SIAR Congress, CAR 2026

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A Comparative Numerical Investigation of a Multi-element Race Car Rear Wing Featuring a Novel Aviation-inspired Aircraft Configuration as a Drag Reduction System
Beykan Köseoğlu, Emre Kara

Last modified: 2026-08-02

Abstract


This study aims to integrate the aerodynamic characteristics of high-performance sports cars into next-generation energy management strategies. Two-dimensional (2D) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analyses were performed using a three-element rear wing featuring the S1223 airfoil geometry. Going beyond the conventional Drag Reduction System (DRS) concept, two novel operational modes were tested: an innovative "Aircraft Mode" featuring a 180-degree inverted flap to neutralize downforce and reduce mechanical rolling resistance, and an "Airbrake" mode designed to support instantaneous deceleration. Based on the results obtained from an ultra-fine mesh structure (103,675 elements), the drag and lift (negative downforce) coefficients in the baseline high-downforce mode were measured as  and , respectively. The Aircraft Mode successfully achieved mechanical offloading by adjusting the lift coefficient to , while substantially reducing the drag coefficient to . Conversely, the Airbrake mode increased the  value to 0.5683, generating a massive aerodynamic braking effect. Supported by aerodynamic efficiency () evaluations, the findings demonstrate that multi-mode active aero configurations can make a significant contribution to MGU-K (Motor Generator Unit - Kinetic) based energy management systems.