Quote:
Originally Posted by aerohead
...As to the 'fins',the Insight has been beat up by the press for crosswind handling issues and this may be a Bandaid for moving the center of pressure aft a bit,an idea patented by Fachsenfeld in the 1930's;something Kamm was obsessed about and used into the 1960s.
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The Insight uses relatively narrow tires; I found the OEM pressure settings are a bit low. Side wind sensitivety on the Insight is reduced significantly by raising the tire pressure to 2.8 bar/40 PSI or more.
I believe the curved rear bumper on the pre 2012 Insights is another cause and want to create a sharper edge to further reduce it.
Last week we had another severe storm directly across on the highway, pulsing and buffeting and all. It did influence steering, but was easy to manage by placing my hands at the proper height on the steering wheel. It was nowhere as bad as with the much milder storm when I just had the car and the tires were still on OEM pressure.
I think the fins help to prevent air from rolling from the sides to the 'boot' to enhance the kammback effect e.g. decrease the wake. It is a nice thought, maybe I'll try to reproduce that on my car.
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2011 Honda Insight + HID, LEDs, tiny PV panel, extra brake pad return springs, neutral wheel alignment, 44/42 PSI (air), PHEV light (inop), tightened wheel nut.
lifetime FE over 0.2 Gigameter or 0.13 Megamile.
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