Video: tuft testing front wheel skirts (Geo Metro)

[RacerX]

I know I'm coming in late here, A penny for everyone's thoughts on a full front wheel/tire cover. Kind of like a motorcycle fender that would hug the tire closely, Be bolted/welded to the strut body. An example would be like a rear fender on a full dresser bike but it would also have full sides....??

You could cover probably 7/8 of the tire....

[winkosmosis]

Originally Posted by RacerX

I know I'm coming in late here, A penny for everyone's thoughts on a full front wheel/tire cover. Kind of like a motorcycle fender that would hug the tire closely, Be bolted/welded to the strut body. An example would be like a rear fender on a full dresser bike but it would also have full sides....??

You could cover probably 7/8 of the tire....

Why not aero hubcaps?

[Bicycle Bob]

I did that on the Car-Cycle to avoid the need for inner fender wells. You still have the problem of some gaps to accommodate steering and suspension motion.

[MetroMPG]

I believe Ford also did an inner wheel pant, plus the flexible mebrane fender skirt on the Probe V concept.

[Istas]

The ASK 21 sailplane has a max speed (where this tape would have most effect) of 175mph (if you can find minimums, that'd be great) and is a streamlined body to begin with. Maybe the lower pressure offsets the velocity discrepancy - I'll have to do a quick calc a bit later

I don't know if it's what you meant by minimum, Trebuchet03, but the Wiki lists the "nominal" stall speed as a little over 40 mph.

Gliders are cool.

[timgo]

nit picking, in the video test of the skirts you should not have placed tuffs on the skirts.

[NeilBlanchard]

Huh? Why not, and how else are you going to "see" the air flow?

[timgo]

I would see these as needing three separate tests
Airflow without skirt – original tuffs
Airflow with skirt – original tuffs
Airflow over skirt – additional tuffs