New Project - 1993 Mirage - Need assistance.

[nayeliesuncle]

Hello,

I'm new to the forum and to ecomodder. I have a new project and need some assistance with the math side of things (don't we all?).


The car is a 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage ES 1.5L automatic. Currently get a calculated real world 28 MPG with me driving normally (up to 70 MPH). I do a lot of city driving, and my commute is less than 50 miles a week.

My goal is to beat a Toyota Prius. Will modify anything to reach the goal. I'm a licensed mechanic, so mods are not a problem for me.


I have a picture with what I want to do, bit it won't let me upload it.


I specifically need assistance with calculating the .cd and all of that technical stuff.

Thank you for your interest.

[Daox]

Welcome to the site.

Beating a Prius is definitely possible. I've done it by a fair amount in my Paseo. however, you're going to need either a ton of modification or lots of changes to your driving style to achieve it.

As for the rest, according to our wiki page:

Vehicle Coefficient of Drag List - EcoModder

Your Cd is .32.

[Clev]

Originally Posted by Daox

Beating a Prius is definitely possible. I've done it by a fair amount in my Paseo. however, you're going to need either a ton of modification or lots of changes to your driving style to achieve it.

Can you beat it driving-style for driving-style? It would be unfair to compare to a poorly-driven Prius.

[nayeliesuncle]

Thanks for the link with the information for the car.

If I drive very carefully, I can get to around 40 mpg on HWY. driving. That is in the current condition of the car with 28 psi of air in the tires, and a 250 lbs. pound monkey driving (me).

I'm shooting for the Prius, because for me that's seems like a reachable goal. I don't know if comparing a gasoline only powered car versus a hybrid under the same driving conditions is fair for either.
My ultimate goal would be to get the most out of it.

Can anyone post the pictures for me?

[nayeliesuncle]

Here is a picture with some of my plans.

[Clev]

Don't forget to delete the antenna or relocate it to inside the car. Also, a manual swap would help.

Since your commute is less than 50 miles a week, you might even consider a Forkenswift-type EV conversion. 10 miles per day is quite easy.

[nayeliesuncle]

Thanks for the input.

The sound system is going to be removed. The antenna will be shaved.

I thought about swapping to a manual, but it would double the cost of the project (same with an EV conversion). Those are great alternatives, but out of the budget for this project.

I don't commute that much, since my wife and I share the drive to work. She drops me off at my office (pictured in the photo), and picks me up later.

This is a project for fun. I'm tired of modifying cars to run faster, I want a new challenge. I'm also into robotics (I'll build the MPGuino with an arduino I have laying around), so this would let me combine both skills.

I want some help with calculating the front air dam/splitter, and the rear extension. Such as calculating the angles, length of parts, etc.
If a link is available, please post it.

Thanks guys. I'm a long time reader of the forum, all the way back to the basjoos civic.

[Daox]

Originally Posted by Clev

Can you beat it driving-style for driving-style? It would be unfair to compare to a poorly-driven Prius.

Good point. On the highway I can beat the Prius by using P&G in the Paseo. In the Prius I just use cruise control on the highway normally. I wouldn't call this poorly driven as I've tried all other known techniques and they just don't give me measurably better mileage due to the terrain I drive in (lots of small hills). In the city, the Prius will likely overtake the Paseo simply because of the regenerative braking.


I also missed that your car is automatic. That is going to be a pretty big hangup.

[nayeliesuncle]

I don't see the automatic transmission as a hang-up. It's not optimal, but the car is very light, and should be lighter when I get done with it.


So, I'm building the front air dam/splitter this weekend. Any math/calculations that I need to use?

[RobertSmalls]

The automatic tranny is definately a weak point. It has higher losses than a manual transmission, and it makes it really hard to turn off the engine when it's not needed (engine-off coasting).

As for the maths on the front splitter, the idea is to send air over the car instead of under it. A grille block does this, and so does a splitter or air dam. You should check out this thread, which explains front-end aerodynamics.