How to Reduce a Car's Drag Coefficient?
1 Answers
Methods to reduce a car's drag coefficient include: 1. Using appropriate curved transitions for various parts of the car body, minimizing protruding attachments, appropriately inclining the front face, engine hood, and windshield backward, and designing the rear window and roof length and angle suitably. 2. Additionally, installing deflectors or spoilers in appropriate locations can help. By studying the airflow patterns around the car, not only can a more rational body structure be designed, but airflow can also be cleverly guided to reduce the drag coefficient by utilizing local airflow effects. More details are as follows: 1. The car's drag coefficient is a concept based on the overall structure of the vehicle. The optimal geometric parameters for one model may not apply to another, as even a small modification can significantly impact the whole, illustrating the principle that 'a slight move in one part can affect the whole situation.' Data in technical books are results obtained under strictly defined test conditions for specific car ranges. 2. Airflow passing through the car's interior also contributes to driving resistance. Research indicates that the commonly referred-to drag mostly stems from the interaction between the car's exterior and airflow. 3. In reality, the resistance acting on a car consists of five components: the pressure drag, which is the difference between the positive pressure at the front and the negative pressure at the rear, accounting for about 58% of total air resistance; the interference drag, caused by protruding parts like bumpers, mirrors, front license plates, drainage grooves, and chassis transmission mechanisms, accounting for about 14%; the internal resistance, caused by ventilation and engine cooling airflow, accounting for about 12%; and the lift-induced resistance from high-speed driving, accounting for about 7%.
