[jime57]

With all the talk of first gen Insight boattails, which interest me considerabley, the engineer in me begins to emerge. Specifically, I'm beginning to stategize as to the most cost effective and flexible way to get the data on performance. I want a practical boattail, but I don't want to invest a fortune on something which will be proven by the data to be ineffective. Rolling it over mentally, I think I see an approach which will gather the relevant data and get me pointed in the right direction - leveraging on the work that RobertSmall and botsapper and 3-wheeler have already invested. (BTW, my Hucho arrives any day now!) Since I have extra vehicles, and a garage, I do not have to drive the Insight during construction or modification. My approach goes like this.

1. Test the baseline car for Cd and fuel economy under know and stable conditions, as best as driving technique and conditions allow.

2. Using corregated cardboard, add a rear underbelly, AND build a "first effort" boattail, largely after the MetroMPG model of ribs, cardboard and garbage bag covering.

3. Test using yarn tufts and a webcam. Make any required modifications.

4. Test for fuel economy and Cd.

5. Once the "prototype" is firmly established and tested, then, and only then, move on to a more permanent construction method, such as fiberglas over foam.

6. Finish the project with a coat of professionally applied matching paint.

How does this sound strategy wise?