Louvers are used over the fenders of sportscars to relive high pressure that builds up from the fast spinning tire, and from the complex interaction of air flowing in, out, and through the wheel arch.

The general rule is the more air you can extract from the wheel well, the better. On street courses, prototype teams will usually sport the biggest, longest, and most aggressive forms of louvers to vent air and create downforce. Another aspect of most louvers is their taller height (to give air a ‘chimney’ to flow out from) – that extra height adds more volume to the outer profile of the car—making a bigger hole for the passing air to go over and thus reducing straightline speed.

Link: http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/artic...on-prototypes/

With less than a week to go until the 2015 Lexus RC F makes its debut at the Detroit Auto Show, Lexus has given us a sneak peek at its upcoming performance coupe. Earlier this week, Autoblog was granted were the opportunity for an intimate studio photo shoot with the RC F outside of the bright lights and big crowds sure to surround the coupe at Cobo Hall next week.

Compared to the hybrid version of the all-new RC we saw at the Tokyo Motor Show last year, the RC F has noticeably more aggressive styling. The cartoonishly oversized Lexus spindle grille gets a mesh insert pattern and is flanked by massive intakes in the lower fascia. To make room for what is expected to be a bigger V8 engine, the hood sits higher and is vented, but like many details about the RC F, Lexus is keeping the engine's size and output under wraps (although we have a sneaking suspicion it'll have 460 horsepower).

Lexus RC F interior - steering wheel closeupA trio of 19-inch wheel options will be available (including a set that is hand-polished), and the side sills and rear fascia have been modified for F duty. The biggest styling change on the RC F, however, is the LFA-inspired active rear wing that rises at speeds above 50 miles per hour for improved traction and stability. Carrying over cues from the current IS F, the RC F features air outlets behind the front wheel openings and angle-stacked exhaust outlets at the rear of the car.

For the most part, the interior is very similar to what is currently found in the 2014 IS, but there are few notable distinctions. Those includes performance bucket front seats, a thicker steering wheel, and a reconfigurable gauge cluster (similar to what's found in the IS F Sport) along with the addition of a smaller analog speedometer. One interesting difference is the center console, where the drive mode selector has been moved closer to the passenger seat and a touchpad has been situated where we would expect to find Lexus' mouse-like Remote Touch controller. Could Lexus be telegraphing that it will soon be abandoning this controversial infotainment control scheme?

Scroll down for a press release breaking down the design and styling of the 2015 RC F, and sit tight – next Tuesday we'll have more in-depth information about the RC in both its base RC 350 and performance RC F guises.