Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com - View Single Post - Mesilla Valley Trucking (adding folding boat tail panels to "bondo" Herndon aerolid?)

aerostealth · 12-29-2014, 12:16 AM

I have a Herndon Aerolid for my 2014 Ford F 150 4X4 Super Crew Cab with a 6.5 ft. bed. I also got a hitch mounted boat tail from Brett which I am considering boat tail extension mods for. Have any of you ever seen a Semi Truck rig from Mesilla Valley Trucking? They have these triangular shaped panels that are hinged to the rear of the trailer and fold out to make a boat tail. I am thinking of making a miniature version of this for the boat tail of my truck. The current boat tail adds 25 inches to my length and I only use it for trips. The wake area is 13.7 sq. ft. and I think we can reduce the wake area to 7 or 8 sq. ft.. They need to be able to fold inward to stow away for city driving, parking lots and such. It would be interesting to find out how much that would lower the Cd from it's 0.30 with the boat tail. Something in the Cd= 0.26 range would be nice but that would take some other mods. I would settle for a solid 0.28. Belly pans and wheel covers are a natural next step also. The large Ford mirrors probably cost me 3 HP but are problematic to much of anything about.

12-29-2014, 12:16 AM	#1 (permalink)
aerostealth Master EcoModder Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Radium Springs, NM Posts: 465 Ford XLT Naked - '14 Ford F-150 XLT 90 day: 15.04 mpg (US) Ford G-4 with Stinger - '14 Ford F-150 4X4 Super Crew XLT 90 day: 19.8 mpg (US) Ford Stealth G-4 - '14 Ford F-150 4X4 Super Crew XLT 90 day: 18.06 mpg (US) XLT Towing Keystone 5th wheel trailer - '14 Ford Keystone 5th Wheel XLT 90 day: 9.03 mpg (US) Trip 2015 C Max Energi - '15 Ford C Max Energi SWP 90 day: 38.2 mpg (US) Local 120 volt 2015 C-Max Energi - '15 Ford C-Max Energy SEL 90 day: 55.65 mpg (US) Local 240 volt 2015 C-Max Energi - '15 Ford C Max Energi SLE 90 day: 57.63 mpg (US) Energi Combined - '15 C Max Energi Leather 90 day: 51.2 mpg (US) MoonDust for Travel - '19 Chevrolet Bolt LT 90 day: 123.11 mpg (US) MoonDust 3 with 90% CE - '19 Chevy Bolt LT 90 day: 127.57 mpg (US) Ecopia IV - '19 Chevy Bolt Lt 90 day: 126.39 mpg (US) Ecopia IV Trip Log - '19 Chevy Bolt LT 90 day: 121.01 mpg (US) Rate Rider Chevy Bolt - '19 Chevrolet Bolt LT-2 90 day: 123.16 mpg (US) Teal Force One - '24 Hyundai Ioniq 5 SEL 90 day: 93.28 mpg (US) Thanks: 2 Thanked 528 Times in 278 Posts	Mesilla Valley Trucking (adding folding boat tail panels to "bondo" Herndon aerolid?) I have a Herndon Aerolid for my 2014 Ford F 150 4X4 Super Crew Cab with a 6.5 ft. bed. I also got a hitch mounted boat tail from Brett which I am considering boat tail extension mods for. Have any of you ever seen a Semi Truck rig from Mesilla Valley Trucking? They have these triangular shaped panels that are hinged to the rear of the trailer and fold out to make a boat tail. I am thinking of making a miniature version of this for the boat tail of my truck. The current boat tail adds 25 inches to my length and I only use it for trips. The wake area is 13.7 sq. ft. and I think we can reduce the wake area to 7 or 8 sq. ft.. They need to be able to fold inward to stow away for city driving, parking lots and such. It would be interesting to find out how much that would lower the Cd from it's 0.30 with the boat tail. Something in the Cd= 0.26 range would be nice but that would take some other mods. I would settle for a solid 0.28. Belly pans and wheel covers are a natural next step also. The large Ford mirrors probably cost me 3 HP but are problematic to much of anything about.