Aero accord, an homage to basjoos

[type-S EF awd]

I have a 94 accord wagon, that I am prepared to modify as extreme or even beyond (pillar cutting) the Aerocivic. I dont plan to do a whole lot to the front of the car. Reworked front bumper that is completely flush and smooth and flush mount active grill block/louvers. Side mirror delete, pannel gap minimizing, full belly pan. shaved door handles, filled roof gutters. chopping D pillars and beginning roof slope at C pillars, front and rear skirts. full boat tail with 80%+ useable volume.

Drivetrain wise, the car HAD F22B2 and auto. The car is getting F20B short block with F22B1 Head, H2D adapter for CRX HF federal trans. This gives 11.8:1 static compression, low enough to run on pump gas, high enough to begin to be efficient for CNG, Perfect for CNG turbo (Winner!)

Power steering will be electric driven hydraulic, only at low speed.

So I am here for pointers, as aero is something I only know the basics of.

I used the template, and am not sure I have sized and shaped everything right, I'm looking for help on the boat tail plan, measurements and layout.



I would like to retain a full size spare, as the car came factory with one (a trickled stateside euro feature) and a good amount of the boat tail underfloor will be multiple CNG tanks, gasoline will be retained as a backup fuel.

I was also thinking of using the old Accord Aerodeck name, as something slippery should have gotten the name, and Honda is dead to me now, this is my kinda homage car in a couple ways.

IMO, the error in their ways:
2000: The civic becomes McPherson strut, and removal of a lot of UHSS increased curb weight almost 200 LBS The integra and prelude given the kiss of death in lou of the RSX, another McPherson strut car.
2008: Honda pulls out of formula 1, but Promises their diesel in America in 2009.
Honda killed their successful direct injection engine, saying "hybrid is the future" which IMO without being able to run electric only = Fail.

Those are just SOME of the things that pissed me off, and I was able to pull off the top of my head. feel free to add to the list.

[Ptero]

You didn't mention tires. Narrower tires reduce drag in 4 locations. LRR tires reduce rolling resistance. Max sidewall PSI reduces rolling resistance even more. Cap with full moons.

Another really big issue few seem to understand is the actual difference between pump grades. Regular gasoline flashes faster in the combustion chamber than premium. Regular provides most of its downward force on the piston at the beginning of the down-stroke. Premium burns slower and delivers a more even and longer-lasting force, producing a more efficient and smoother pulse. That's what octane means. (In the US, we can't even get the higher octane many of our foreign engines are designed for and we are forced to use oxygenated gasoline laced with watery ethanol that confuses our results.)

Hypermilers utilize low ratio gearing at lower rpms than typical (wasteful) drivers. Efficient twisting force (torque) is much more important to them than raw accelerative power (brake horsepower). It's hard to notice the difference between grades around town. But out on the highway, premium often will produce better MPG results than regular if your engine is tuned to deliver the proper fuel-air mixture. So run your tank down to near empty and fuel with premium for a road trip and compare to the return leg with regular. You may find, as I have with my long-stroke Smart Car, that it's cheaper to run premium on the open road.

[aerohead]

It looks like you have the elevation correct.Members speak of sliding the 'Template' around until it no longer interferes with the project car's roofline and I'm okay with that.So you might slide it rearwards until your roof just clears,then go from there,unless you want to cut into the car.
NOTICE! I'm in the process of updating the 'Template',as I've found a contour which I feel is better than the original.
The present Honda Insight matches it and if you can get a hold of an Insight or factory brochure for the car you could morph that profile into the 'Template' for better effect.
I'll endeavor to complete the upgrade soon,but am being pulled in many directions.'Apologize for the trouble.

[type-S EF awd]

your right, I didn't mention tires, well, I wont be running a LRR tires because I like twisty roads, but I will be keeping them 205 or narrower, with a smooth cover, which I'm not sure how much it will help with full fender skirts.

As for the engine, the F20 has quite long rods, only one backwards honda engine had longer rods, the B16B civic type R, but we all know how short that top gear is (38.5 mph at 2000 RPM in 5th!) This 1.65 rod to stroke ratio is big for a Honda. Honda has had to compromise engine height with the people designing the front sheet metal, when released the 88 civic had the lowest FWD hood height.
With almost 12:1 compression, I think anything below 91 octane is out of the question, Sunoco around my area has 94 octane for a ridiculous 8 cents more than 93 octane, and without a cat (remember natural gas primary fuel) I could run turbo blue 104 octane readily available at some local gas stations. CNG has an equivlent anti knock rating of about 130.

P.S. I just spent almost half an hour trying to find your 3B2 con rod length, I finally gave up, how long is your "long stroke" fortwo rod? if you dont mind me asking.

[type-S EF awd]

Originally Posted by aerohead

unless you want to cut into the car....
NOTICE! I'm in the process of updating ... soon,but am being pulled in many directions.'Apologize for the trouble.

It will be a couple of months before I do any major surgery. I want to get it back into a roller first. It would be nice if the tail was shorter and I didn't have to modify the roof, maybe just put a bubble in it. If the tail was short enough I could still consider a trailer hitch, but the farther and farther I get from the rear axle, the less and less tongue weight it could have.