Quote:
Originally Posted by vtec-e
Hypermiling doesn't work an engine hard does it? So remove the radiator and install a custom built (tubular?) heat exchanger...
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Problem is, you have to design the system to handle the worst case, which might be for instance climbing over a Sierra pass on a hot summer day - something I do quite often, as it happens.
I drive an Insight, and have a ScanGauge which is usually monitoring coolant temp. (I run a partial radiator block most of the year, taking it out for climbs in spring & fall.) On level ground it will maintain its 195F thermostat temperature, unless it's pretty cold, so you could get away with a size reduction akin to my block. On a long climb, though, temps can go to 208-210F. With a smaller radiator, they'd go even higher.
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Something I've wondered about is whether the heated air could be exhausted at strategic locations in order to reduce drag. It seems you'd have a mild ramjet effect, since the air going through the radiator is heated, and so expands. Some of the diagrams seem to be taking advantage of this, but is there anything more explicit?