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Old 12-14-2011, 11:46 AM   #70 (permalink)
ChazInMT
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Vero Beach, FL
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MagMetalCivic - '04 Honda Civic Sedan EX
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ecoxantia View Post
What reynolds number are people aiming at with their FI settings? I read that a real car would be 10^5 or so; however FI doesn't like it that high. Then again we are talking pretty pictures not real life...
Yes, if you know what the air flow around your car is supposed to look like, then this will illustrate what you have in your head by tweaking the Velocity & Viscosity. The real world Reynolds numbers are Totally Non-Applicable in this program, they always have been. Even in the old online version it was N/A, but people ignored that part of the programmers notes about it.

Keep in mind that these are 2D illustrations as well, cars live in a 3D world.

So, this will let you make a movie of what you think flow will look like and, if you have a little idea about what it might be, you can make changes and see what they might look like. Not perfect by any means, but it's free, simple, and gets people thinking about aerodynamics while having some fun.

Bottom line, This is not a wind tunnel simulator. It makes pretty pictures. But there is some truth to using it as a design analysis tool, it would be like measuring the length of your car by driving it onto a football field and using the yard markers, you will not know precisely how many inches long it is.
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