Aeromodded Civic VX 72mpg (image heavy)

[The donkey CRX]

It's now in the mid 90's with a heat index of 105 here in west TN. Since I don't have A/C and would not turn it on if I did because of the 10 MPG hit I would take, I came up with a Redneck A/C system that won't cost me any MPGs because I will be using my 214ah deep cycle battery to power it,

We have replaced all of our seats in the VX cars with 1980's BMW M series Recaro seats because they are the most comfortable seats ever made. (my opinion) You can get them salvage pretty cheap if you buy the passenger seat in vinyl or cloth. They can be made to fit on the drivers side, the controls are just on the wrong side.

Anyway I got to looking at how they are made and they have a removable center section on both the seat and back that lays on metal seat springs. By drilling holes in these two sections and adding 2 Tornado fans, one in the seat and one in the back overlaid by a beaded seat cover, I am now covered 360 degrees with fast moving air. Kind of like driving a motor scooter and always in the shade

I also still use my original Tornado fan to blow on my chest and head and the only place my clothes are sweaty is where I contact the beads, kinda makes a polka dot pattern on the back of my shirt. Then if you move over a little in the seat, those dots dry.

Here are the pics




Here are the fan controls





And here are some details of how I did it.









The back was already enclosed and I made an enclosure for the bottom out of a piece of Dynamat.








The good news is that it works great and I can hypermile in close to comfort on the hottest days of summer,

[UltArc]

Legendary.

[2009Toyotoad]

I like it. Very well designed and executed under panels. Bravo on material choices. As someone over 6' I would have opted for a shorter Kamiback. However as you kept the drivers side mirror I'm good with it, and you can always add a backup camera.

[The donkey CRX]

Thanks for your comment AltArc, I took it as a huge compliment .

[The donkey CRX]

You are correct the larger Kammback doses limit your vision far back down the road. Even though the "moto" side mirror is small, its placement allows me to see everything behind and in the left lane. The car also has a "fisheye" inside mirror that shows my blind spot on the left.

[COcyclist]

Wow! Amazing concept and I am glad to hear it is working out well. I am so excited that all your experiments are archived and shared on this site. Great thread.

I have been experimenting with a chiller to designed to ice an injured knee, to keep from using A/C in the hotter months. It has an insulated reservoir and a small pump that circulates ice water through tubes to a pad that I place between my shoulderblades. It makes a huge difference in comfort but falls short after about 90º F.

How is the noise with 3 fans running? Or is it even noticeable on a car with a gutted interior??

[The donkey CRX]

Thanks COcyclist, I have to admit that the fans are pretty loud at full speed If you look at the comments on line that is one of the complaints about the Tornado fan. They come with a variable speed dial on the plug and if you only go about half speed, they are not too bad. The other thing I like about them is that they only draw 2 amps at high speed and only 1/2 amp at the lowest speed. This is important to me since I have a alternator delete in the car and need to manage my amp draw closely.

I have seen items like you describe that race car drivers use to stay cool, as I guess they also don't want any drag on the performance of their cars either.

[ecoTex]

Awesome!