Random UnAerodynamic Cars and Trucks Thread

[Frank Lee]

Someone with a tall bike wants to set a speed record behind that pace car?

It might rotate at speed and end up sliding down the road on it's butt.

[RedDevil]

That Smart has a hitch. I bet this is indeed done for aerodynamic purposes.
It is tall and narrow, so the trailer should be too. Horse box?

The exhaust pipes are wasteful though. Not even functional.

[retr34]

some of them looks so terrific, dream about do in my toyota GTX this kind of layout.

[kach22i]

Breaks my heart to put this car in the unaerodynamic thread.................but the truth is the truth.

Eyes on Design - 2018
Cell phone photos.

[freebeard]

Open wheels, big frontal and wet areas and not enough taper in plan?

[kach22i]

Originally Posted by freebeard

Open wheels, big frontal and wet areas and not enough taper in plan?

Yea, I think those are the reasons typically given.

Also those rear wheels are just drag humps, they are not true fairings in an aerodynamic sense.

I'm not sure about the phrase "frontal area" or "big frontal area" in regards to this vehicle.

I think despite the wings it has a small "A" in the CdA formula, and isn't that the frontal area or area known as large case "A"?

The "A" is very small on this car in my opinion.

In short, it's the wheels both front and back that make this a high drag car.

In my mind the slim wings, bubble canopy and even pointy nose more than make up for the wheels in a gross energy consumption kind of way. However, that may be my imagination being manipulated by the designers use of a cliche aerodynamic vocabulary.

Like putting a wing on a car makes it go faster, not always the case, just case of "association" (small case - haha).

EDIT: an article that includes "frontal area".

An Introduction to Automobile Aerodynamics
https://mechanixillustrated.technica...-aerodynamics/


The simplest explanation I could find on the Internet is below, the Quora ones are very complex and detailed.

https://www.purplezeus.com/aerodynamics.html

As the aircraft moves through the air it pushes air out of its way. Projected frontal area is a measurement in square units that describes how much air an object moves as it travels.

I think if I bothered to look up an Aerohead quote in the forum on "A" I would find a textbook quality definition of "frontal area".

NOTE: could be different than, cross-sectional area of the test section

[freebeard]

The aphorism from Bonneville is "It's not how big a hole you punch in the air, it how big a hole you leave in the air".

[kach22i]

A couple more efforts that almost made it, but missed the mark for one reason or another.

Random TRANSPORTATION pictures - Page 2057 - Pelican Parts Forums



Archived Drive: DOME P-2
https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-cul...rive-dome-p-2/

From the 1979 September issue of Road & Track

Maybe the P-2 did better than I suspect with those rear buttresses?

[IMG]https://hips.hearstapps.com/roa.h-cdn.co/assets/16/25/1600x800/landscape-1466871018-dome-p-2-1.jpg?resize=980:*[/IMG]
[IMG]https://hips.hearstapps.com/roa.h-cdn.co/assets/16/25/1600x1911/gallery-1466871165-dome-p-2-rear-above.jpg?resize=768:*[/IMG]

Recalling the early Aerovette series, it was the underbelly that ruined the Cd numbers on these spiffy looking mid-engined cars.

More views:
https://www.lotusespritturbo.com/Dome_Zero.htm



Striking looks, I still like wedge cars despite what I'm suppose to know about drag.

[freebeard]

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-t...l#post10098685

This is similar to a boat I designed for myself in the 1990s. Except it was submersible and had a bow ramp like an LST.

[kach22i]

Originally Posted by freebeard

This is similar to a boat I designed for myself in the 1990s. Except it was submersible and had a bow ramp like an

A couple of days ago I was inside a very large mono-hull boat, built in 1968 being restored including the three Caterpillar diesels. This thing is literally as big as a barn as it takes up the whole barn and the superstructure (flying bridge) isn't even on it. All it needs is the final coat of paint and some interior pieces.................anyway, it's tiny and claustrophobic inside despite the exterior dimensions.

That's why I like cats and that stealth car smuggler design so much, they are big on the inside too.

I'm a big fan of "surface effect ships" myself.

There are no high speed ferries from Chicago to coastal resort towns on Lake Michigan that I know of, if I won the lottery things would be different. Oh and it would carry automobiles of course.