Date:         Fri, 11 Oct 2002 02:54:42 +0100
Reply-To:     Clive Smith <clive.harman-smith@NTLWORLD.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Clive Smith <clive.harman-smith@NTLWORLD.COM>
Subject:      Re: Air Dam renaming competition
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

>>They are supposed to clean up the airflow under a vehicle. That is suspect
in a vehicle as high as the Vanagon. There is just too much airspace between
the van and the ground for these to be truly effective. In some cases, they
do help direct airflow upwards to he radiator to assist in cooling chores.
I'm not sure about vanagons as I have not had occasion to evaluate for this
feature.

Well, we call them air dams in the UK too, but if we have to have two names
for everything, then chin-spoilers doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, but
it'll have to do I suppose... and even on a high vehicle they perhaps can do
what they are supposed to; create a low pressure under the vehicle, front in
particular, which might well draw more air through the radiator. Overall a
good one would naturally spill air around the side of vehicle. A lower mass
of air traversing the underside should also reduce drag, and no doubt what
happens at the back is, a usual with low speed aerodynamics, much more
important than at the front! hence blunt nosed and sharp tailed aircraft
fuselages - note the still common acceptance of the original French for most
aircraft parts - 'fuuuwzelaaage', lovely innit, one hardly has to ask what
it is. Try 'empennage' now there's another GREAT word, what would we call
that now in the US, a blister - YUK!. Personally, I think that the
originators of all these bits and pieces should have their naming
conventions respected - but then I do go out in the midday sun...
occasionally - and it would mean sticking to English a lot more, dratt! (its
getting veeery cold here, so we need a few flames as Autumn's coming on).
Two countries separated by a common language - now who said that (other than
Alan Titchmarsh recently when Ground Force visited one of Bette Midler's
'Green lungs' in New York, New York - funny place that, they keep repeating
themselves)?

Clive
'88 Syncro Vanagon (now where did that yuk name come from? - the PR guru who
thought it up should be shot a dawn, preferably sooner. Nah, Transporter/
Caravelle/ much nicer and strangely, more descriptive)

P.S. Anyway, my vote is for 'ugly cheap fibreglass ting under de bomper on
NASCAR(s)' , whats yours?


----- Original Message -----
From: "Donna Stewart" <DStewart@CHRM.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 9:35 PM
Subject: Re: what is an air dam


My son is learning to drive on my two Vanagons.  He further damaged the "air
dam" on my Wolfsburg recently by driving into a driveway with a deep gutter
at pretty much full speed (i.e. 25-30mph).

>>> Ben T <BenTbtstr8@AOL.COM> 10/10/02 01:05PM >>>
In a message dated 10/10/02 12:58:49 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
hradek@YAHOO.COM writes:

<< what is an air dam?   gary the air head >>

Dear Gary the air head:

<boy, that felt good>

The item(s) being auctioned appear to be components of the urethane pieces
normally installed under the plastic bumpers on late model Vanagons. You may
know them by their other nickname "chin spoilers".

They are supposed to clean up the airflow under a vehicle. That is suspect
in
a vehicle as high as the Vanagon. There is just too much airspace between
the
van and the ground for these to be truly effective. In some cases, they do
help direct airflow upwards to he radiator to assist in cooling chores. I'm
not sure about Vanagons as I have not had occasion to evaluate for this
feature.

BenT