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All About Car Spoiler

What Is A Spoiler?

Do you know about a spoiler and its functioning? Well, a spoiler is an aerodynamic element that is put to use in automobiles for reducing drag. It is because of the spoiler on a car that the unfavourable air movement across the body of a car (that is in motion) gets spoiled. This adverse motion of the air is also referred to as a turbulence or drag. When connected to the front of an automobile, the spoiler is also referred as air dams. 

Where is a Spoiler Located ?

Can’t locate the spoiler? No worries! Most likely you can locate the spoilers on the rear part of the vehicle. These spoilers serve the purpose of regulating the turbulence or drag that generates behind the vehicle. These spoilers are installed in all cars, whether they are the average cars or high-performance racing cars.

Types Of Spoiler

Parts Avatar has listed here everything you need to know about the wide variety of the spoilers before choosing one. Spoilers come in different varieties, namely four types. The first type of spoiler is the pedestal spoiler. This is the most common kind of spoiler. The second type is the lip spoiler, which is mostly used to enhance the look of the vehicle. The third is the front spoiler, which reduces the drag created by rear spoilers. The fourth kind of spoilers are called the wings. They are used mostly in race cars. All vehicles do not have a spoiler, but spoilers do serve the concrete purpose of lessening the drag and making the vehicle easier to drive.

Material Used In Spoiler

Generally, spoilers are made of lightweight polymer-based materials, which include:

 

  1. ABS plastic - ABS plastic is an inexpensive material which is combined with various admixtures, mostly granular fillers to produce spoilers. This is mostly preferred by the original equipment manufacturers. The admixtures introduce firmness in the plastic, thus alleviating a major disadvantage of plastic, that is, the frailness that increases with product age and also may be caused due to the evaporation of volatile phenols. (this requires more detailed research)
  2. Fiberglass - fiberglass was one of the most widely used materials for the production of car parts, because of the low cost of the materials. However, since it involves high labour cost, it is not being used for any large-scale production as it is not a lucrative option anymore. Fiberglass is durable as well as sufficiently workable as well. Fiberglass spoilers are made up of fiberglass cloth which is infiltrated with a thermosetting resin, for example epoxy.
  3. Silicone - silicone has recently become popular with many auto accessory manufacturers. Silicone-organic polymers offer many benefits such as extra high thermal characteristics and a longer product lifetime. This material also has incredible plasticity which becomes one of its main benefits.
  4. Carbon fiber - carbon fiber is one of the most durable as well as lightweight materials but cannot be used for large-scale production because of the large requirement of manual labour, which adds to the already high costs of production.

Important Features Of Spoiler

Are you aware of the features of spoilers? The spoilers have numerous advantages that include:


Spoilers make a car lighter which increases the efficiency of the car, and the car goes faster and slides easily. This is definitely a step up from the heavy cars, but this too has one catch.

How The Spoiler Works?

Wondering about how does a spoiler work? Read the information below:

 

All vehicles carry different kinds of spoilers on them, depending on the body and type of the vehicle. Drag racers, monster trucks, Ferrari F1 cars and sports trucks have a variety of spoilers installed in them, however, for the sake of simplification and keeping up with the most advanced technology, we will use the spoilers on the front and back of the Ferrari F1 cars for discussion.

 

In order to increase the grip on the road these spoilers are used. Generally, it is the weight of the vehicle that forces the tires down onto the pavement. So, without the spoilers only the weight of the vehicle can help in increasing the weight of the vehicle or by changing the compound of the tire. But the only problem in increasing the weight is that it is a bit problematic when it comes to taking turns as all the extra weight has inertia that has to be controlled. So, increasing the weight isn’t the best choice to make. The spoiler functions similar to an aeroplane wing but upside down. It generates the down force on the body of the car.

 

So, aren’t the advantages of spoiler quite obvious? So instead of opting for a heavy car that turns out to be slow, why not choose a light car that’ll help you greatly to glide off easily.

 

Although, there’s a catch here, each time the wing creates a lift (a spoiler generates down force) it also leads to a drag. Drag is actually a natural reaction of the fluid (air) to resist motion through it (vehicle). With the generation of drag, the car tends to slow down. For example, in the case of very high-performance car such as Le Mans or F1, they have a ratio known as the ‘lift/drag’ ratio. So, the designers of these cars try to maximize so that the car has just enough force to get around the corners. On the other hand, the Indy cars are the ones that are designed in a manner to have down force on the order of 3G’s at 200mph. This implies that they have the capacity of hanging upside down on the track completely on the track as long as they keep going fast.

Purpose Of Spoiler

A spoiler serves the purpose of making the car lighter and therefore easier to drive. It enhances the vehicle’s grip on the road. Absence of a spoiler would cause the car to become heavier and in many cases, the material in the tire would have to be changed

Tools Needed For Spoiler

There are a number of skilled auto mechanics who have a goal of opening their own car repair shop at some point in their career. But let’s face it; if you want to put up an efficient as well as profit making shop, then you might need much more than mechanical skills. There are a number of tools which you might need to perform the car repairs quickly as well as reliably. Auto repair equipment that you will need to repair your Spoiler may include:

 

Top Brands Of Spoiler

If customers trust a brand, then it would make them loyal, and if they are loyal, then they will surely buy more. We are well aware that customers want comfort, cheerfulness as well as satisfaction in their lives and that’s the reason why we offer top quality auto parts brands to our customers. We make sure to provide a positive experience to our consumers from the brands which we are offering so that they can form an opinion that a particular auto parts brand is trustworthy and would give them peace of mind while they are purchasing it for their car. Here we have listed out some top brands for spoiler:


Street Scene Spoiler

How To Change Spoiler?

A spoiler is a fin like component of the car which functions in a way that it appears to cut through the air as the car moves. An aftermarket spoiler offers numerous benefits including an increase in handling ability as well as the gas mileage of the vehicle. Another advantage of an aftermarket spoiler is that it can add to the value of the car and make an average looking car sportier and enhance the look of the car depending on the shape, style and the material of the spoiler chosen. The materials used for making spoilers include polyurethane, fiberglass and a lightweight metal. Spoilers come in varying price ranges from one hundred to four thousand dollars depending on the different styles. Don’t know how to change a spoiler? Here we have listed everything you need to know to perform the procedure:

 

Step 1 - Safety

 

The protective eyewear should be worn before getting to work.

 

Step 2 - Performing the measurements of the trunk lid

 

A measuring tape should be used to find out the exact dimensions of the lid of the trunk of the car. The measurements of the length and width will be need to be added in the dimensions of the underside bracing arrangement of the trunk lid.

 

Step 3 - Buying the Spoiler

 

Don’t worry as any automobile parts shop or local dealership will provide you with a variety of spoilers. For the right spoiler, the measurements of your car should be shown to and discussed with a professional service person. This step will help to ensure that the spoiler that has been purchased is absolutely suitable for the model of your car. Also, there are a variety of universal spoilers as well, but they would need a number of adjustments before they can be fitted properly in the car.

 

Step 4 - Assembling the Spoiler

 

The wing brackets of the spoiler must be placed in a way so that they fit together suitably. To ensure that the brackets are secured completely, a wrench should be used to tighten the bolts.

 

Step 5 - You’ll be required to mark/register the location for the Spoiler

 

The new spoiler should be mounted properly on the trunk, and facing in the right direction. A marker or another marking tool should be used to mark the points on the trunk where the installation holes have to be made in the trunk. Then, the spoiler should be taken off the trunk.

 

Step 6 - Then you should make the Installation Holes

 

The next step is to start drilling the holes in the trunk, through the top and underside metal layers. It would be better to begin with holes that are smaller in diameter as the larger holes will take more time and might require resizing. Smaller holes make it easier as the hole can be made bigger until they are the perfect size for the installation. Any scraps of metal should be removed from the car trunk. This can be done using a vacuum.

 

Step 7 - Finishing the Installation Holes

 

All scraps of metal should be removed from the car trunk and a sander should be used to smoothen the hole edges. A coat of fresh paint should be applied in the hole edges so that no rust develops around the edges.

 

Step 8 - Installing the New Spoiler

 

This step might require additional help so it would be useful to have a friend around. The spoiler should be placed on the car trunk again. The washers should also be positioned correctly. The spoiler should not move at all, and all the bolts securing the spoiler to the trunk should be tightened with the help of a wrench. It should be kept in mind that all bolts must be tightened with uniform pressure.

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John Framigllia
Technical Writer
Our technical writer is known for simplifying automotive parts and services. Intuitive with various vehicles and manufacturers, he knows how to simplify complicated problems.