Aero lid for 2000 F150 Supercab
 

I found this site a week ago. I'm trying to get everything I can out of my F150 for fuel mileage. I bought an Ultra Gauge last week, and it works great. It sure changed my driving habits.

So, the first thing I did was use the template on this site to get an idea of the shape of the lid. Printed that out, scaled some dimensions from the print, and proceeded to cut the shape out of 1/2 inch plywood. I laid a rather rigid garden hose on the plywood to get the rounded shape. I used other scrap wood to stiffen up the frame. Two hours later, it was done. I really liked how the transition from the top of the cab to the lid turned out, appears to match the cab lines perfectly. I've heard most guys will have a radius from the top of the lid to the sides, but that would have been a lot more figuring and cutting. I plan on filling in the gaps in the plywood with something, and then of course painting it.

I'm getting right around 18.7mpg with the truck, which apparently is pretty good for this model. I'll drive around this coming week for work, and check numbers. My goal is to get over 20mpg.

Feedback, good or bad, is welcome.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...6&d=1431910284

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...7&d=1431910284

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...8&d=1431910284

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...9&d=1431910284

http://s26.postimg.org/a2zaiais9/Aero_Ford_truck.png

Very close to the template as far as I can tell from your photo. Nice work! :thumbup:

I have seen you posting around the past few days asking questions. I admire your enthusiasm for learning. Feel free to ask me or one of the other administrators anything about ecomodding!

Edit: Ask anybody else as well. There are many knowledgable people on here

First trip.
 

Drove 94 miles today with the new aerolid.

I zeroed out the ultra gauge when I left for work. Previously, I was averaging 18.7 mpg. I had a pretty good head wind on the way there, and I still went up to 19.7 when I arrived. When I got back home, the gauge read 21.1 average mpg's. The dang thing worked!

I calibrated the gauge last week for distance and mpg's, so these readings should be pretty accurate. Very pleased with the outcome.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...1&d=1431981167

21.1
 

With the price of fuel edging upwards you'll recover your material and labor costs before long.Congrats!
Looks like AeroStealth has some competition.:D

It looks like you nailed the shape!! (or did you screw it?) Haha hah ha....Seriously, great work! Good on ya for not sloping the back of the cap down to right on top of the tailgate as so many are wanting to do. By leaving it up 8 inches it really improves the aerodynamics while providing more useful space under the lid.

I'm sure you're liking how it's quieter and feels more stable at highway speeds. In the winter on icy roads it really makes a huge difference. You'll have to take my word for that for a few months.

http://i57.tinypic.com/js2d06.jpg

Good job for not doing so, but, if you had followed the rules of the template, you'd have dropped it quicker and been on the tailgate. By raising the back, you have improved it according to this paper here Pick Up Truck Aero Paper. I think because the sides of the truck have no way to taper in, if you drop as quickly as the template would have you, it creates issues with too low a pressure in contact with the high coming along the side creating a vortex.

looks good. covered with resin?

Now that I know this lid is saving me fuel, I plan to finish it off with paint. Are you alluding to covering the plywood with resin and then painting?

A lot of stop and go travel today, ultra gauge was at 19.6 when I got back home. Filled up this morning, miles divided by gallons confirmed my gauge. Ended up with 19.7mpg. I added the lid with half a tank, or so. This is good stuff, and I don't think I'm going to get a speeding ticket anytime soon..

Plan on adding an air dam next. Any help with that would be appreciated.

yes and no. wasn't sure if it was bare or not. i know down here it wouldn't last more than a year with just paint, unless it's marine grade. resin will add weight so might not be worth it.

Nice job on the aerolid. I should have done that to my 1999 F-150.

Remove the spare tire and the receiver hitch and loose some serious weight almost equal to the increased weight of the aerolid.

I installed a 4 inch deep air dam just behind the lower valance on my F-150 using some hardware store angle brackets and fasteners. It was a good move that seemed to improve mileage by at least 1 mile per gallon. Never had a problem with it hitting things and regret not going with a 5 inch deep air dam. If I had kept it, the air dam was going to be lowered at least an inch and a low restriction exhaust system installed.

I did a bit more analysis and it looks to me like you've got a 8° overall slope which according to the chart on Pg 85 (Pdf Pg 103) of Feysal Adem's Thesis puts you right in the exact sweet spot of nearly optimized Cd and nearly optimized CL (Really can't optimize both)

http://i58.tinypic.com/apb3w6.jpg


So again, good job! Great Job!!

Thanks for the info, Chaz! I guess I just got lucky using the template.

Goldenstate, I use the receiver hitch quite often. Need the spare also, as I don't have AAA or any other service. Does it really matter that much, I'm wondering. This truck is close to 6000lbs, and the weight of the plywood lid is around 90lbs. That is an added 1.5% of the total weight, but I guess every little bit helps.

Forgot to mention, I have access to some old rubber conveyor belt. If I can gain another mile per gallon, a five inch dam is on its way.

I haven't installed the air dam on the truck yet, as I've switched gears with my new to me honda civic. Now, I really don't like driving the truck around, but I have to for my job. My best tanks were 20.56, 20.33, and 19.96mpg. My goal with the truck was 20, and I hit that with ease. Pulling the ATV around in the trailer really sucks the gas, but it saves me hours of time on the job.