Since you're in the design concept phase of this build, do you mind if I throw out a thought that's been bouncing around in the empty space between my ears for a while? Please keep in mind that I'm a bike guy with very little LSR experience even in that, and feel free to discard anything I may come up with, like I said, it's just a thought.
Side wind forces are always a concern, since it is impossible to plan on getting a run with absolutely no wind. Side winds have the effect of creating uneven aerodynamic forces side to side and destabilizing the vehicle, and possibly adding drag as well. Aircraft deal with this problem by "crabbing" in flight, keeping the air flow straight down the fuselage and the forces balanced.
Why shouldn't streamliners be designed to do the same thing? If the rear suspension was designed like the front, with provisions for the wheels to have a
small amount of self steering, it would allow the car to "weather vane" and self adjust to small side winds that are encountered during the run.
Of course, for this to work and be safe, the caster, camber, and toe would all need to be carefully thought out, and the total steering angle would have to be very limited, with the action heavily damped to prevent it from going into a tail wagging situation. The actual steering would still be done by the front wheels, and no doubt the driver would experience a different sensation with the rear of the vehicle moving off center, but probably not any worse than that of driving a car down a gravel road.
A 4MPH side wind at 200MPH would be a 2% ratio, and it would get smaller as speed increased. Allowing the rear of the vehicle to "weather vane" just a couple of degrees to either side would seem to be enough to maintain airflow straight down the body, which would eliminate side loading on the tires and potentially make the vehicle more stable, if my idea is any where close to right.
So, what do you folks think? Am I completely full of crap here?