Shield the tires - will it help?

[Otto]

Originally Posted by robertwb70

Found the bigger version

And the text that goes with it-
"As the car travels through the air, some of the airflow is directed around the nose and to the sides of the front fenders and wheelwells. If the sides of the nose are angled from a top view, the air will flow out away from the wheelwells and create a very low-pressure area just outside the wheels. The air under the hood is mostly stationary, and some of that air rushes to the wheelwells to fill the void created by this suction. This creates a low-pressure area under the hood, and the pressure differential between the top and bottom creates the downforce needed to provide more grip in the front of the car."
From- Aerodynamics - Tech & Definitions - Circle Track Magazine

Probably not 100% true for many FWD cars (like mine) since the wheel well is separated from the engine compartment, but the idea for the outside flow is relevant.

Seems like a good idea to make conduits from the hot engine compartment out through the engine bay sidewalls and the fender liners, to draw that hot air out and thereby improve cooling efficiency. The moving car is, after all, a sort of linear pump, so may as well take advantage of it.

Efficient cooling inlets are only half the battle: It is equally important to provide an efficient outlet, too.

[Deezler]

Ha, yeah it was his first and only post. Not trying to protect the tires.... just keep airflow off of them (as much as possible).

Orange, #2 source of drag? Really? Dang, that might be enough inspiration for me to get back to making something up here. Kind of difficult - the best solution would have a formed piece that curves nicely, to straighten out parallel to the vehicle axis by the time I get to the wheel well, but my abs plastic is rather rigid. Perhaps this calls for some thinner material.