Quote:
Originally Posted by miket
http://www.evworld.com/images/pknox_bellypan.jpg
I can't really see what you did around the axles and wheels.
I would love to have an inflatable airplane.
Document sans titre
Woopy-Fly Inflatable Wing Aircraft
Im imagining some sort of shape memory alloy springs that when heated shrinks the inflatable truck tail like accordion or roll up the tail like a sleeping bag. Or a rope that pulls the tail up and over the vehicle. Realistically i would probably get out and fold it up on the street before i entered a parking lot lol.
The current cap is a foot taller than the cab, im going to try and buy a used utility cap, i would like to have the flip up sides and not have the equipment so visible though big glass windows. Some of those utilty caps dont have a radius on the rear and top corners. Sharp edges are bad right? A shorter cap level with the cab would reduce rear area by 4sq feet.
a 2"f/4"r lowering kit would be very pricey but i could lower the rear 2" with a $60 pair of drop shackles if that would be a good idea. I'd probably have the clearance above the diffuser to do it.
I wish the truck had one of those engines that shuts off half of the 8 cylinders while cruising.
Yes i could attach the tail to the trailer hitch or flip up cap door, roof racks etc. I wonder how much a 5ft long tail would reduce cd and improve mpg at 65mph?
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miket,the area around the front wheels is just open for all the area of wheel flop.I've made no effort to dial in all the little nuances.
The area at the rear axle is open allowing full extension of the axle.There's nothing remarkable about any of it.
My tail rolled up like a sleeping bag with a couple cinch straps to hold when stowed.
Next phase has a hinged,rigid 2-pc bottom which folds down,exposing the envelope which inflates also with fan.
A mechanical reversing valve switches action to evacuate the bag and a simple cable/pulley system folds the bottom panels and draws it to the stowed and locked position.
With respect to your cap,my friend switched a 10-inch taller than cab height box for a cab height box and picked up 3.6 mpg hwy.
Jeeps have a swing-away spare tire holder which might serve you for a tail mount.Parked at the curb you just unlatch and swing to access the utility bed.A 12-VDC umbilical 'hinges' with it to power the tail.
I would recommend you not drop the rear unless you can match it at the front.A negative rake,I believe,would work against you.
18-inches of structure worked out to about 24-inches of tail on my VW Bus,due to the radius at the back of VW's body.That got me 4-mpg.5-feet would be pretty remarkable considering what 44-inches did on the Chrysler Airflow.