Lowering car...why does this help aero?

[wungun]

Thinking about lowering my car...For looks, handling and aero...
What goes on in a lowered car that makes the aero more efficient?

[2000neon]

It essentially "decreases" some of the frontal area of tires and suspension, and limits the amount of air going under the car.

[mcrews]

From personal experience, I would suggest you dont. Ride quality suffers. And the gain in mpg might not be worth it.
I would recommend a body kit.
You can keep the ride hieght and look lower. also, the body kit will provide some aero advantage.
I had run SWIFT lowering springs on the Q45 and removed them after 3k miles. Granted, the Infiniti Q45 has electronic suspension and a great ride, but the springs just didnt help. And for the 'looks', it wasnt worth it.

[wungun]

I was looking at the Ford Racing suspension kit for the Fiesta...
Modest drop, matched dampers, and no harshness...
Great reviews on it, and less than $250.

I prefer handling over yacht like ride comfort

[Ryland]

I lowered my civic for a few years and changed it back because it didn't help with mileage, the suspension was more likely to bottom out, I hit pavement when pulling in to driveways and parking lots and it increased wear on the rest of my suspension, costing me more money.

[wungun]

Changing just the springs will do that...
And on a Civic, some of the drops can be a little, err, extreme?

[chrisgerman1983]

So if lowering doesn't really help, am I safe to assume that raising a couple inches wouldn't really hurt? I have wanted to lift my van a couple inches but have avoided it for efficiency reasons.

[YeahPete]

Lowering the vehicle will improve handling, cornering speed, and reduce frontal area of tires. The ride will be a bit rough. Make sure you know what type of springs you buy. Lowering spring are for looks, racing springs are for performance.

@Chrisgerman1983:
If you do raise the vehicle, you will add a bit to the frontal area. If you add tire spatz in front of the tires this will most likely negate the effect. You will raise your center of gravity and lose a bit on handling. If you raise the height you should add a belly pan, a front air dam, and direct a bit more air under the vehicle. This may actually reduce drag depending on the space between ground and bottom of vehicle.

[chrisgerman1983]

[QUOTE=YeahPete;347277If you raise the height you should add a belly pan, a front air dam, and direct a bit more air under the vehicle. This may actually reduce drag depending on the space between ground and bottom of vehicle.[/QUOTE]

I was wondering the same thing! having more space under the van might reduce turbulence? Right now the rear axle is just lower then the rest of the underbody. giving more space could allow a smoother bellypan and better attached flow? It might allow me to address the rear axle separately from the van. Maybe a small airfoil built around the axle?

[YeahPete]

Yes because if you look closely at many solar race cars, it looked as if the vehicle is at least 8" off the ground. With tire spatz of course.

MIT Unveils 90 MPH Solar Race Car | Autopia | Wired.com