A modern car can make downforce from rear wings and spoilers, from front splitters, canards and flics, from devices on suspension and exhaust systems, and from clever under car panels that redirect air like Mozart redirecting a musical note. What, then, is the next frontier for the aspiring automotive aerodynamicist? CarBuzz has just uncovered not one patent, but two that showcase a novel approach to automotive aerodynamics.
No, these aren’t more crazy ideas from Porsche. This time around, we’re dealing with mad scientists from Ferrari. And they have to be mad if they want to flow air inside the chassis itself. Mind you, not through the cabin, but through the actual chassis components. Let’s take a look at this.
Space (Frame). The Final Frontier For The Aerodynamicist
Ferrari Aerochassis patentFerrari
We’re not talking about clever bodywork that lets air flow through to reduce drag like the fender vents on a 911 GT3 RS. This is air entering the chassis rail in the front and exiting out the sides and rear. It’s about as complex of a system as you’re going to find, and it shows how close automakers are to reaching the edge of performance.
The front of your car as it pushes through the air is a high pressure zone. Air builds up there, slows, and becomes turbulent as it works its way around the blunt nose to the sleeker rest of the shape. In the patent, Ferrari says that its goal is to decrease that pressure without weakening the frame for crash reasons or affecting aerodynamic performance over the rest of the car.
Not all the chassis has rails with enough space inside to move a meaningful amount of air. Door pillars, for example, are nearly solid in a modern car with multiple layers folded and carefully arranged for strength. Frame rails are also not usually smooth on the inside, especially at joints. The latter can be worked around with the right fabrication; the former cannot. So Ferrari will have to be careful what parts of the chassis are open to the main rail and what parts aren’t.
So high-pressure air flows from the nose through the chassis and exits through outlets in the tail and at the sides near the rear of the vehicle. A second patent shows more high pressure air entering through the back wall of the front wheel arches and exiting through the same places.
Unclear How Much Invention Could Affect Balance
Ferrari Aerochassis patentFerrari
In the patents, Ferrari doesn’t make clear how much air might move through the chassis legs. But even a small amount will reduce pressure in front of the car, which reduces lift and lets the other wings and aero devices push down harder on the car for more stability and higher cornering forces. The more it can move, the better.
Just ignore the impact of this on vehicle life and repairability. No, most Ferraris don’t encounter winter salt that would build up inside the chassis, but they do often encounter dirt and water. Imagine a clog of leaves or worse. The debris would just sit inside, leading to possible corrosion, but it could also upset side-to-side balance, causing on-track problems.
More likely, it would just make a great place for some truly fortunate mice to spend the winter. Before getting cleaned out in the spring on your first trip to Cars & Coffee. Ciao, topo!
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
Ferrari Purosangue ChassisFerrari
Not every patent makes it to production, and these might be two that don’t because of the complexity. But if either one did, it could make a measurable difference to the high-speed experience. That’s what Ferrari is all about, at least according to the marketing team. So it could make it to the road after all.
Patent filings do not guarantee the use of such technology in future vehicles and are often used exclusively as a means of protecting intellectual property. Such a filing cannot be construed as confirmation of production intent.
Source: US Patent & Trademark Office
