WSC60 Chaparral 2F

3d Model Design by: Lucas Macedo

The mid-engined Chaparrals, built from 1963 through 1970, are among the most iconic sports-racing cars ever built, up there with vehicles such as the Ford GT40, Ferrari 330P4, and Porsche 917. The cars are significant for a number of reasons. First, they were cutting edge. Chaparral founder Jim Hall pioneered aerodynamic developments such as wings and ground effects, as well as alternative forms of construction.

Using wings to create downforce had been attempted in the ’50s, but it was Jim Hall’s advanced Chaparral 2F from 1967 that proved the idea. Motor racing was never the same again.

The wing was mounted high to get the cleanest airflow possible and set at a 17-to-18-degree angle to generate 240 pounds of rear downforce at 100 mph. According to Hall, that angle could be flattened to four or five degrees, depending on the racetrack.

The radiators and the oil tank were repositioned at the back of the car to get as much weight as possible over the tail. Hall: 'That was all done probably because we were Texans. We wanted to eliminate heat (by moving the radiator from in front of the driver), and that gave us the freedom to do what we wanted aerodynamically at the front. And we also wanted better traction.' The air that would have flowed into the radiator at the nose was used as a venturi tunnel to create additional downforce to balance the strutted wing’s rear-end effect.

A flap in the intake was connected to a third pedal in the automatic-transmission car’s previously two-pedal cockpit. The rear wing’s at-rest position was leading-edge low/ trailing-edge high to generate downforce. Up front, the duct flap would then be open with airflow generating a balancing downforce upon the front end. When the driver hit the third pedal, the rear wing would flip into a neutral attack angle to minimise drag while the nose-duct flap would shut, reducing front-end downforce and drag from the flap.