Learned something very clever from the video about that odd "bump" along the belt line...
Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard
Aerodynamically, the one odd thing is that ridge on the beltline / door handles?
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JasonG
I agree that the door handle bumps need to go. Flush handles would look better and give the same results.
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That ridge comprises the doors' strength member for crash protection, and it permitted them to get better aerodynamic results than a more conventional design:
By mounting the "crash bars" externally (literally thinking outside the box!), they were able to make the rest of the doors thinner by an equivalent amount, which permits reduced frontal area, and increased body taper toward the rear.
The door thickness was reduced by 50 mm each by making the crash protection bar external.
Unconventional and smart! Ugly, perhaps. But let's remember we're pretty much just trained monkeys when it comes to thinking about what looks "nice" on cars.
I'm 100% in favour of functional designs that challenge our preconceived notions.