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Originally Posted by FastPlastic
All the rigs I've seen have the connections dead center of the front of the trailer. So some how you would need to be able to get inside after docking the trailer to hook up the lines
From what I understand you can create the shape of a teardrop with separated panels with just a small loss compared to a smooth surface. I would think this would be the same sort of thing.
Another question is what about reefer and flat bed trailers? The cooling unit of a reefer would end up inside of the accordion.
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Getting inside would be pretty easy, just bungee it to the back of the sleeper while you want access to the front of the trailer.
You definitely don't want this to be covering a reefer unit that is running. The exhuast would be trapped, the air would get excessively hot. It would ruin both the accordion and the reefer.
You could probably design something that works with reefers, but the top half of the front of the trailer would be exposed and the savings would be much less. It is probably a waste of time.
Many flatbeds carry oversized loads that use the space between the trailer and sleeper for product overhang. (I run 3 trucks that regularly load 60 foot rebar, and 8 feet of it rests between the cab and the front edge of the trailer). For flatbeds that are dedicated to a lumber run or something that doesn't extend beyond the front of the trailer I think a modified accordion is a great idea. You have to modify it so that the trailer (and/or product) pushes the accordion out of the way in a turn but doesn't damage it (or the product), and doesn't interfere with the air lines..
Weight is an issue, but I can't imagine this thing weighing very much. Diesel weighs ~8 pounds/gallon.. I can see many owner/operator and fleet manager sacrificing the range of 15-20 gallons for the fuel savings, and thus increased range on the other 175 gallons in the tanks. If you could get 10% fuel savings out of it (though I doubt it would be that high), it would be the same weight even running 17 gallons less.
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I see lots of trucks with flip up air deflectors that the truckers never bother to crank down
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Most of those air deflectors are bolted in place. For most drivers it isn't their responsibility to save the company money by getting up there in the rain and unbolting it. Most companies wouldn't want the liability of having a driver get up there in the rain and risking falling. Don't blame the truckers for the companies failure to buy the right equipment for the truck. Those fairings belong on trucks pulling vans or reefers. Flatbeds would probably be best without anything up there, or a device that can be remotely lowered. Those things are really just a band aid for the crap design or the setup.
A lot of trucks (maybe even the majority) have the exhaust stacks sitting right behind the door, so they wouldn't interfere with the accordion. As an example most of my trucks have the exhaust coming out right in front of the first set of rear tires under the truck. This is probably hell on underbody aerodynamics, but it also doesn't interfere.