Polycarbonite (lexan) front splitter, and canards?

I was thinking, and sine I now need some more front downforce.. (and SWAG) I want to make a front splitter and canards for my miata....

what would the drawback, and benefits be of making them from polycarbonate? are they probably going to shatter? will they fade out, and super ugly (even if I get the scratch and UV resistant stuff?)

and now to the crazy part: more importantly.. how riced out would it be to do that, painting everything except the edges black, and then embedding LEDS in the rears of them to make the outside edges light up? (splitter would get white LEDS, as a "driving light" and the canards would be amber LEDS, wired as turnsignals)

Lexan doesn't shatter, acrylic shatters. Lexan bends like rubber and scratches like butter. The bending is the big problem here.

TRON aero would be low on the riceometer.

Plywood is cheap.

I want to put LEDs connected to my brake lights in my lexan spoiler too. But since it's a garage queen and only goes to the track once a month during the day I haven't had the motivation to make it happen.

So yes, you need to go through with it. It's not rice because it's unique and home built. Grassroots

dang you guys.... you are making me want to do this MORE.

GameboyRMH wrote: Lexan doesn't shatter, acrylic shatters. Lexan bends like rubber and scratches like butter. The bending is the big problem here. TRON aero would be low on the riceometer.

ok, then... I shall add some structural aluminum to keep it flat.. and give it something to add some turn buckles to.

this is why I come here... collectively, GRM knows all.

Now.. where to find some appropriately sized polycarbonate.. cheap.

Now here's the thing, how does a custom aluminum-lexan sandwich compare to a sheet of corrugated aluminum, or Alumalite (aluminum-coroplast sandwich)?

Here's some more inspiration from the back of a TVR Sagaris:

Lexan makes sense here for maintaining rear visibility.

Aluminum. Light, Inexpensive and Durable...

... and doesn't light up.

this is about swag points, too.

waitaminute.... the WHOLE THING doesn't have to be clear.. just the very edge.....

As far as I am concerned, just having a splitter like that is "swag" enough...form follows function...but to each their own, I guess.

BTW this is polycarbonate:

This is polycarbonite:

SCARR wrote: waitaminute.... the WHOLE THING doesn't have to be clear.. just the very edge.....

Use a good material and EL wire around the edge then.

Does Lexan yellow in the sun? I'd like to make a spoiler for my Camaro, but it lives outside all year long.

If you get Lexan with the UV coating you'll be fine. Hell, I've had non-coated Lexan windows on the e30 for the last year, sitting outside all day, and no sign of yellowing.

Lexan is pricey. I use Lexan for mounting gauges, but plywood for splitters. I can stand my entire body weight of 185lbs on the nose of the splitter. For a road race car, make sure you use as little bits on the front end to reduce drag, those turnbuckles are crazy draggy. I used square aluminum to reinforce behind the bumper and through the entire splitter. Also extend it underneath as far as you can.

I guess it depends on your definition of pricey. McMaster sells 1/8" polycarbonate in a 4' by 8' sheet for $144. And since it's McMaster, you could probably find it locally for 60% of that cost if you looked hard enough.

How about some Jabroc? Pegasus sells it:
https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productselection.asp?Product=6180

I think you can find pre-made NASCAR splitters on ebay cheap

unevolved wrote: I guess it depends on your definition of pricey. McMaster sells 1/8" polycarbonate in a 4' by 8' sheet for $144. And since it's McMaster, you could probably find it locally for 60% of that cost if you looked hard enough.

1/8" Lexan will be crazy floppy; it really needs to be at least 1/4&quot, though curving it helps a lot. Lexan is very flexible, probably about 1/3 the stiffness of Plexiglass; I used 1/4" Lexan for the side and rear windows on my mid-engine Mini.