[cfg83]

Xringer -

Here's the answer from one of the designers :

Short version would likely be that there was a point of dimishing return on the length.

Everything on that car was an issue of weight (each system team received an allocation of weight in grams), aerodynamics, and cost- with the first two very much taking precedent. Folks are right to speculate that for the skirt to have been longer and follow the body of the car, it would have had to curve in, hitting the wheel itself. So to make it longer, it would have had to curve out, increasing the drag and defeating the purpose. Also, the rear wheels were about 7" closer together than the front wheels, giving yet another curve to deal with. At the end of the day, the EV1 was the most aerodynamic production car ever built, with a drag coefficient of .19- when you get that low, squeezing out any more becomes that much more difficult.

Your friend might be interested in reading a fascinating book about the development of the EV1- it's called "The Car that Could", by Michael Schnayerson.

EDIT: Here's the book :
http://www.amazon.com/Car-That-Could.../dp/067942105X

CarloSW2