Local wind effects on race car Lap time dynamics
Local wind effects on race car Lap time dynamics
Lap time simulations are used to ascertain the overall performance of a car around a given track. The track selected here is Silverstone in its modern configuration. A high-fidelity Large-eddy Simulation (LES) with an efficient synthetic turbulence generation method is used to simulate the turbulent
atmospheric boundary layer. The LES-generated local wind data around the Silverstone circuit and the surrounding area are analysed. The sampled local wind data using terrain following sensors are converted into headwind and crosswind components based on local track direction. The headwind data are used in the calculation of aerodynamic coefficients (e.g. downforce and drag) in the lap time simulator. Lap times are estimated to take account of track-local winds, and are compared against data from a single averaged wind velocity and those with no wind. This process is repeated eight times to assess the impact of varying wind directions, with simulations conducted at increments of 45◦. We found the track-local winds produce evident impacts on lap times and highlights the importance of track-local winds in the lap time simulator.
local wind, race car aerodynamics, lap time, silverstone tack, turbulence
Coburn, Matthew R.
0ee79550-a5f4-470c-a8eb-5354ee9369c8
Angland, David
b86880c6-31fa-452b-ada8-4bbd83cda47f
Xie, Zheng-Tong
98ced75d-5617-4c2d-b20f-7038c54f4ff0
Coburn, Matthew R.
0ee79550-a5f4-470c-a8eb-5354ee9369c8
Angland, David
b86880c6-31fa-452b-ada8-4bbd83cda47f
Xie, Zheng-Tong
98ced75d-5617-4c2d-b20f-7038c54f4ff0
Coburn, Matthew R., Angland, David and Xie, Zheng-Tong
(2026)
Local wind effects on race car Lap time dynamics.
Advances in Wind Engineering.
(doi:10.1016/j.awe.2026.100133).
(In Press)
Abstract
Lap time simulations are used to ascertain the overall performance of a car around a given track. The track selected here is Silverstone in its modern configuration. A high-fidelity Large-eddy Simulation (LES) with an efficient synthetic turbulence generation method is used to simulate the turbulent
atmospheric boundary layer. The LES-generated local wind data around the Silverstone circuit and the surrounding area are analysed. The sampled local wind data using terrain following sensors are converted into headwind and crosswind components based on local track direction. The headwind data are used in the calculation of aerodynamic coefficients (e.g. downforce and drag) in the lap time simulator. Lap times are estimated to take account of track-local winds, and are compared against data from a single averaged wind velocity and those with no wind. This process is repeated eight times to assess the impact of varying wind directions, with simulations conducted at increments of 45◦. We found the track-local winds produce evident impacts on lap times and highlights the importance of track-local winds in the lap time simulator.
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Submitted date: 15 December 2025
Accepted/In Press date: 25 May 2026
Keywords:
local wind, race car aerodynamics, lap time, silverstone tack, turbulence
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 508996
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/508996
ISSN: 2950-6018
PURE UUID: 2a5ac9e1-492c-4394-9aa1-b667185275b8
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Date deposited: 27 May 2026 16:30
Last modified: 03 Jun 2026 01:40
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Author:
Matthew R. Coburn
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