I was told by esteemed members of the "Flat Bottom Society" that the new RFR is legal in FC.
In my words, the explanation:
The 'bottom', that piece closest to the track, is made up of a steel tube frame, so it is part of the chassis. On the bottom of that frame is a panel whose attaching method is open. On top of that bottom's frame is some black bodywork. Think of it as the same as body work outside any other part of the frame. That 'bottom' is considered part of the chassis because of those two vertical steel tubing struts at the front. Those two struts are considered part of the GCR defined front bulkhead. So the bottom is flat between the front bulkhead and the rollhoop bulkhead. got it?
Under the driver's feet is another sort of bottom, but not 'the' bottom, for the sake of discussion we will call it the driver compartment floor (DCF). The metal sheet connected to the chassis making up the DCF is only connected every 6 inches, per the side panel rules. Under the DCF is another piece of red bodywork.
I was told the airspace between the bodywork under the DCF and above the bottom is legal because it is not an opening in the bodywork, nor air passing between two pieces of bodywork, because that passage is not closed on all sides. And, it was jokingly stated that air going through there is going to the rads. :)
Some thought that the air passing through the two struts would be considered illegal. Not so grasshoppers. Those two struts are chassis, not bodywork. No rule saying air can't travel through two chassis members. e.g. Think of the gap in the middle of an exposed roll hoop.
Now if i was building the "son of RFR", I would build those two struts out of long cross-section symmetric steel aero tubing. Then, I'd turn them a bit toed-in. And I'd have legal barge boards. Watch for that on the 2011 model. ;)
It is funny that for 40 years we tried to cover every chassis tube with slippery bodywork. So there are no rules governing the creation of slippery chassis tubes. :)
Anyway, look for one at a race track near you. With zetec... and maybe a Fit.
My apologies to Queen...
Flat bottomed girls,
they make the racin' world go round...
