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Originally Posted by kach22i
Fantastic thread, photos and captions VMAN455.
I think it makes for a strong argument that aerodynamics is no longer considered a nuisance, it is a necessity.
Keeping in mind that every dollar saved is a million dollars in profit ( someone claimed in the forum earlier), and that every item added adds weight ( and weight is the enemy) - then all these pans and aero-tabs fought for their right to exist though a very caustic political process within their respective companies - and won.
This is indeed an aerodynamic evolution.
Mostly seen by getting on your back and snapping a picture.
When aerodynamics is allowed to rise off it's back, then it will have gone up the food chain. Right now aerodynamics is best appreciated by snakes and worms crawling on their belly.  |
Airflow management under the cars appears to have little convergence toward any sort of "ideal" like we've seen in things like backlight angles--the industry hasn't reached any consensus beyond "wheel air dams and closeout panels work"--but how big, how much coverage, placement, all vary widely.
A new thing this year is some sort of fibrous covering on closeout panels; I wonder if this is for noise reduction, as the resonance of the (thin) plastic panels is damped significantly.
And, as usual, I was the only person looking under cars. An attendant at the Mercedes booth said, after seeing me take a picture of the front wheel air dam, "You don't need to pray; you can get the car." When I said the underside of the car was the most interesting part, he didn't seem to understand.