How much/where to get your model aero tested? Wind tunnel or CFD?
 

Can the average Joe get his model aero tested for drag and lift?

What's better wind tunnel testing or CFD?
For wind tunnel do you just send the scale model and they test it for you or Do wind tunnels get rented by the hour and you have to test it yourself? I guess they provide the scales and instrumentation.
What wind tunnels are available for hire and How much do they typically charge?
For CFD are there companies where you just Email the 3D model and they charge you to run a top dollar CFD program for you?

tested
 

I would call around Florida and locate the universities with engineering colleges,especially ones that have participated in North American Solar Challenge/World Solar Challenge/SAE economy runs/ Shell Eco Marathons,etc..
If they don't have a wind tunnel on campus,they'll have CFD.
The folks who work with graduate programs will help you with 'donation' costs
which will help fund your project.
The schools with wind tunnels can also help with expectations about 'donations' to the engineering department to underwrite wind tunnel time.They'll also inform you about model scale size issues for compatibilty.
The University of Maryland is famous for their model wind tunnel facility.
Texas Tech's Department of Mechanical Engineering' Aerodynamics Lab did the tunnel testing for Kenneth Lyon's 'Becker-Lyon' Cd 0.11 LSR motorcycle streamliner in 1990.Kenny provided the model and grad students did the testing.I'd rather not say what he spent.
When the 'EZ-HOOK' LSR motorcycle streamliner underwent wind tunnel model tests at Cal Tech's GALCIT facility they were charging clients $2,500 per day for testing and data reduction.
Compare that to Lockheed Marietta's full-scale tunnel at about $2,000/hour,if you could get in!
The A2 tunnel has a 1st-time user discount for two hours.
I'm not sure about the new Darko facility in Ogden,Utah.You could call.
PS,don't expect scale models to produce exact values.It's impossible to model all the intricate details of a full-size body.

I co-own an engineering consulting company and we do cfd consulting. We usually make our own cfd models in CAD based on the car being analysed. We have also had a few clients send scanned data of a car. We have never had anybody send us a model ready for analysis. After the model is ready, we set up the cases and run them. We collect the data required by the customer and put it in a report. Price is depends on the scope of the project.

Windtunnel testing is similar. If it is a scale windtunnel, you will have to have a model made. This is usually pretty expensive if you want something to replicate the car well. If you go this route, I have a tunnel I would recomend. If you go full-scale, I wouldn't go to the A2 tunnel for two reasons. One is it is non-rolling road which I believe is very important part of the analysis. The other is the tunnel if pretty small (high blockage ratio). With a windtunnel,you will haveto hire consultants for gathering data and analysing the data.

Either option will work but it depends what you are looking for in the project. If you want just straight numbers, windtunnel would be better. If you are looking at refining different designs, go with cfd. There is a good cfd company I would recommend who I consider the "best" in the US and that it TotalSim. Or you could contact mine, but we are a new company.

A college would be the cheapest option for sure, but I have never worked with a college so I dont have any information on that topic.