Novaz Nissan Laurel aero-build thread

[i_am_socket]

Interesting idea with the hitch mounted storage box. Properly designed it could be built as a removable boat-tail.

I forgot it was supposed to be a luxury car (for the time) so the hood ornament was just a bit over-engineered. It's not huge, so leaving it till you get passed the low hanging fruit won't be horrendous.

[Novaz_nz]

Yeah, creating a removable boat tail was the main inspiration for thinking up the box. I read a whole bunch of posts on here about people who were "going" to make a boat tail, but they sounded horrendously complex!
The hitch mount should take out a lot of the issues around making a strong enough structure, and would hopefully increase my economy. And if I can cram some stuff in there as well, bonus!

At the moment I have a strand of wool tied to the emblem, it's my new "draft indicator". I was quite surprised how far back the wake is on a semi - 2 to 3 seconds following distance and still the wool indicates less head wind.

[Novaz_nz]

Right, I have taken off the rear mudflaps which were trapping heaps of mud and dirt, great rust trap!
I had a quick idea to flip them around and use them in front of the rear tires, but the shape of the flaps + guard doesn't really allow that.
It *does* make the rear of the car more suitable for rear wheel covers though, which is something else I would like to get on there.

[Novaz_nz]

Best tank ever, 31MPG!
I'm putting most of the gain down to improvement with the driver, warmer weather and school holidays (less standing traffic).
Also, I have to put some value on the front air dam and removal of the rear mud flaps. Both of which should overcome the removal of the upper grille block (temps too hot).

[Novaz_nz]

Well it looks like the 30MPG wasn't a fluke, so obviously things are working as they should. Next on the list is to source and fit a pair of "guttering" side skirts, and make a start on the belly pan. I should have enough material to replace the missing front undertray.
Man, testing full tanks takes *ages* now!

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by Novaz_nz

Would I see any benefit from carving a polystyrene buck to alter the profile of the roof? Or would the extra overall height negate any benefits?

I believe that very question is addressed in Hucho's or Barnard's book (forget which), and the answer was: the increased frontal area negates the benefit of the new shape.

[Novaz_nz]

Thanks Metro - I'll have to look into both of those books, and see if I can get my head around some of the concepts in there with regard to the Laurel.

So at the moment, I'm hovering around 30-31MPG around town - but annoyingly I am also seeing the same 30ish MPG on the highway. Now it's pretty hilly here, but I would have expected some improvement over stop start town driving....

I'm going to dedicate a day in the upcoming weeks to mock up various "easy" items, like wheel well covers, and roof/kamm extensions, and go out testing. I'm sure the highway FE sucks because I'm driving a brick.

[Novaz_nz]

Well without any available measuring equipment, collecting FE data from any changes on the car takes ages!.
I have been playing around with the upper grille blocks. They help the car warm up much faster, and keep the engine running hotter - both of which seem to have bumped up the MPG a few notches. At highway speeds, the block in front of the air intake angles back to direct cold air into the intake (the hot, stagnant air behind the grille was otherwise heat-soaking the intake and the car was sluggish and very thirsty!)

Also, I have been thinking about making an aero attachment for the towbar (again). Building a towbar mounted Kammback is going to be tough to keep legal, so instead how about a boot deck extension, and possible undertray extension? It would need to be open at the sides and rear edge.
Something a bit like this:


I imagine the top piece would be contoured to follow the shape of the rear guards, with the lower piece being a similar shape. Would something like this be worth investigating?

[i_am_socket]

What would be tough to keep legal? Lights and license plates?

License plate should be easy to move and trailer lights should be easy enough to put on. Heck, my old Ford Tempo had a towing bar and trailer-light connection.

As for equipment, have you thought about the MPGuino?

[winkosmosis]

Does it not have OBDII?