e46 M3 lip-spoiler installed on the NSX

[RYU]

I wanted to change it up a bit but didn't want to go with a NSX-R wing. Thought i'd try what a few folks have tried here on prime; the e46 M3 winglit. If in case I didn't like it it is easy enough to remove anyway.

Comments:

• It fit better than I thought, though not perfect.
• The product is of good quality and i'm overall 90% happy with it regardless of the price.
• I bought it for $60+ with shipping so it was really a no brainer. The product came painted but you had to specify a color from the BMW swatches. It won't be a perfect match (honestly, it's a hardly noticeable diff). The color came in Jet Black but still had some metalic flakes which makes it stand out upon close inspection.
• It felt like it was made from high density urethane or some type of rubber. Weight watchers may want to avoid this. I estimated it weighed about 2-2.5 lbs.
• It was maliable enough to match the contour of the trunk well. The 2-3mm overhang on each side constitutes the 10% i'm not happy with. I expected it though since I knew it was almost impossible to conceive that a lip spoiler made for an m3 would fit on another car perfectly.
• I do like the added subtle aggressiveness of the look. You will definitely notice it's there. There's also a weird satisfaction you get by seeing a thicker wing from your rear view mirror. :biggrin: The feeling may get old though because it doesn't look OEM. Sometimes it doesn't look like it belongs the same way an NSX-R wing does. I do like how the new ZR-1 Vette uses one.

Hopefully these before and after pics will help some of you folks considering this mod. Don't mind the fingerprints.

 

[tosugrad]

IMHO take it off.

 

[RYU]

IMHO take it off.

LOL

perhaps... but i'm fine for now being known as the Berlina with the ugly wing. :wink:

 

[fourringpilot]

I am all for being different and getting wild with the styling, however it completely takes away from the entire outside of the car. :biggrin:

 

[CL65 Captain]

Why? I don't get it...

It doesn't add any downforce, it doesn't look good, it isn't NSX fitment. Why?

 

[NSXAMG996TT]

Better put your best flame suit on! This is about to get nasty...

 

[raffi.awakim]

Better put your best flame suit on! This is about to get nasty...

I think I just threw up a little bit in my mouth.......

Honestly, it doesnt look like it belongs.. you might want to take it to a body shop and have them shave the edges off so it would look a little better.


I think I can say for 99 percent of the NSX owners that if it doesnt make the car go faster, handle better, or improve all-around performance, most prime members wont like it.

again, have someone fix the edges and I personally think it would look 10 times better.

 

[RYU]

No, No... it's not getting ugly. Just people's opinions which is why we all post here. BUT Wow! Thank goodness I don't have any strong feelings towards this mod. It's quite amusing :biggrin:. I'm starting to not like it anyway and the key was the ability to remove this w/o causing any damage.

I'm off to changing my Master Cylinder! Maybe the flames will go well with my stock ride height. j/k

 

[bruce91nsx]

I wonder how this would look as a trunk-mounted spoiler...

 

[KooLaid]

I have one. Came on the car when I bought it. It's ok. I wish I could take it off because cause it's a pain in the @ss waxing the spoiler with it on. Mine hangs over more over on top of the fender, so I'd say 1/3" over hang. Sucks because it rubbed badly into the clear coat on one side and took it down to metal on the other. I'd simply avoid it.

 

[tosugrad]

Just people's opinions which is why we all post here. BUT Wow! Thank goodness I don't have any strong feelings towards this mod. It's quite amusing :biggrin:.

Nothing personal, its nice you understand....

 

[A.S. Motorsport]

Is there not a NSX wing with that kind of lip?
I thought a company in Japan makes/made them.

It looks kinda wired not really ugly.
I think raffi.awakim is right if the edges would be gone it will look better.

 

[stuntman]

RAD!

I have an E36 M3 and put the E46 M3 decklid spoiler on it. Fits perfectly. After seeing windtunnel pictures of both E36s and 46s with the decklid spoiler on, it prevented the air from spiraling downward off the trunk creating a vacuum/drag. Although not necesarily giving the car 'downforce', it reduced the drag by preventing the air from spiraling around the bumper by kicking it up off the trunk.

Does anyone have downforce/speed numbers for the NSX-R wing?

I would think that what you did would probably reduce the drag slightly, but you won't see MPG differences or 'feel' a difference on a track. I dont think the stock wing does much if anything and I would guesstimate you made the wing/aero slightly (probably not too quantifyable) more effective.

I am still going to take my NSX to the track to do a bunch of testing in the near future, other than suspension and diff testing, one test I was going to do for Downforce (the company) was to test the stock wing vs. their NSX-R replica. I might need to try adding the M3 decklid spoiler to the stock wing as well, just as another thing to test. Until that's done, and maybe even after, its hard to say the magnitude that it affects the car, but for sure that decklid spoiler acts like a gurney flap, which is a functional aerodynamic devise.

 

[RNbuilt]

I wonder how this would look as a trunk-mounted spoiler...

hmmm...

 

[RYU]

RAD!

I have an E36 M3 and put the E46 M3 decklid spoiler on it. Fits perfectly. After seeing windtunnel pictures of both E36s and 46s with the decklid spoiler on, it prevented the air from spiraling downward off the trunk creating a vacuum/drag. Although not necesarily giving the car 'downforce', it reduced the drag by preventing the air from spiraling around the bumper by kicking it up off the trunk.

Does anyone have downforce/speed numbers for the NSX-R wing?

I would think that what you did would probably reduce the drag slightly, but you won't see MPG differences or 'feel' a difference on a track. I dont think the stock wing does much if anything and I would guesstimate you made the wing/aero slightly (probably not too quantifyable) more effective.

I am still going to take my NSX to the track to do a bunch of testing in the near future, other than suspension and diff testing, one test I was going to do for Downforce (the company) was to test the stock wing vs. their NSX-R replica. I might need to try adding the M3 decklid spoiler to the stock wing as well, just as another thing to test. Until that's done, and maybe even after, its hard to say the magnitude that it affects the car, but for sure that decklid spoiler acts like a gurney flap, which is a functional aerodynamic devise.

I don't have access to a windtunnel (does anyone? haha) but I did read something similar about decklid spoilers. It cleans up the air, for lack of a better term, to reduce the vacuum effect from the turbulence and doesn't necessarily add downforce. My ghetto windtunnel testing was done with a water hose during the last car wash. It's easy to see a dramatic effect in the upward disturbance of the water as it hits the lip. Not hard to imagine what it does to the air at high speed after seeing this. It was pretty interesting and reminded of how the air looks behind an F1 car in the rain. I also think the OEM wing is effective because of how the underside is shaped. It's like an airplane wing turned upside down.

Anyway, I agree... the effects of the lip are probably marginal if any at all. I still don't know if i'm going to keep it on simply for aesthetic reasons.

 

[RYU]

Nothing personal, its nice you understand....

from previous posts I knew it would be received with skepticism and possibly hatred. If anything I wanted to help out other folks considering this mod with pictures and comments

 

[stuntman]

I also think the OEM wing is effective because of how the underside is shaped. It's like an airplane wing turned upside down.

Not a whole lot, and it's not an efficient design if functional at all. Another test to add would be to take the stock wing off and see the effects.

A bunch of yarn, tape, and a video camera would help too.