Hucho's 4th edition from 1999 has a few things to say about ideal shapes and research into road vehicle aerodynamics. On pages 224-229, and a few other places, Hucho describes aerodynamics as a field in which not all relevant research has a specific car or specific part in focus. There are ideal shapes derived from basic research. In fact, Hucho's book can be read as a history of the rise of “detail optimization” and “shape optimization” as ways of compromising “ideal" shapes with market and other design requirements.
As gumby79 said: “dream big, chisel down to reality.” Julian’s throttle stop testing method is one of the good testing methods for chiseling, and a knowledge of some of this theory is also useful.
Hucho (4th Ed.), p.51:
