Aero reverse trike project: Ninja 250 or Lifan 200 with electric assist/EV mode

[todayican]

I may be a little biased, so Im looking for input as to an "eyeball estimate" as to my designs drag ratio.


as pictured, it will have about 9sq ft of frontal area and no line drops or tapers more then 15% after its "fatpoint" toward the nose.

I will of course tuck latches with great care and use vents sparingly.

I calculated the hp required at .15cd 9sq ft frontal area 900 lbs with rider etc and it was something like 5
(an assumption I have from a fair amount of research is that 10hp = 1 gallon per hour so 5hp= .5 gal per hour etc.

I did the math from there and came to the number that, over a vehicles 100,000 miles (my idea of an "ownership period) that for every 1/10th horsepower your not burning, your keeping $42 in your pocket, assuming a $3 gas price.

a) Id like to hear if that theory is flawed somehow. and b) it really puts mods and design considerations into a cool perspective, IE "Hmm, that mod will save me .4hp but cost me $300, its only worth $168"

Anywho.. The question im asking myself at the moment, is that, as pictured is the consensus that Belaero is to begin with, and what, for a guess would it be if I were to fully enclose the wheels?

Thanks
Tom

[todayican]

Bengry, I dont want to try and figure out how to add a drive system to an otherwise undriven unit (modified vw beam)

[Grant-53]

GM starter motors are known to be very efficient; I have a AC clutch and it appears to in either direction. See the Edison2 X prize car that runs on a turbo 250cc.

[todayican]

Yeah, im aware, that Edison 2 car is HIGHLY cool in my opinion :-)
I have been looking into EFI ignitions for small 125cc to 250cc engines, about $400 I have some inquiries in as to the efficiency gains. The guy builds them for pit bike racers looking for more HP.

[todayican]

I really want to get this right, and luckily, I have a little time till the chassis is done. I am attaching a line drawing of the frame dimensions, Id LOVE some input as to body styles, better aero given the constraints of the chassis etc.

Ok, this might sound part arbitrary goal, and part "eyeball engineering" but in looking at this tool,

Aerodynamic & rolling resistance, power & MPG calculator - EcoModder.com

at 10sq ft frontal and 900 lb with rider weight and 90% drive train efficiency (10% chain and sprocket etc loss), I need to be at .157 cd to need 5hp to maintain a 70mph cruise (Translates to 140mpg) the 5hp is a very arbitrary goal, but with care I think it can be met.

Wether it really leads to 140mpg, who knows, likely not, theres always something, but 100mpg+ in my opinion is possible in a practical car.

Id love some input guys, am I barking at the moon on this?

Here are the measurements for the drawing (All "squares" represent 4")

A) Length of main frame. 92"
B) Wheelbase 88"
C) Overall height 40"
D) Width to outside of tires 56" (by the way the tires are 5" and I beleive 4" is needed in tire deflection so the tire "arc" would be 13" If I were to enclose the wheelwells
E) height of frame from bottom 14"
F) Forward footwell 20"

Let me know what you guys think.
Thanks!
Tom

[todayican]

Had to scale the drawing down, here you go :-)

[Frank Lee]

I think for a single-occupant vehicle with quite minimal cargo capacity, the overall package could be smaller. And as one who lives in a windy area and knows that rarely does the wind line up with the road, I'm always considering the effects of crosswinds as the vehicle will almost always be in a x-wind condition to some degree and hardly ever at 0 yaw. Thus I suspect pontoon fenders to not be an asset (I wonder what the Aptera boys have learned about that).

As far as eyeballing the Cd... I'd say greater than .15 and less than .30.

To me it seems like the VW 1L would be a good thing to copy as they have put real and significant engineering development into it, and have the proven results.

[todayican]

Thanks for the input Frank, Ya, Im starting to feel the same way about the fender humps. doing some drawings now :-)

[todayican]

I was having a conversation with a friend and had a brainstorm about fairing the side fully in and using spring loaded "side doors" on tracks, the idea is to have what would would constitute a motorcycle style fender frame (something youd see on a lotus 7) but without the fender to contact the spring loaded side door.

Same goes for a hatch above the wheel to open during wheel travel at the top of its travel.

Heres a drawing :-)

[todayican]

[QUOTE=Frank Lee;203671]I think for a single-occupant vehicle with quite minimal cargo capacity, the overall package could be smaller.


For the record, this one is going to be a 2 seater with 6sq ft cargo area. not a ton of space, but ok for groceries.