Video: Toyota explains aero mods on new Rav4 EV

[MetroMPG]

"Decreasing range anxiety by reducing the Coefficient of Drag."

According to the aerodynamicist in the video, the new rear "spoiler" (actually more of a vestigal Kamm back, since it doesn't "spoil" the air so much as enable it to taper further down) is the most effective single mod they made:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZN6qpUbba0Q

Althought ABG lists some details about the aero mods as well, and the underbody smoothing is listed as having the largest effect:

Those mirrors, for example, are styled after the Camry that's sold in Korea and reduce the coefficient of drag by 1.1 percent.

The rear spoiler? A 2.5-percent improvement.

The smoother underbody, which is possible thanks to there being a battery there instead of a lot of mufflers and whatnot? An 8.2-percent improvement.

All together, the aero tweaks give the RAV4 EV a cD of .30, which Toyota points out is more like a sedan than your average CUV.

from: http://green.autoblog.com/2012/08/06...-review-video/

[MTrenk]

That type of underbody is acceptable for reducing drag. It might be easier for me to start with this car as far as my underbody explanations go, otherwise, upon your request I will start a new thread.

Just let me know where you want it.

[MetroMPG]

I still think a dedicated thread on the topic makes sense - I have a feeling it will generate lots of interest.

EDIT: as to where? In this subforum (Aerodynamics).

[NeilBlanchard]

The RAV4 EV Cd of 0.30 is pretty darn good -- it almost matches the 0.29 Leaf which has a lot better starting platform. To do so with the "world parts bin" and two custom parts (Kamm "spoiler" and the flat battery pack / belly pan) means they can go lower as they work at it.

That is the best thing about this video from Toyota -- they are focused on lowering aerodynamic drag.

[Gealii]

I like it looks pretty cool, and after seeing the underside of a normal rav4 it gives me a thought about the underside of my moms rav4 a belly pan would look awfully nice under there

[Cd]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZN6qp...layer_embedded

Thanks to member Adorable, I stumbled onto this video talking about the Cd figure of the new RAV4 EV.

The Cd is .30, which is fantastic when you consider that the Leaf is .27 .

The wheels are supposedly the 'aerodynamic' ones they had to choose from, but after looking at the video, you can see they leave a lot to be desired.

Also, look at the enormous gap in the around the wheels between the fender and the tires.

Hats off to these guys.

Makes one wonder what they could do with a less boxy shape.

A lot of the drag reduction was supposedly due to the shape of the rear spoiler, and i couldn't help but notice the spoiler has little side curtains as well.
In the video, they talk about extending the spoiler by a few millimeters to reduce drag.

Imagine what they could have done with a full Kammback !

And yes ...this vehicle is still a brick due to its frontal area .
But it's a brick of slippery butter

[Cd]

After looking this Rav4 EV truck over, i can see that it's shape is not all that boxy.
The roofline has a subtle curve to it, and I'm sure the truck has break lines in the body work at all the right places.

I would love to see how much of a hit that the trucks wheels, and that massive hole above them added. I see a possible 'air-curtain' break at the corners of the bumpers ( the vertical fog lamps ) but when tested by Mercedes Benz on a different vehicle, these dropped the Cd count by only .01 .

I would bet that if this truck were produced as a car, the Cd figure could drop to the low twenties easy.

[brucey]

My question is: Why wouldn't they do most of that to the stock vehicle? An "Aero Package" ?

I would love a kammback becoming the norm.

[NeilBlanchard]

Bruce, you put your finger on the main problem with car design - all cars should be designed to be more efficient and more dependable; first and foremost.