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Old 06-04-2012, 06:54 PM   #9 (permalink)
aerohead
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard View Post
A car is three dimensional, so the 2D profile of an airfoil is only part of the picture. the sides should be tapered -- in fact, the sides can be tapered about as much as the top, and since the taper happens on both sides, this would shortened the length quite a bit, and end up forming a "fish tail".

Look at the Edison2 VLC (Very Light Car) for an example of this. The VLC was tested in the GM wind tunnel and got a Cd (using the older SAE formulas) of 0.145; so this is comparable with most of the Cd numbers we have used here on EM. The newer SAE formulas gave a Cd of 0.164. The VLC has a relatively "pointy" front end and outboard wheels, so if you apply the above profile to a chassis that has enclosed wheels (and a much narrower rear wheel track), then the Cd could likely be even lower.
Neil,I did post a front elevation and plan-view of the 'Template' but I had to do it with a separate thread.I'd have to dig back to find it.
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'new images for 'template' ' is the other thread where the other views are.These were just drawings that were in the works.When you see Jaray's,Lay's,Koenig-Fachsenfeld/Kamm,and Korff's plan-tapers,you'll see where I was going.

Last edited by aerohead; 06-04-2012 at 07:11 PM.. Reason: add data
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