Aero Isn't Sorcery

But this course can teach you to be a wizard

Have you ever looked at aero devices on a high-end racecar and wondered what on earth is going on?

Or perhaps you've wanted to design your own aerodynamic package but have no idea where to start or what to look for?

In just under 10 hours, this course is designed to teach you everything from the fundamentals of aerodynamics through to how flows behave in the most complex race car devices. It's not a CFD specific course, it's not a trackside specific course, but it will teach you how air moves around a car, and how you can manipulate it to achieve your design intent - maximum performance.

What are people saying about the course?

5 star rating

This got me into F1!

Gianpietro Esposito

This course will provide you with extremely high-quality knowledge, absolutely recommended. It is definitely worth the money if you want to really go deep in...

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This course will provide you with extremely high-quality knowledge, absolutely recommended. It is definitely worth the money if you want to really go deep into Race Car Aerodynamics! I would also suggest complementing it with videos from Kyle's YouTube channel, "KYLE.ENGINEERS", especially with those where he makes specific car analyses, in order to get more used to the concepts you find in this course!

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5 star rating

10/10

CHRIS FAIRCLOTH

I've taken a few other aerodynamics courses and this was by far the best value and the most comprehensive. It's covered the most material and I definitely le...

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I've taken a few other aerodynamics courses and this was by far the best value and the most comprehensive. It's covered the most material and I definitely learned the most. I can't wait to experiment with many of the things I learned here on my own car

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5 star rating

Course Review

Tiger Lee

This course is a great place to learn racecar aerodynamics concepts in great detail that I haven't seen outside of higher education. This is a great resource...

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This course is a great place to learn racecar aerodynamics concepts in great detail that I haven't seen outside of higher education. This is a great resource for aspiring FSAE/Formula Student engineers and people looking to get into designing an aero package for their own car.

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5 star rating

Got me into F1

bercan kilic

This was a fundamental course that really helped me to get an F1 aero placement role

This was a fundamental course that really helped me to get an F1 aero placement role

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5 star rating

if you want, go for it

Luiz Sampaio Athayde Neto

I can't imagine a more in depth view of Aerodynamics than this course. the cost is definitely high, (especially if you are from a country like Brazil, which ...

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I can't imagine a more in depth view of Aerodynamics than this course. the cost is definitely high, (especially if you are from a country like Brazil, which is my case) but it definitely worth it.

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5 star rating

Race Car Aerodynamics: the Definitive Course

Mohammad Reza Izady

When I started this course I had some background knowledge around the aerodynamics of race cars but as I progressed through this course my knowledge hugely i...

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When I started this course I had some background knowledge around the aerodynamics of race cars but as I progressed through this course my knowledge hugely improved or I would say completed in this area. I highly recommend it to any engineers, drivers, or enthusiasts to get the maximum performance out of their car.

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5 star rating

Top quality informations

Lorenzo Rastelli

I'm proceeding to get my mechanical engineering degree and this course has really helped me out in further understanding the dynamics and the important aspec...

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I'm proceeding to get my mechanical engineering degree and this course has really helped me out in further understanding the dynamics and the important aspects that goes in a project from the aerodynamic point of view. I had all the theory necessary to clearly understand the arguments, by the way, the fundamentals in the early chapter are more than enough also for a beginner. The course itself has been extremely nice and i've always felt engaged, thanks to the precious key features shared and the ability of Kyle to clearly expose the various arguments. I definitely recommend this course !

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5 star rating

Great course! Highly recommend

Callum Burgess

Very happy overall and looking forward to any future content. Great level of quality and quantity in information and knowledge, which is well put together an...

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Very happy overall and looking forward to any future content. Great level of quality and quantity in information and knowledge, which is well put together and presented. This is already helping me with my University studies, and professionally, working as a Motorsport Engineer. Looking forward to progressing this knowledge further with the design and application of future Aero packages. Would highly recommend, and excited for future courses to come!

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5 star rating

Interesting course

Jimmy Visshed

Lots of great info and examples showing the design of different devices. I am happy to have gotten the opportunity to get a deeper understanding of how aerod...

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Lots of great info and examples showing the design of different devices. I am happy to have gotten the opportunity to get a deeper understanding of how aerodynamics works, highly recommended!

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5 star rating

Race Car Aerodynamics - The Definitive Course.

Tyson Hoelscher

I was very impressed by the course. All the course components, videos and lessons were very interactive and very well delivered, including the software and s...

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I was very impressed by the course. All the course components, videos and lessons were very interactive and very well delivered, including the software and spreadsheets supplied including and explaining the mathematics used. It was definitely a booster to my engineering degree knowledge of fluid dynamics and how they are applied to the real world.

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5 star rating

Race car aerodynamics: the Definitive course.

dennis harris

The knowledge gap this fills is immense. The position in this gap is spot on. For once, we can feel our aero development is moving in a concise, authoritat...

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The knowledge gap this fills is immense. The position in this gap is spot on. For once, we can feel our aero development is moving in a concise, authoritative manner.

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5 star rating

An aerodynamics course with real development case studies

Guillaume Aragon

The aerodynamics course from JKF has been awaited but it does not disappoint at all. It covers a large part of aerodynamics, going from the fundamentals to a...

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The aerodynamics course from JKF has been awaited but it does not disappoint at all. It covers a large part of aerodynamics, going from the fundamentals to assessing on track performance. The order is very logical and helps us to understand aerodynamics from the roots, to developping a car. My favorite section? The 'Key Development Areas' where Kyle goes into details of pretty much every aero device, with a Touring Car and F1. You can see Cp and Cpt slides and some comparisons, which is quite rare on a course.

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Who is this course for?

This course is designed to appeal to a number of different groups. The course may be relevant to you if you are:

  • A university student looking to get ahead of their peers with high level aero knowledge
  • Someone looking to apply for a job in F1 as an aerodynamicist
  • An amateur or professional racer looking to maximise performance on their car
  • A professional aerodynamicist looking for an aero refresher
  • An engineer (racing or otherwise) looking to upskill into race car aerodynamics
  • Anyone with a keen interest in and passion for aerodynamics


The course starts at the fundamentals and builds from there, so as long as you are attentive and have reasonable problems solving skills, you shouldn't struggle to follow along. 

What you will learn:

  • Fundamentals of fluid flows

  • Basics of aerodynamic elements

  • How to control an aero platform

  • Design intents and features for aero devices

  • Single seater aerodynamics

  • Touring car aerodynamics

  • Methods of assessing aero performance on track

Will there be a Certificate?

Upon successful completion of the course each student will receive a certificate, complete with a certificate ID.

Will I be able to interact with other students?

Yes, there will be a community where you can interact with other students in the course and discuss race car aerodynamics!

Course Summary

What's in the course?

Course Overview and Meet Your Instructor

Does as it says on the tin, you get to meet Kyle, your instructor, and have a brief overview of how the course is going to work. There's also a list of some of the more common abbreviations and reference terms we will be using through the course

Why is Aero Important?

Seems like an obvious answer right? Better aero makes your car faster. But how does it do this? This section only has one video, discussing the fundamentals of why improved aerodynamics makes your car faster.  

Fundamentals of Aerodynamics

This section covers how air behaves, and is an essential part of the course. Without it, the content of the remaining sections makes very little sense. Here we cover all the fundamental concepts behind fluid flow such as:

-Why does an airfoil make lift?
-What causes pressure to change around an aerodynamic body and how can we manipulate this?
-What causes flow separation and stall?
-What is a vortex and how does it behave? What can we use them for?

We then finish up with a look at some software that we can design and analyse airfoils in.

Suspension and Aero Interaction

It's all well and good to design a nice aero kit, but how does that behave when you expose it to real world track conditions? This section looks at how aerodynamic devices on a car behave when exposed to the different conditions we see on the track, and how we have to make compromises between aero and suspension to get the best result. We also look at setting up basic lap simulations, and using the results of those to assist with your aero design program and track specific tuning.  

Key Aero Development Areas

This is the largest section of the course, making up 40% of the content by length. Here we cover the detail design of the various aero components on the car, working from front to back. We discuss both single seaters and open wheelers, giving practical design examples of geometrical changes and their effects on aero. This demonstrates what the key effects are of certain aero devices, as well as how you can design to solve certain aero issues on your car. 

Aero Development Methodologies Overview

While this is not a specific CFD or Wind Tunnel course, it is important to  understand the background of these development tools, how they work, and what data can be extracted from them. This section covers some of the fundamental theory behind these development methods, wrapping up with a discussion of rebalancing performance gains throughout aero development.

Basics of Assessing On-Track Performance

This course is not a track specific course, but in order to effectively apply the knowledge learned to your personal track or race car (especially if you do not have access to CFD), it is essential that you understand some methods of evaluating performance. Here we run through some basic techniques for working out track performance, and demonstrate how you can apply them to your car. This is followed by a discussion of some higher level track techniques as more of an interest piece. 

Conclusion

Finally we wrap up the course with a front to back run of the aero on a touring car and a single seater, then finish off the course.

Course Curriculum

  • 1

    Course Overview and Meet Your Instructor

  • 2

    Why is Aero Important?

    • Why is Aero Important?

  • 3

    Fundamentals of Aerodynamics and How They Apply to Race Cars

    • Bernoulli's principle and pressure differential

    • Curvature and flow acceleration, an alternative way of thinking

    • Boundary Layers

    • Adverse Pressure Gradient and Boundary Layer Separation

    • Circulation, The Kutta Condition, and Gurneys

    • Vortices Part 1 - Theory

    • Vortices Part 2 - Applications

    • Ground Proximity

    • Compressibility of Air and Reynolds Number

    • Sources of Drag

    • Exercise, Have a play for yourself!

    • Fundamentals Quiz

  • 4

    Suspension and Aero Interaction

    • Fundamentals of Car Aero

    • The Aero Map

    • The Drag Map

    • Aero Balance and Mech Balance - Balance Concepts and Mech Grip

    • Aero Balance and Mech Balance - Suspension Design and Integration with Aero

    • Ride Control and Aero Effects

    • Aero Characteristics and Through Corner Balance Shift

    • Aero and Suspension Design Prioritisation Summary

    • Suspension and Aero Quiz

  • 5

    Key Aero Development Areas

    • Flow Analysis Terminology and Conventions

    • Tyre Aerodynamics

    • Front lower - Introduction and Aims

    • Front Lower - Case Study

    • Front Lower - Outboard Devices

    • Front Lower - Application To Open Wheelers

    • Front Lower - Porpoising

    • Front Caketin

    • Front Upper

    • MID Lower and FWD Floor

    • MID Upper and Bodywork

    • RWD Floor

    • Diffuser - Fundamentals and Function

    • Diffuser - Roof Profile

    • Diffuser - Loss Management

    • Diffuser - Application to Single Seaters

    • Rear Caketin - Introduction and Single Seaters

    • Rear Caketin - Touring Cars

    • Rear Wing and Top Deck - Introduction and Positioning

    • Rear Wing and Top Deck - Mounting Sensitivities

      FREE PREVIEW
    • Rear Wing and Top Deck - Endplate Cutouts

    • Rear Wing and Top Deck - Angle of Attack Effects

    • Rear Wing and Top Deck - Rear Spoilers

    • Rear Wing and Top Deck - Additional Design Considerations

    • Adjusting Balance

    • Cooling Theory

    • Cooling Applications

    • Aero Development Quiz

  • 6

    Aero Development Methodologies Overview

    • CFD

    • Wind Tunnel Basics

    • How Do we Quantify a Gain?

  • 7

    Basics of Assessing on Track Performance

    • Flow Vis

    • Tufts

    • Coast Down and Straight Line Tests

    • Assessing raw data for loads

    • Lap Simulation and Comparison

    • Direct Suspension Loads

    • Pressure Taps

    • Rakes and Probes

    • Track Aero Quiz

  • 8

    Conclusion

    • Front To Rear Run - Touring Cars

    • Front To Rear Run - Single Seaters

    • Final Remarks

    • Feedback Survey

Instructor

Lead Aerodynamicist

Kyle Forster

Kyle returned to consulting in late 2020 after achieving a lifelong dream to work in Formula 1. As an Aerodynamicist with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team in three back-to-back World Championship years, Kyle took his 12 years of engineering study and research to the global cutting edge. Holding a PhD in aerodynamics from the University of New South Wales, Kyle’s research has been published in multiple top-ranking engineering journals. Kyle likes to bring his research into the real world, consulting with racing teams in all manner of classes around the world. He created the popular YouTube channel ‘KYLE.ENGINEERS’ (>200K subscribers) to further motorsports education in the public domain, as well as designed, built and raced his own buggy in the NSW Off-Road Racing Championship. Kyle founded JKF Consulting to work with ambitious motorsport teams and hobbyists looking to unlock winning gains through both proven and pioneering aerodynamic systems. Kyle will partner with you to achieve your goals, bringing you the latest international best practices while also working within tight timelines or budgets.

FAQ

  • How big is the course?

    To be precise, 9 hours and 56 minutes of pre-recorded video content. That's over half the size of the entire KYLE.ENGINEERS YouTube channel at the time of course launch. Of course, there is no need for you to sit down and watch it in one go, you can view it at your leisure. However we don't recommend you leave it alone for too long as you may need to refresh yourself on some of the earlier concepts of the course that the later parts build on.

  • Is the course maths heavy?

    There is some maths, but not much. The maths content was deliberately limited to improve accessibility, and if you don't understand the maths it should not limit your ability to understand the majority of the course. It is a heavily concept focused course, as opposed to mathematically driven.

  • Is this a CFD Course?

    No. This course uses plenty of CFD results to discuss the various flows around a car, as well as gives a background to CFD; however, it will not teach you how to run a CFD from scratch - that is a whole other course's worth of material.

  • Is this a Trackside Aero Course

    Not quite. Elements of trackside aerodynamics are covered to a basic level in this course. This should enable you to assess some of the basic characteristics (such as ballpark drag and downforce figures) of your car aero performance on track. However for a more in depth look at trackside aero we intend on launching a track aero course at a later date.

  • What currencies do you accept?

    At this point in time, the course is only for sale in USD.

  • What are the "deliverables" from the course? Is it a window of time to view the videos? Permission to view the videos forever? Downloads?

    The videos will all be available in an online course viewer, buying the course will give you access to the course forever, but the videos themselves will not be downloadable for security reasons. There are a few spreadsheet downloads in the course as well, located in the track analysis section.

  • Does the course address practical applications? Should a participant expect to be able to make aerodynamic decisions on their own track car?

    The course covers both the practical and theoretical elements of race car aero design. The 'Fundamentals' and 'Suspension and Aero Interaction' sections are mainly based on theory, however there are plenty of demonstrations in the 'Key Development Areas' section, that look at the effect of specific geometries on racecars. After taking the course you should be able to improve the aero kit on your track car, as well as set up the aero a bit better.

  • I am a college student but am not in aerodynamics or any field related to it. If I want to take the course just to see if I have interest in this field, will I be lost not having any education on the topic yet?

    The course is laid out to start at the beginnings and fundamentals of aerodynamics and work up from there. I would think you should be able to follow it, even without an engineering background. If you haven't struggled with most of the aero videos on the KYLE.ENGINEERS YoutTube channel then you should be fine!

  • I have a "road car" that I plan to make into a "track car". Would your course help me obtain more performance from my cars? How much of this course will be related to formula cars vs saloon cars?

    The course covers the aerodynamics of both Touring Cars and Single Seaters, so it should have you sorted. There's various recommendations for ballpark starting designs for splitters, diffusers etc which should be quite applicable to your car if you are planning on putting aero parts on it. Of course, if you are not planning on fitting aerodynamic devices the course won't really have much in the way of benefits. The fundamentals section of the course is quite generic, teaching principles that apply to generic aero components rather than being specific to a type of car. This also holds for the track aerodynamics section, as well as suspension and aero interaction. The Key Development Areas section, which goes into practical examples of racecar aerodynamic effects all around the car, is split about 60/40 Touring cars/Single seaters. However the principles discussed on both types of car are largely cross-applicable, and when they are not the course highlights what the differences are and how you have to design accordingly. 

All courses are subject to the JKF course terms, found here: courses.jkfaero.com/pages/terms

Master the Air

Understand what is going on with airflows around a racecar