whale-tail wagging, (was Volvo AWD)

[quk@sievers.com (Phil Payne)]

In message <19970124.224607.7807.2.dailojeff@juno.com> dailojeff@juno.com (Jeff Loh) writes:

> Phil writes:
> "A (non-Audi) question - chasing the Porsche I noticed his rear grill
> would swing up and down - sometimes at picnic table level, sometimes flush
> with the body and never stationary in between.  What is this - is it a
> feature?"

> What you saw was the 911's active aero tail. It goes up at approx 80kmh
> and back down at approx 50kmh. Apparently to increase downforce at high
> speeds and offer better cooling to the engine. I believe the new Boxter
> also has a similar feature.

It looked dumb, in the traffic on the Kettering Northern Bypass during the 
morning rush hour.  They should fit a switch to disable it.
 
Someone else said it was non-turbo cars only - I wondered why he was so easy to 
stay with.  Apart from the flapping tail, it was a _very_ impressive car, in a 
kind of dull grey with no excrescences and just the "targa" logo.  The 911 
looks good from behind.


--
 Phil Payne
 phil@sievers.com
 Committee Member, UK Audi [ur-]quattro Owners Club