Project: Geo Metro boat tail prototype - 15% MPG improvement @ 90 kph / 56 mph

[RobertSmalls]

I've tested my aeromods at >100mph airspeed while driving 65mph. I try to design for winds gusting to 60mph, though I would expect to need to slow down if I were driving when winds like that arrived.

[donee]

Hi Metro,

I shot up to 40 mph, into a 60 mph head wind one day in my 2006 Prius. And it was up slope even. Did not realise what was going on, initially. Just noticed all the big muscle pickup trucks not blasting by me as usual, and actually slowing down compared to my lowly Prius. When I looked sideways out the windows at them, saw all the trees bending over! Later on the news they said the storm front when it came through (as I was driving) was clocked at 60 mph....

[jtbo]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Whereas my car's unaeromodded flat-out top speed is 100 mph. (~50 hp. )

There's no way I'd be attempting to drive 50 mph into a 50 mph headwind - accelerator floored in 3rd or 4th gear or whatever it would take. I never need to drive anywhere that badly.

Of course if someone else is planning to mod a car to drive in those conditions, then of course higher apparent wind speeds need to be taken into account and/or tested. I only drove this proof-of-concept tail at road speeds up to 100 km/h, in let's say ~15 km/h winds (guess).

If there is 8 meters per second of wind (that is almost 18mph, faster than I can pedal my bike), then gusts can be even up to 20 meters per second which is closing 50mph already, for me it is surprising how fast wind moves at times.

Unfortunately I have to drive, no matter what is the weather.

Also I think that mods should be able to handle even strong winds because of safety point of view, we never know when that strong gust hits, so better make and construct everything so that there is not too much of excitement to drive.

That is how at least I think about from this.

However I think your beautifully made mods are surely more than enough to handle even severe weather, not so sure about mine

[Druid]

My project is going to use a shape done w PVC raft material. Inflate it for the highway, deflate and remove for city and parking.

Somebody has patented this but so what.

[MetroMPG]

Druid - I hope you'll post a link to your build thread.

[Christ]

Druid, a patent just means that you can't sell or profit from it.

[Nerys]

actually a patent IIRC is a bit more restrictive than copyright. you can not even MAKE ONE for yourself without permission again IIRC.

but no one is going to track down someone with a geo metro so have at it :-)

[Christ]

You can copy a patent for personal use, possibly for educational use, but you may not profit from it.

[SwamiSalami]

so...why didn't you leave the boat tail on? I could read all 40 some odd pages of this thread, but I'm simply not going to.

thanks,
Spencer

[Christ]

Where's the fun in that?