A&Q about Lotus
Q:
Originally Posted by MikeW
Dry heat? Stick your head in an oven, it's a dry heat! Does it feel good?
A 110F oven would feel excellent, yeah.
Try a 120F Sauna with super saturated steam, does that feel good?
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Hehe, Greg, great minds...
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You folks who think it's too hot to live here in Arizona are absolutely right. It's hell here! Terrible! Don't even think of moving here and further clogging up our roads or contributing to our unbelievable urban sprawl! It's TOO HOT!!! Tell all your friends, to stay away, too!
A:
Originally Posted by GAJ
You folks who think it's too hot to live here in Arizona are absolutely right. It's hell here! Terrible! Don't even think of moving here and further clogging up our roads or contributing to our unbelievable urban sprawl! It's TOO HOT!!! Tell all your friends, to stay away, too!
+1
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I've been in the Phoenix area since 1980... it does get very hot at times. November through April it is very, very nice. I rarely drive with the top on. In the summer months I don't get out in the Elise much during the day unless I take a road trip to the high country... some fantastic roads.
In the summer months, early morning or late at night are the times I'm out in my Elise around town.
I've also done quite a bit of bicycling in 110+ weather... just drink a lot of water and keep moving for the evaporative cooling effect.
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My solution to Arizona ... was to move away. :-)
Hey, any AZ Elise drives going down this weekend? I'm gonna be in Fountain Hills Sat and Sun.
Honestly though, at 116 degrees outside (measured by thermometer) my AC was able to keep the cabin at 80 degrees with two adults in the car on a two hour drive around scottsdale/cave creek. If your's can't do this ... then get it fixed.
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You'd be a perfect candidate for my stage 3 AC mods.
I've already posted my ideas on this board, no one has actually bothered to do all of them.
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Having lived in Arizona for nine months, I think the solution is for God to fix Arizona. And put in more twisty roads while he's at it.
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I've been doing a little research on this "heat" box issue. This is very similar to what NASCAR vehicles deal with. Drivers getting exhausted by the heat in the cabin. Considering that the tub is all aluminum (consider how fast it transimts heat, like an aluminum pot) we're all sitting on a stove. The cooling lines are running through the sides--just feel the footwell and how it gets.
So, I started looking around the net. Turns out NASA is working with PENSKE or someone like that and developing a blanket to wrap the inside of the tub. They have been getting 15-30 degree heat drops on the inside of the car. Hey, that can make a hell of a difference on a driver's comfort level. The site even had a link for the engineer at NASA.
High-Performance Thermal Insulation for a Racing Car
Space-shuttle-type insulating blankets can protect a driver against hotspots.
John F. Kennedy Space Center, Florida
Thermal-insulation blankets developed for use aboard the space shuttle can be adapted to a racing car to protect the driver against excessive cockpit heating. [Also see an earlier article under "Mission Accomplished," NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 20, No. 8 (August 1996) page 20.] Thermal protection for the driver is necessary because, unlike the passenger compartment of a conventional automobile, the cockpit of a racing car is subject to intense heating as a result of unique racing-design features.
In particular, the exhaust pipes are routed so close to the sheet metal of the floor pan and transmission tunnel that a significant portion of the heat radiated by the exhaust system (at a power density of about 12 kW/m²) enters the cockpit, and even at high speed, the airflow is so limited that the cockpit is not cooled to a comfortable or even a safe temperature. Hotspots can develop near the driver's right foot and under the driver's seat. In the absence of thermal protection, a driver can sustain localized second- or third-degree burns. Although a cooling suit can be used to protect the driver, it adds undesired complexity and weight. In addition, a malfunction in the active cooling system could result in active heating of the driver.
Space-shuttle-type insulating blankets offer effective passive thermal protection, without contributing excessively to complexity or weight. The insulating blankets are of three different types: one type for installation on the exhaust and tailpipes, the other two types for installation in the cockpit. The exhaust-system blankets are made partly of a material called "advanced flexible reusable surface insulation" (AFRSI), which comprises a ceramic microfiber core between two glass-fabric face sheets quilted with a ceramic thread. The AFRSI of each blanket is covered with an outer nickel-alloy foil 0.001 in. (25 µm) thick. The foil cover is designed to increase the durability of the blanket, provide some shielding against radiation, and provide for mechanical attachment to enable safety wiring of the blanket to the exhaust-system components. The foil shell is closed along the edge of the blanket by a single fold (followed by rolling) and secured with stainless-steel staples. The single fold is designed to minimize thermal conduction while providing adequate strength. Grommets provide additional reinforcement for the seams and serve as attachment fixtures.
The blanket is contoured to the compound curves of the exhaust-system components. The entire blanket is less than 0.5 in. (1.3 cm) thick, yet acts as a highly efficient thermal-radiation shield with low thermal conduction. To prevent overheating of the exhaust and tailpipes, the blanket is installed only over the top of the exhaust system, leaving the bottom exposed to airflow. Because the blanket is made solely of metal, ceramic, and glass, it is nonflammable and does not outgas significantly during use.
The blankets of first cockpit-interior type are placed under the driver's seat and in floor areas to the left of the seat. Each blanket comprises a (1) a core of low-density, highly resilient glass-microfiber mat between 1 and 2 in. (between 2.5 and 5.1 cm) thick enclosed in (2) a radiation-barrier shell made from layers of an aluminized high-temperature-resistant film and sealed by a high-temperature-resistant adhesive tape, all enclosed in (3) a durable outer shell made of glass cloth impregnated with polytetrafluoroethylene (space-suit material).
The blankets of the second cockpit-interior type are used to insulate the transmission-tunnel/foot-well area. These blankets are made from AFRSI 0.5 in. (1.3 cm) thick, enclosed in glass cloth impregnated with polytetrafluoroethylene. AFRSI was chosen because of its ability to maintain known thickness over a range of compressive loads. The polytetrafluoroethylene-impregnated glass cloth provides durability. The blankets of both cockpit-interior types are designed to be lightweight, to provide maximum thermal insulation, to be nonflammable, and to provide additional protection to the driver in the event of a collision or fire.
High-Performance Insulating Blankets made of spacecraft-grade materials can be used to prevent excessive transfer of heat from exhaust pipes to the interior of a racing-car cockpit.
This work was done by Bruce V. Lockley of Kennedy Space Center and Martin J. Wilson, Jean M. Charvet, and Suzanne M. Hodge of Boeing. For further information, access the Technical Support Package (TSP) free on-line at www.nasatech.com under the Materials category, or circle no. 111 on the TSP Order Card in this issue to receive a copy by mail ($5 charge).
Inquiries concerning rights for the commercial use of this invention should be addressed to the Patent Counsel, Kennedy Space Center; (407) 867-2544.
Refer to KSC-11938.
Link to a similar product by BSR.
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Those of us with old Healeys have been using insulating blankets for years to cut the heat in the cockpit. I have it under my floormats, and many guys line the inside of the transmission tunnel as will, since it's just thin fiberglass covered in carpet.
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If this isn't off subject too much, the 6th,7th. 8th at Firebird, the west track will be open. It's Pro Autosports. I plan to tough it out Friday and Sunday. I need Saturday off to build up energy for Sunday, even though it's a dry heat.
I arrived in Phoenix in 1958. It was 118 degrees. The record stood for more that 40 years. Highest ever was 122. This among other resons are why my brain is fried. I bought a forced induction helmet for the Corvette racing I did.
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Originally Posted by MikeW
If this isn't off subject too much, the 6th,7th. 8th at Firebird, the west track will be open. It's Pro Autosports. I plan to tough it out Friday and Sunday. I need Saturday off to build up energy for Sunday, even though it's a dry heat.
Weather forecast for this weekend... high about 90 F. Should be nice unless it rains.
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Every one else has!
mr t
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Originally Posted by MikeW
If this isn't off subject too much, the 6th,7th. 8th at Firebird, the west track will be open. It's Pro Autosports. I plan to tough it out Friday and Sunday. I need Saturday off to build up energy for Sunday, even though it's a dry heat.
I arrived in Phoenix in 1958. It was 118 degrees. The record stood for more that 40 years. Highest ever was 122. This among other resons are why my brain is fried. I bought a forced induction helmet for the Corvette racing I did.
That 122 high was at the ariport. They shut it down because air density tables only went to 50 C so there was no way for pilots to set their flaps and be within FAA guidelines. They built a new weather station by the next year that was farther away from the vast concrete runways and a little higher in elevation.
I was out driving that day in a vehicle with outside thermometer... I hit pockets of heat where it was 125.
I was doing landscaping that night around 10 pm when the temp had dropped to about 100. There was a sudden blast of wind and the temp went back up to 110... at 10 pm! It was some rare phenomenon where an inversion layer collapsed.
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Can someone describe to a dummy where you would put those insulation blankets? Would it really make a big difference just putting them under the floor mats? Blankets are cheap in price and if it really would make a difference, I would be willing to try it - just need suggestions on optimal placement.
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Originally Posted by doma
My solution to Arizona ... was to move away. :-)
Hey, any AZ Elise drives going down this weekend? I'm gonna be in Fountain Hills Sat and Sun.
Honestly though, at 116 degrees outside (measured by thermometer) my AC was able to keep the cabin at 80 degrees with two adults in the car on a two hour drive around scottsdale/cave creek. If your's can't do this ... then get it fixed.
Fountain Hills is Beautiful. Stayed at a resort there last year. AZ is Hot! There is however a big difference between Dry and Humid Heat. I was in Orlando, Florida in July, was only 89 degrees. That 89 degrees was the worst 89 degrees in my life. Passed on a great job opportunity (couldn't take the humidity, I was soakin' wet from the humidity). I'd take AZ over any other freakin' humid state in the union!
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Im keeping my exige in AZ for the winter, will have it there in about a week. Plan on spending a week or so tooling around greater phx area. Any of you AZ peeps interested in a drive?
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I go back and forth to Phoenix quite a bit... so if you plan it on a weekend I can probably come up for a drive.
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Originally Posted by Ginetta
Im keeping my exige in AZ for the winter, will have it there in about a week. Plan on spending a week or so tooling around greater phx area. Any of you AZ peeps interested in a drive?
there is a track day at phoenix intl raceway on 10/21-22. nice place for a drive......................
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Originally Posted by fishguyAZ
there is a track day at phoenix intl raceway on 10/21-22. nice place for a drive......................
Really? Who is it with?