Which mass produced car is closest to a teardrop shape ?

[NeilBlanchard]

Hi,

I know this thread is looking for a mass produced car -- but this is a low drag shape (0.19Cd):


What production car looks kinda' like that?

[aerohead]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

I think it's a real Porsche 356.

Get a load of the prototype 356! (I guess it's a '48)

Beautiful! Frank,I think this is the 1939 60K10,or something like that,that Ferdinand Porsche personally drove between Stuttgart and Berlin.I think it had about 50-hp and could cruise at 90-mph.It is a "small Jaray car" form,and it appears that many German carmakers around this time were at least doing a few "one-offs" to check the performance of Jaray's claims.Delicious!

[aerohead]

The 1989 GM Impact/EV-1/EV-2 scored Cd0.188 .While a "production" car,it was never "sold",so I don't know if it qualifies as the lowest or most teardrop.In the archives,in the Phil Knox aerodynamic photos,there is an overhead photo of these cars which show the plan taper beginning at mid-door,and progressively tapering as the body proceeds aft.At Fort Stockton,Texas,the GM team added an aluminum boattail,along with flat wheelcovers and ductape,and pushed the car to 183-mph for a closed-course land speed record.There's a photo of that car over in the archives also.----------------- To my knowledge,the HONDA Insight,at Cd0.25,remains the lowest drag production car ever offered in the U.S..There are many cars now with Cd0.26,although with larger frontal areas.----------- The Lotus Europa/Elan mentioned by others,sold in the 1960s is rated at Cd0.29 but has extremely small frontal area and may be one of the candidates for lowest CDA.It does not look "teardropped" at all.----------------------- And final note,and this is pretty anal,but the Toyota Ra-Ra,solar car,which is a street-legal production car,sold in Japan only,would probably qualify as the most "teardropped" and would,with closed-canopy,have a Cd on the order of 0.12.

[metroschultz]

Hey Phil,
How about weighing in on one that perhaps us poor people could buy from a junkyard and play with.
I was thinking of the Ford Probe.
I have no numbers but, from what I remember they were designed with aero in mind from the factory.
Also their sister car the Mazda MX6.
Both are relatively inexpensive if you were to buy a rolling assembly from a bone yard and add your own drivetrain.

I'm thinking take my Metro/Swift engine /trans and put in a stripped out Probe rolling chassis.

I would play the devil getting the weight out (and for the suspension I would not be able to remove weight), but what about the possabilities for aero on something like that?
Schultz

[trebuchet03]

Originally Posted by metroschultz

I'm thinking take my Metro/Swift engine /trans and put in a stripped out Probe rolling chassis.

As long as you don't use the cd4e slushbox Fords transmission well known for a high failure rates :/ It's why I ended up selling my 626...

[Christ]

Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard

Hi,

I know this thread is looking for a mass produced car -- but this is a low drag shape (0.19Cd):


What production car looks kinda' like that?

Thing kinda reminds me of the CR-Z and the Insight... except someone removed the nose... It's cute though.

[Christ]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

Probes came with Metro trannies?

No, the CD4E is actually a Mazda design that was employed by Ford. It may share a part number with the Metro's tranny, but the Metro's design is Suzuki/Geo/Chevrolet/Toyota-based, and completely dissimilar.

[Tango Charlie]

1950 Nash



Or watch the video on this page. Now there's some automobiles that will make you drool!

[bryn]

my van is only .30 stock .cd according to gm. I think bluebook value is down to about $800, with all plastic body pannels rust won't be a problem. with a engine/trans swap mpg could be pretty good. besides with seat belts for 7, car pooling is easy.

[Christ]

The Silhouette is not that bad.. except, again, the hatchback rear config... It could also benefit from a Kammback or boattail with some pretty extreme benefits...

When GM says the Cd is .30, they're not giving you the proper figure... what's the actual frontal area of your nearly 7 foot tall van? When you figure that in, you're not getting that great of a deal.

Swapping a Metro/Swift 3 cylinder into that van could be relatively easy though, just as Honda guys have swapped anything and everything they could into their cars...

With enough work, even the D15Z1 could fit into it.. although it would have to be mounted "backwards" of the original GM design, since Honda engines spin backwards.