2004 MINI Cooper S - Improving Aerodynamics

[iplaysdrums]

Oh, and as for my numbers, they were actually pretty bad last tank, so I'm going to have to either re-think some things or do some actual testing to see what's going on. Or both.

[iplaysdrums]

I just posted fuel logs for the past couple of months. Best tank was 33.something, worst was 25.something (which is what I used to get all the time).

After an inexplicable run-in with a curb (don't ask me, I wasn't in the car), I removed the aluminum side skirts before the last tank posted (refill was 2010.09.19). There was little effect, which isn't terribly surprising, considering how little highway driving I usually do. The 25.something mpg tank was partially due to my taking a break from eco-driving techniques to alleviate some stress and give me a couple of weeks to drive the car like its sporty self, but there was also an unfortunate incident involving the first hard rain in several months and a return trip from the airport which took nearly two hours (with no traffic it's about 20 minutes). On the way back from the airport, I had an extra ~250 lbs of person and luggage, which certainly didn't decrease fuel consumption.

I ordered some square foam water noodles online a couple of days ago, and when they come in, I'll be making new, improved side skirts, making a more attractive airdam, and possibly adding some aero touches to the rear bumper if I have any left over. I'll post lots of pictures, as I think this is a fairly unorthodox building material.

Also, I saw an R56 (2007+) MINI Cooper today with a trip device built into the C pillar. I'm not sure if they're all like that (I'd think I'd've noticed!), but it looked pretty cool, and I'm sure it was aerodynamically functional.

[curv872]

Any updates?

[iplaysdrums]

I've put together a pair of side skirts made from foam swimming noodles (the square kind, which you can get at kiefer.com for like $3 a pop), which will be attached with velcro extreme, and they're currently waiting to be painted. I think I've mentioned my motorcycle buddy somewhere in this thread, and he's very handy with a can of spray paint, so they're currently in his possession. Once painted and dried, and once the car is prepared, installation will take no time at all, and I'll definitely post pics then. I was going to post some pics of the temporary "trip strip" I made in response to cd's post (previous page, I believe), but the camera's upstairs and the car's downstairs, and by the time I removed the tape I realized I hadn't taken any pictures. It was clear packing tape over a wire with clear insulation, so it looked pretty goofy. I had it in three strips, with one down each side and one along the top right before the hatch. I think I'm going to cut the side strips into two pieces so I don't have to deal with trying to go over the molding along the bottom of the window, and the permanent strip will be made with duct tape. I don't drive on the highway very much right now, but this whole aeromod thing is for our move (3 1/2 weeks away at this point - I'd better hurry!) from Oregon to Alabama. I figure if I can get the drag under control, we can make 40mpg average the whole trip, which would be a heck of a lot better than the 25mpg we made out here (the car was packed to the gills with a Schwinn Cruiser on the back, which has since been sold).

In short, I'm all bark and no bite. I am going to remove the vortex generators, as they seem to do nothing at all on a hatchback, and I'm going to try adding some sandpaper-like tape to the A pillars to see if that reduces wind noise; I've read that vortex generator tape, which is used on airplanes and gliders (unlike the delta wings, which are mainly used on Mitsubishi Evos), can be really effective. I don't have any of that (turbulator is one of the main brands, I think), but I do have fining pads from an optical lab which will never see use. Hopefully I'll get to that over the weekend, though if the weather doesn't break, I'm going to have to use my buddy's garage for all of this.

[iplaysdrums]

Did I mention my hot air intake before?


Airdam is wearing, but still going strong. Hopefully the snow won't be the end of it.


Reverse mudflaps are still looking good.


I read somewhere on ecomodder.com about someone using turbulator or some other type of vortex generator tape on the A pillars to cut down on wind noise. I don't have any turbulator tape, but I do have a bunch of pink finer pads which will never get used, so I cut several up and applied them as you see here. It looks a bit goofy, but if it helps, I'm not complaining. I also used electrical tape to cover the gaps on the left and right of the windshield (where the A pillar covers meet the windshield).


I finally installed most of the "trip strip" cd talked about a page or two ago. I'll put the rest on the lower body panels in a few days, when it will hopefully be warmer outside. My fingers got numb after a while...


Detail of the "trip strip."

[Arragonis]

I'm guilty of air rotovators myself but have you considered the flat wheel covers of the Mini One ?

[iplaysdrums]

Originally Posted by Arragonis

I'm guilty of air rotovators myself but have you considered the flat wheel covers of the Mini One ?

I haven't, but only because of ignorance. We don't have the One on this side of the pond, so I'm not aware of these wheel covers (I've only seen the One in photos, and they've all had alloy wheels). Any idea where I could find photos or the wheel covers themselves? I googled it last night, but didn't find anything.

[Arragonis]

Try here

Test drive: Mini One Minimalist - GreenMotor.co.uk

[Rokeby]

...have you considered the flat wheel covers of the Mini One ?

What's up with the ribs?
What's up with the dip between rim and hub?

If these covers are fantastically aero, it would be nice to learn how
and why.

Does it somehow act like the super long-flying Aerobie's low-drag
spoiler rim?

All things considered, perhaps we needn't be so obsessed/driven in
trying to find/make MoonEyes-like, smooth racing disc wheel covers.

[Cd]

Hey- nice to see you were able to try the trip strip idea. Nearly invisible isn't it ?

That stuff that I spoke about in my last post for use as a flexible spoiler is called wall base.
It is sold at places like Lowes - here is the link

Shop Flooring : Wall Base at Lowes.com

It's $ 25 bucks for 50 feet of the stuff, but is also sold in 4 foot sections for less than $ 3 ( $ 2.36 )
It is made from the same type of rubber that you see on cars, but is more flexible. It has a very professional look to it, unlike garden edging which has a cheap shiny look.
It also holds up quite well to curbs, and is very easy to cut.

Here it is on my car after almost a year and hitting several speed-bumps.



http://www.flickr.com/photos/6037656...n/photostream/
Hate to say it but the spray paint on the 'noodles' will most likely flake off in a few months time. That type of material doesn't take too well to paint - in fact some types of rubber will shrivel and melt when you paint them, or will not let the paint adhere at all.

So are you going to tuft the car ?
Even tufting the windows ( around the sides too ) will give you an idea of what is going on around the car. You don't even need another person - just look in your rear view mirror and observe what the tufts are doing on the windows.
Right now you aren't really improving the aero all that much - in fact you may be making it worse with the air-dam because you have increased the frontal area of the car. Have you considered a belly-pan instead ?
The big draggy areas are your wheels and the rear of the car. Trip strips and such may help, but but only a tiny amount. If i had a car like yours, I would add a professional looking kammback, a belly pan, some 'moon' wheels, and a ( stealth ) grille block.
I like Minis. They have a neat style that reminds me of the original Minis. I'd keep it as original looking as I could.