Rear Wings

Now I have torqued the rear wheel hub nuts, I feel it’s time to get the rear wings installed, mainly because they take up a lot of space in my spare room. I had already part-fitted them when I trimmed them before they where sent for PPF covering, so I know they fit.

The fixings for the rear wings can be split into two. The front five bolts fit into rivnuts with a single washer inserted into the side skin, the rear five have a second washer and a nyloc nut. I personally recommend replacing them post-IVA with nylon bolts, as used by Caterham race cars, mainly to protect the side skin in a minor accident. As it stands, the kit supplied bolts are far stronger than the side skins, so under a sudden impact they will rip the rivnuts out and tear the side skin. By using nylon bolts, you can turn the balance of strength between side skin and rear wing fittings around, because the nylon bolts are weaker than the side skin and sacrificial parts during a minor accident. They will break under the impact and the wing can come off the car without tearing the side skin.

I started by resting the rear wing on the radius arm and get one of the front fixings. Once I have one fixing in place, the piping that I have already trimmed, can be positioned.

It was then just a case of getting the rest of the fittings fitted. The rear five bolts pass through from the inside (boot) and the nut is fitted outside under the rear wing. There is no need to go to mad with the torque.

I did have one minor issue, and I think this is only because my rear wings are carbon fibre, because I have never had this problem before. The rear most bottom lip touched the side skin, so a little more trimming was required.

Finally I removed each of the front five bolts and I applied copper slip, because the side skin rivnuts are well known to rust over time and then spin when an attempt to remove them is made. Therefore I am doing everything I can to prevent this problem now.