Car aerodynamics Free Essay Example, 1000 words

Aerodynamic drag is present in all kinds of objects. The density, temperature, and pressure of the fluid, the drag coefficient, and the frontal area of the object affect the force of drag on a particular object. â€Å"Drag determines the car’s top speed, and can be as important as the engine power. For road use, drag has a big effect on fuel economy. A streamlined car has low drag, and will get good gas mileage† (Puhn 49). The aerodynamic drag of a car plays a significant role in the car’s capability to accelerate. The ratio of a car’s engine power to the drag of the car’s body is of more value than the car’s power-to-weight ratio, which plays an important role at low speed levels where the drag of a car is not important. If we assume that a car has appropriate gears, it is possible to increase the top speed of a car only by adding power, or by improving the aerodynamics. â€Å"The most visually obvious of the car’s aerodynamic features are the front and rear wings affixed onto the car’s chassis. We will write a custom essay sample on Car aerodynamics or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now These wings work on a principle similar to that of aircraft wings† (Noble and Hughes 62). The wing of a car is primarily used to produce a downforce on the vehicle. For some cars the angle of attack of the wing is regulated in order to increase the down force present around the rear wheels. However, this also increases the drag of the car. The creation and testing of wing is usually very costly. The application of wings on any drive train type depends on the goal. Adding wings can be useful to any car that can oversteer, which also includes front wheel drive cars. Nowadays, adding wings to cars have became a fashion statement. These wings are generally of no use and usually affect the car’s performance. A spoiler on the other hand is designed to spoil, or reduce the unfavorable movement of air across the body of the moving vehicle. These spoilers are usually mistaken for wings, and people usually call spoilers wings. â€Å"Spoilers need to be big enough and mounted at the right angle to help control airflow, and passenger cars generally never go fast enough for aerodynamics, or a spoiler, to make a significance difference† (Martin, Tuschak, and Forde 59). The primary function of the front wings of a vehicle is to create a downward force that can boost the hold of the front tires of a vehicle. Adding the front wing to a car improves the turning capacity in fas t corners and totals to about 25 to 30% of the amount of downward force of a car. Generally, open-wheeled cars and Formula 1 racecar conduct constant modifications on the front wing of their cars based on data that is gathered from race to race.