Hills and Bumps!!!

[raj]

Do you have any pictures of the bottom of the car? I don't think there would be that much structural damage, but you should always take precautions and check with service.

I know you said you didn't hit the front, but do check the airfoils there. They come off easily.

I can’t see anything to photograph. There must be a scrape somewhere but it wasn’t really practical to get right down on the ground in a parking lot in my work clothes! I just drove back over the same hump on the way out of the lot, this time at about 1mph, and it just barely kissed the concrete. I guess on the way in the suspension was still rebounding from the front wheels going over the top and that is why it was a bigger bump. I don’t think it is damaged

 

[raj]

Should be fine. I've done that quite a few times just some scratches on the bottom plate.. now I drive like I did when I had a rice rocket.

I’ll be a lot more cautious now! It just wasn’t even something I thought about as I drove in to the lot, it’s such a small bump

 

[xponents]

I can’t see anything to photograph. There must be a scrape somewhere but it wasn’t really practical to get right down on the ground in a parking lot in my work clothes! I just drove back over the same hump on the way out of the lot, this time at about 1mph, and it just barely kissed the concrete. I guess on the way in the suspension was still rebounding from the front wheels going over the top and that is why it was a bigger bump. I don’t think it is damaged

A tip for this, if you put it in sprint or swift mode, the suspension becomes stiffer and therefore less likely to be scraped.

 

[raj]

A tip for this, if you put it in sprint or swift mode, the suspension becomes stiffer and therefore less likely to be scraped.

I literally never use those modes, it already has more torque than I need! Will give it a try though

 

[joec]

I literally never use those modes, it already has more torque than I need! Will give it a try though

It works great for speed bumps. I imagine it would help a bit on this, too.

 

[momo3605]

I literally never use those modes, it already has more torque than I need! Will give it a try though

you drive in comfort all the time?

 

[raj]

you drive in comfort all the time?

Most of my miles are suburban and short stretches of highway. Never felt the need for a more aggressive setup

 

[Genghis]

Check your air dams (the rubber air directors/foils in front of your tires). Those will get caught on cracked bumps like that. I've lost two of them from going over broken driveways. You can get them from Lucid service for about $15/each.

 

[raj]

Check your air dams (the rubber air directors/foils in front of your tires). Those will get caught on cracked bumps like that. I've lost two of them from going over broken driveways. You can get them from Lucid service for about $15/each.

Thanks for the tip. The air dams are fine. I didn't have a problem with the approach angle, it was the ramp breakover angle that that caused the car to scrape between the front and rear wheels going over the apex of the ramp

 

[xponents]

Thanks for the tip. The air dams are fine. I didn't have a problem with the approach angle, it was the ramp breakover angle that that caused the car to scrape between the front and rear wheels going over the apex of the ramp

I wish somebody could make a lift system that doesnt significantly interfere with the genius rawlinson engineered coils, kind of like the 911.

 

[raj]

I wish somebody could make a lift system that doesnt significantly interfere with the genius rawlinson engineered coils, kind of like the 911.

I've been thinking about this today after my bump. Instead of a lift system, we need a variable wheel base. Move the wheels apart to improve approach and departure angles, or closer together to improve the ramp breakover angle, all without impacting the aerodynamic benefits of a low ride height.

 

[Amster]

Thanks for the tip. The air dams are fine. I didn't have a problem with the approach angle, it was the ramp breakover angle that that caused the car to scrape between the front and rear wheels going over the apex of the ramp

This is the exit ramp to the garage I park in at work. It doesn't look that bad, but if I exit at 7mph max over this or have anyone in the back seat, it scrapes hard. There's no room to angle the car. It didn't seem to damage it, but I didn't like the sound.

 

[raj]

This is the exit ramp to the garage I park in at work. It doesn't look that bad, but if I exit at 7mph max over this or have anyone in the back seat, it scrapes hard. There's no room to angle the car. It didn't seem to damage it, but I didn't like the sound.

Yeah, it’s shocking to me that it can’t handle that

 

[xponents]

I've been thinking about this today after my bump. Instead of a lift system, we need a variable wheel base. Move the wheels apart to improve approach and departure angles, or closer together to improve the ramp breakover angle, all without impacting the aerodynamic benefits of a low ride height.

Is that even possible? The only car I can think of that has the mechanical ability to do that is maybe the Citroen 2-CV from the 20th century...

But it is a good, if not needlessly complicated idea that would make repairs expensive. After all, the front lift system can hydraulically revert back to the original aerodynamic stance and automatically heighten it at the push of a button.

 

[DBV]

This is the exit ramp to the garage I park in at work. It doesn't look that bad, but if I exit at 7mph max over this or have anyone in the back seat, it scrapes hard. There's no room to angle the car. It didn't seem to damage it, but I didn't like the sound.

That is too bad it scrapes. Surprised it can’t handle that, as does not look that bad.

 

[raj]

Is that even possible? The only car I can think of that has the mechanical ability to do that is maybe the Citroen 2-CV from the 20th century...

But it is a good, if not needlessly complicated idea that would make repairs expensive. After all, the front lift system can hydraulically revert back to the original aerodynamic stance and automatically heighten it at the push of a button.

It was just a silly thought I had. Then I realized that any car mod you can imagine has already been done by somebody, so I googled expecting to find a back yard hack job. Instead I found this from Audi https://www.autoweek.com/news/future-cars/a37265670/audi-skysphere-concept/

 

[xponents]

It was just a silly thought I had. Then I realized that any car mod you can imagine has already been done by somebody, so I googled expecting to find a back yard hack job. Instead I found this from Audi https://www.autoweek.com/news/future-cars/a37265670/audi-skysphere-concept/

Audi -sphere concepts are absolutely ridiculous. Its a shame they don't build anything like that. As its a concept though it already looks like its scraping the floor, lol.

This is a diagram of the 2CV's suspension, and I suspect with some modifications it could be able to have a variable wheelbase.

 

[raj]

Audi -sphere concepts are absolutely ridiculous. Its a shame they don't build anything like that. As its a concept though it already looks like its scraping the floor, lol.


View attachment 16701
This is a diagram of the 2CV's suspension, and I suspect with some modifications it could be able to have a variable wheelbase.

That is awesome. I knew the 2CV was intended to carry a basket of eggs across a field, but I didn’t know how the suspension was designed. Now I would like to see a mash up of a Lucid air with running gear from a 2CV!

 

[chinesejpl]

For the sake of aerodynamics, our cars are this low leading to 2 unfortunate consequences - bottoming out on things we didn't think we would and banging our heads on the roof while trying to get into the car

 

[goodone]

Would tire size make any difference on the scraping? 21" vs 19"?