfmotorsports]

@@lor.ei.5454 Lol, well now we all know who the miata driver is

[@lor.ei.5454]

@@xfmotorsports damnit

[@SparkysAdventure]

This is such a sweet build, never seen someone build a race car from their garage

[@bowenflob8036]

Completely glossed over the fact you made your own WINDTUNNEL!! I'd like to see a video just on that!!

[@crazyfast4439]

Definitely the most impressive underrated car builder in the field rn

[@LeCharles07]

Those diffuser strakes will also reduce disrupted flow caused by tire squirt. The strakes will keep the turbulent air separated from the rest of the air in the diffuser and give you more reliable down-force. I can't wait to see the car fully dressed, thank you for sharing.

[@richardwallinger1683]

Been there done that way back in 1978 -1980. I note how AMAZED you were with the transformation with your two element rear wing . flapping around in the breeze . Your wing element mounted in the under body airflow will achieve exponentially more downforce . your two element wing will have a diluted performance due to the atmospheric pressure diluting the airflow over your high mounted wing . Simple demonstration .. lower your hand over a vacuum hose / carburettor ona running engine and see how the atmospheric pressure on your hand instantly forces your hand onto the vacuum cleaner hose .. the race track cannot be sucked up towards your wing so atmospheric pressure will generate a huge down force from as low as 40mph . I had to upgrade my rear springs from 320 to 800 lb rate .plus two cellular bump stops .Richard Wallinger ex 1980 Donnington GT championship winner . Stay safe. drive 90% that way you are super smooth and achieve 100% laptimes .Racing lines are totally different with downforce .. brake late turn in late then use the open corner to accelerate early taking advantage of the huge exponential increase in downforce as your speed increases .. taking advantage of the extra tracktion which comes from the aero downforce .90% of your braking should be done in the first 10 yards .when the speed and downforce is at its highest.. Install your pour in support seat inner prior to all of this silly stuff.. you are on a steep learning curve . [e-mail].

[@Watchmedome3017]

Side skirts creates the “ground effect” ask lotus 😂😂

[@_Bram]

I highly recommend covering the open ends of the foam with carbon by adding a small strip of carbon cloth that is kept to both sides of the panels with epoxy. The way the panels are made right now they are very likely to start peeling from the foam.

[@johan.mp4]

And the foam core might suck up a lot of water as well...

[@limitlessbuilds]

Johan Petersson you can tell by the snapping of it that the foam is more like styrofoam. Probably won’t absorb any water. I agree though that the edges should be covered. I would have done that first then the main surfaces.

[@santosodevelopments7176]

I hope i'm wrong. But i think this floor will snap on day one at the track.

[@Turbochargedtwelve]

You can also use paint on plastidip

[@renegadefunkstar]

limitliss styrofoam or eps absorbs a lot of water, it’s an open cell foam unless it’s surface filled. This sort of foam he is using won’t absorb as much. But yes. He should have watched some surfboard manufacturing videos and lapped the edges

[@michaels6speed]

How does this guy only have 45K subscribers? Never seen a build like this. Absolutely insane.

[@wrth]

I learned more from this 20 minute video than I did in the 3 science lessons I had this week. Keep it up!

[@Vgk36]

Holy smokes ! Here because of the pic of the diffuser on the thumbnail staying subscribed with notifications because this is insane!!! LOVE IT !!!!

[@HomeBuiltByJeff]

Great work again mate. It is really coming together now.

[@egjr2722]

Definitely wanna see that basement wind tunnel action! This whole build is just amazing!

[@atom999]

WOW the air tunnel and scales, what a great idea. Also the renders from the designer are pretty amazing.

[@jasonbirch1182]

For the skirts I would use a UHMW PE sheet that is mounted with slots to the carbon vertical sides so it can actually ride on the ground and move with the suspension. The famous "fan car" that was quickly banned from f1 in the 80's had a system like that.

[@johndevries8759]

Great job of being resourceful, using what you have at hand is something you have made into an art form, awesome!!

[@alextatkin1026]

This project and your success with it is truly one of the most inspiring things ive ever seen. I needed this.

[@k.bellingham8335]

WOW this is f#@$ing incredible! Keep on sharing, your friends won't be laughing anymore.

[@73split]

As usual, you are very inspirational. You never fail to impress with your efforts.

[@alfredogls463]

This guy is a real builder he do everything 😱

[@TheSandman121212]

Constantly blown away!

[@mikedugdale281]

After suiting up , with gloves taped to wrists, cover face & exposed skin with a coat of barrier cream and let it dry. Then put a second coat on. If working in sun then apply 50 plus sun screen. Finish with a big dusting of talc powder. At end of work cutting carbon etc, blow off dust, then wash off. This also is good sanding epoxy etc. Breath through mask that is appropriate for the materials.

[@christhjian9923]

The diffuser experiment seemed so cool. If you have time in the winter you could take us through that plus the more important calculations you've done on the car.

[@diggleboy]

The E55 ASL is coming along so nicely. You show that anything and everything is always possible through a bit of ingenuity, time and a lot of hard work. The wind tunnel scale model and experiment was absolutely EPIC experimentation! Just like the big manufacturers! I'm really excited to see the dyno video and numbers for each pull with your ECU tuning on the AMG M113k engine. Amazing time attack machine so far!

[@vashusan1984]

Can't understand why you haven't got more views on this. What a great project and outstanding work!

[@lloyddotimas6302]

So close already... I can see it! Keep up the great work my dude!

[@azargelin]

wow I can't wait for the car to be finished this is my favorite build and something I would definitely do just need a couple more years of experience.

[@Kavster92]

Get yourself a thin clean-suit/forensic type overall and and work the resin from the inside center of the large panels out towards the corners while moving carefully on your hands and knees. Stay in socks so you can slide over the surface and your shoes don't abrade or tugg on the fabric while you work. It will allow you to use the scraper and be more efficient with your use of resin. Love the build keep going big lad.

[@TesTesGes]

more veins in the diffuser will add more downforce, also might want to add more exits for the turbulent front tire air to not disturb the under body air flow. then again the design is perfect already, love it!.

[@robertstahl8835]

Just came across this... Very helpful. Looking at making a similar floor. Will definitely check out the rest of the series!

[@sadokfennira3005]

crazy design from the guy !! really cool.

[@Goathierbmw]

Awesome work, "easy as.." yeah you make it look so easy and I like it ahah. Fun to watch, rare video that I don't skip.

[@nimanikaiyn3392]

@sk8215 You are a maniac. I’ve been following you for years and watching your videos and you do not fail to amaze. You created a wind tunnel and used digital scales to measure downforce, pure genius. I absolutely love watching you solve problems, keep it going. You are amazing!

[@flakey7832]

you make me want to start my project car amazing job man, keep it up, you're a big inspiration for your people

[@Stang773]

I have watched this series starting from the rebuild of the M113k engine itself and I have come to realize one thing... I'm going to have to step up my game. Awesome job good sir!

[@R33F3RMONSTER]

almost done bro! looking great!

[@ap4931]

As usual, great content! It is a pleasure to follow your project, i hope you can share with us a lot of track action and further analysis and development... Congratulations!

[@Carlicious-Parts]

the moment when you choose the ASL video over the new JP video :D

[@jameslatham3521]

This is an awesome build.

[@garageadz]

If you use a small roller when applying the resin you can get a very nice uniform surface and will not have excess resin left on the piece. There are specific resin rollers available, they have a bunch of ridges in them. Try local boat makers or fibreglass producers.

[@chevydyall7619]

Excellent work as usual

[@hashemmehyar9614]

That wind tunnel though!! 😯 Potentiometers wear, why not a sealed encoder, or capacitive proximity sensors? Regarding compressed air, I have no idea how to mount a truck's compressor, but I thought to mention it.

[@JeanMeme]

Air is being used, so pots make sense.

[@foadrightnow5725]

Humbling skills, my friend!

[@StanleyKubick1]

3:12 good 'ole "diamond" scales. you know, for all my wee... diamonds!

[@Dagrond]

Award for best use of a hockey puck coming ...

[@AeydenHazzard]

When applying the resin you can use a paint roller to get more even spread and get rid of most of the air pockets much better than with a paint brush.

[@richardwallinger1683]

I love your practical way of getting the job done . Your diffuser is a good area . It will need side fences which seal to the track surface . to prevent air bleed from entering the sides . your lower wing element .. The big bit .. would be excellent for a ground effects addition . mount the wing under the diffuser as low as possible start at 1 1/4 inches off the track . you will know when it activates usually above 60 mph .the car will start to slam down markedly at the rear . and if your rear springs cannot handle it the car will porpoise with the reduced air gap under the wing resulting in an air dam effect .. causing the rear downforce to drop off suddenly . I could take 90 mph corners at 128 mph entry speed .118 exit speed due to the 3 plus G cornering forces . I only had 140 bhp from a Hillman imp engine .. running 45 Dellorto carbs and 38 chokes .. a 1980 one litre GT championship class . I could outbrake any of the opposition by over 50 yards into the Donnington .chicane. after one of my outbraking moves the guy i had passed lost it and punted me off the track . I rejoined and almost had a big scare going down the Craner curves flat out .. I had picked up a cone and it was blocking a lot of airflow under my rear Ground effects wing . SO YES the low mounted wing does produce huge down force with virtually no drag penalties. The ends of the wing need to seal against your diffuser sideplates . I like your diffuser retaining steel cables. they could be run forward to a control lever in your cockpit. To allow you to raise or lower the trailing edge of you diffuser and ground effect wing . Remember with all of the aeros working you have to get 90% of your braking done before the speed comes below 100mph. / 80 mph . windeoff up to 50% rear brake balance in the wet. That way you will stand a good chance of not swapping ends . You already know what that feels like .. LOL.

[@WildEngineering]

this is so cool man, keep up the awesome work!

[@gafrers]

Great work as usual.

[@wowgabber123]

Amazing as always.

[@tiitsaul9036]

Good progress. Keep it up!

[@jdxtube68]

Outstanding!

[@ptzish]

Love it, as always!

[@didierstouten2856]

Damn those designs are amazing

[@CanadianCaymanRS]

I see a lot of air voids in the final diffuser but great job man. This build is all time.

[@jancosmit5100]

Well done to all the great work you have done, you are definitely inspiring a lot of people including myself! I'm sure you can use plastic gardening edging for the sideskirts. Seen MightyCarMods use it for that purpose.

[@stevesloan6775]

The vacuum bagging is there to take away the “brushing” time... well reduce the brush-time. It’s good to lay down a coat of resin to help drapping your carbon fibre. Love your work. Constructive criticism 🤜🏼🤛🏼🍀🍀🍀🇦🇺🤓

[@podunk9798]

Is there a reason you didn't run the compressor off of a 12 vdc motor? The inverter set up you went with seems like a really long way to go for compressed air in a vehicle. I have to assume you considered a compressor for an air bag set up (12v), or replacing the motor in the compressor you used with a 12v one. Additionally offroad guys regularly convert their ac compressors to air compressors. Sorry if you covered it before, i didn't catch it.

[@podunk9798]

To clarify, I am not shitting on your project, you clearly know what you are doing. I am just curious what the benefit of the inverter set up is.

[@Conservator.]

PO DUNK Good question. That AC converter looks heavy.

[@anonymousanonymous9991]

Your custom car is incredible bro... Fekin beautiful

[@bencreelman3727]

Watching you hold the carbon fiber panels is super weird because you would think something that size would bend, but then the whole thing is so stiff... Looking awesome. I don't envy you the fenders.

[@johndeerman2105]

I can't believe you are doing this in your garage. ✌😲

[@Split10uk]

What can I say that other people haven't. I think I look forward to your videos more than any other KZbinr. Keep up the good work, and mind that carbon fibre dust.

[@mikedugdale281]

Have a try massaging the fibre / resin mix with your finger tips before squeegeeing off excess resin. This technique especially works with Kevlar cloth. I might not spell well but have more than one world championship sailboat out of my hands.

[@kelvinlee963]

Another awesome video uploaded on KZbin!!!!

[@kelvinlee963]

man i just wished i was born at the same neighborhood you're at and help you out with this awesome project.....

[@billytarpon9871]

a jig saw (diamond,hack saw,or carbide blade) will reduce dust about 75%. covering the part with peel ply will smooth it out and give the bag look, changing fiber direction in the layers will greatly increase stiffness creating hard spots for your jack and fasteners would be an impovment

[@skun80]

Great job with the floor but Remove all this messy shifting system and go for simply manual shifting

[@emmajacobs5575]

Cristian and save a load of precious weight by removing the compressor, inverter, air tank, pneumatic cylinders, linkages, control system ...

[@carportshenanigans5918]

Sometimes he adds tech for, what seems like, the sake of adding tech. Ditch the air shifting shenanigans, drop a bunch of weight and have peace of mind knowing that you don’t have a bunch of jenky parts that could cause a failure on an otherwise amazingly built/engineered car.

[@skun80]

​@@carportshenanigans5918 Exactly.. I could understand this shifting system as a demonstration of his enginiering skills... in that case this is an excellent job, but for the reliability of a race car I think it is not a good idea at all... Also, I don't think this hybrid system is faster or efficcient than shifting this manual transmission by hand xD

[@carportshenanigans5918]

@Cristian, it’s definitely a cool excercise in engineering. Reminds me of all the shenanigans he had on the old car with electronic throttle bodies and computers and all sorts of sensors when the turbos should just be blowing directly into the SC inlet. Oh well, nothing wrong with experimenting...great way to learn.

[@renegadefunkstar]

Hey man! Awesome work. One tip - if you are going to hand laminate the whole bodywork, I recommend watching some surfboard lamination videos on KZbin. They have a lot of little tips and tricks on how to get a light and tight lamination. If you are using carbon fibre, get a rubber surfboard laminators squeegee for pushing excess resin out and getting a more Even tight bond into the foam. Also, would it be worth lapping the edges for some extra strength? I noticed you had some extra ribs /crossmembers in your layup - nice!!!

[@NoanatorTV]

carbon fibre corrodes metals when in direct contact. also you should consider reinforcing sections of your undertray with aramid fibres to form skidpads. also sandwichpanels should not have open edges. ideally you would add carbon fibre around the edge (probably requires vacuum) alternatively you could use some type of viscous adhesive.

[@ogland6482]

i love this project

[@_Bram]

Oh, and if there are area’s where you have to glue the carbon, use peel ply. This will give you a perfect “rough” finish once peeled of after the epoxy is dried.

[@sayan1667]

Amazing job! I understand that you have a lot of work going, but is there any chance to make a video on how you made the wind tunnel? I can’t wait to see this monster on the track and to see people’s reaction when they realize that you’ve made this car in your garage. Respect!

[@bradmccombs3925]

thats pretty awesome; looks like the radical s8

[@pyroboobysmith359]

Fascinating

[@964cuplove]

Metal inserts (or solid hard plastic) in the foam at the mounting points might be a good idea...

[@moestacolli1886]

Awesome. Job

[@lor.ei.5454]

Haaaaaaa That 1hour after Video Miata Driver is meeee!!!!!

[@christianthurow]

How much was the material cost for the entire floor as is?

[@hydorah]

Those images by that designer are HOT!

[@eedesign878]

You should always use opposing and crossing fiber directions. This is very important for strenght. Usually 45° between each layer and different tows too. You tested it one way? Cool, but it might break easily on the otherway. ALWAYS vacuum bag if mold+press or proper manufacturing tools are not available. I have a lot of carbonfiber part development on my car and also foam cored parts. Good luck. :) Do not set your self for failure, in racecar et means injury or death.

[@parrm9580]

I hope I can do something like this with my dad one day.

[@mikedugdale281]

Your car is gorgeous.

[@talbotdorr682]

Is this man gets involved with F1 he will change the game. I bet he could make Haas a championship team in the first season 😂😂

[@Gamen4Bros]

Early :O love this project!💖

[@StephenJohnson-jb7xe]

I think I hear more excitement in your voice in this video that the previous ones, you are getting so close now. I had two thoughts while watching, first did you consider using one of the rollers that they use for fiberglass which helps with resin distribution? Second could you use a cheap shop vac with disposable paper filters to suck up the carbon fiber dust as you cut it?

[@perryman333]

You should try to use some first gen CLS headlights. Still has that slim aggressive look but pays homage to the benz heart.

[@ibux84]

Grate dude and the car is awesome. The only thing I don't like is your shifting solution. It have to be a better solution out there.?