Quote:
Originally Posted by j-c-c
Inflation accounts for the increase from $64,000? 
Seriously, you mean your cost estimate for wind tunnel analysis, CFD, and/or real world implementation?
I was hoping someone had an educated guess for what I was trying to do, and how likely I might gain satisfactory results.
I haven't seen or read about this concept except maybe in wind tunnel ground plane boundary air reduction. |
There have been articles about Ferrari doing things like this,and it required $100,000 at Pininfarina's or their own facility to nail down a solution.
You must know where you are to begin with.You must know every effect of every modification,and unforeseen consequences which may have never been anticipated.It's a reason why some racing teams are now $multibillion operations.
A full-scale clay model,drilled with static pressure ports all over the body,hooked to hundreds of manometers,to be photographed and captured simultaneously, would be necessary to determine present conditions.From that you'd begin to search for pressure differentials which would,while providing advantageous locations to 'tap,' also occur on the body where a NACA submerged duct,piping,and extractor could physically be cut into the body in order to take advantage of these sites.
After the modification is made,the car would now have to be tested to see if it were trending in the right direction,or if you'd introduced some deleterious complication.
It's an iterative process,step by step,potentially covering hundreds of hours in a wind tunnel.'Industry' tunnels used to cost $1,800 /hour (Lockheed Marietta,Georgia).You'd have to be an automaker or race team to even get in there.Typically,NASCAR teams have already reserved all available tunnel time,years in advance.I tried,as Independence Technological Works in 1991.They told me they'd let me in,but I'd have to wait years.And that was at $1,800/hr..I ended up paying CAR and DRIVER for testing at the Chrysler Proving Grounds.
A2 Wind Tunnel has a two-hour introductory rate of $480/hr, after which it becomes $500/hr..It all goes back to the story about the fella walking into the speed shop and asking the owner how fast he can make his car go,with the owner responding,'How much money do you have?'