Universal AirVortex - Anyone Use These? Will They Work?

[LastBoyScout]

Well, I was browsing the net and ran across these:

Universal AirVortex

http://www.auctiva.com/hostedimages/...0,0,0&format=0


Feel free to browse the whole gallery from 1 to 23 as its all the same item, just different pics, angles and applications.

Its definitely a different design that what Im use to seeing but the question is, will they work?

The design looks a little counterintuitive to me as opposed to the other vortex generators on the market. In my mind installing them backwards would work better ( point of the triangle facing the front of the car as opposed to the wide part of the triangle facing the front )

Any feed back or 2 cents would be appreciated.

Thanks!

LBS

[theholycow]

This type of product gets discussed a lot here.

http://www.google.com/search?q=site:...tex+generators

Here's a few recent threads:
http://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=8742
http://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=7675
http://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=6178
http://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=8497
http://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=8457
http://www.gassavers.org/showthread.php?t=8050

[GasSavers_BEEF]

has anyone actually seen MPG gains from them. I have seen where people have used the VORTEKZ ones and talked about the airflow. I haven't seen where anyone has posted an FE improvement.

I am asking because I am curious about it myself. I almost got some for my birthday but got some coroplast instead. almost wish I had got the generators.

[theholycow]

Well, just looking through the threads to which I posted links, nobody has reported any gain.

This guy hasn't ever posted a gaslog:

Originally Posted by philp100

At this point I am going to call this attempt a failure. I did not go into doing this with a good enough plan and the weather has not cooperated this week so I have no idea if it made any differnce in FE. The rain and snow and wind finally detached 3 of the 6 VG's after 400 miles. It made no difference on how dirty my rear window got.
I think I will talk to the VW dealer and see if there is a kit for deleting the roof racks. Probably a much better chance of seeing an improvement.

Why didn't he try the obvious and easy removal of the roof rack BEFORE trying somethign gimmicky and unproven?

The rest of the people who bought them have not posted in their gaslogs since buying them, or haven't posted anything about them in their gaslog:

Originally Posted by Loserkidwac

Figured I'd throw it out there because I looked at air tabs and decided to go with vorteckz instead just because of the price (http://vortekz.com/generators.htm) $20 for 10 and at least for my car the seemed to be more ascetically appealing...plus they came with a template for placing them...

Originally Posted by trautotuning

^^^^ I just got the vortkez as well. I think they look awesome if anything (not like the airtabs... in my opinion)

Originally Posted by kitcar

At the same time, a set of Airtabs got here. I've been talking with Ron Davidson there and will be reviewing them for This Old Shack. For those that don't know, their facility was destroyed by a tornado this past spring. This should be the easiest review I've ever done. Well, maybe not. Ron told me that the way they test the position of them is to use aluminum duct tape, attach the tabs to the aluminum side of the tape and use the tape to attach them to the vehicle. For the first test, I'm going to put them on the roof of the truck 3 inches from the back and on the door posts. For the second test, in front of the rear wheel wells. The goal is to get the bed cover (which billows behind the cab and presses down at the tail gate) to billow the entire length of the bed. Cost of modification $0.

Once I see if that works, I'm going to actually pay for some for the hood and other parts of the truck to get closer to the elusive 30 mpg point. My thinking is that we can use the Airtabs to create an artificial teardrop aerodynamic shape.

You might want to take a look at the link in that last message, "This Old Shack", which may have some information about results.

[trautotuning]

Actually, I think they are helping mine.

Just look at my gas log.

My car has an EPA estimate of 28mpg.

I added a grill block, which should be good for around 3-4 more mpg max (tested by others).

I then added a wai (which is really not that hot since it takes air from the radiator so temps should only be like 110 degrees, not much at all). Again, what, another 1-2 mpg?

Tires inflated to 40psi, 2mpg more?

Removed windshield wipers, another 1mpg?

Added front tire deflectors, 2mpg?

All in all that comes to around 36-39 mpg.

However, In my most recent trip (with traffic) I was able to get 41 mpg and that was going about 70mph!!

So i dont know, but if it cleans up the airflow in my rear windshield like I showed it would in my tests, then it HAS to have an effect on aerodynamics and therefore an effect in fuel economy. Now, is that effect in fuel economy good or bad? Well considering it removed turbulance from the rear window, I can say that it most likely is good for aerodynamics and ultimatley for fuel economy...

Now, like I had said before in my tests;
"Not because it worked on my car will they work on every other car!!

I think that as long as the rear slant of the rear window is somewhat like my car the results could be similar.

However, i just dont see it working on hatchback designs or trucks or the such. Why? Well, these vortex generators are designed to keep the airflow attatched to the car, but if there is no more car like in the case of hatchbacks or trucks or suv's, then what is the airflow going to attatch to?

I think in that case they would probably just create more drag."

[GasSavers_RoadWarrior]

I think I've just seen my gains for my own homebrew vortex generators and turbulators that went on a couple of weeks ago. Marvin got sick sometime soon after I fitted them and mileage plunged, he's 90% healthy again and with no additives I pulled a 25.63 mpg tank this last fill, which is 1.7mpg higher than he's ever had on pump gas, and 2.6 over his average on pump gas. So I might cautiously claim something like a 10% gain from this, possibly 12.5%. When he's 100% healthy, I'll go back to my methanol/TC-W3 brew which has shown a peak gain of 15% and hopefully break 30mpg on a good tank.

Subjectively, I have felt that crosswind stability is MUCH improved, as is directional stability when passed on either side by large vehicles. Also have observed zero spray on back screen at highway speeds* in the wet, and see spray streams blowing off the back of the roof at about a 20 degree angle. Also this last high tank was in windy conditions that I would normally expect to lose mpg in.

(* Seem to get spray at lower speeds, but don't know if thats because the wind is fast enough to stick it there, or it just falls down on it, but doesn't seem to suck it up from underneath any more anyway.)

The trick on bluff based objects is not that it sticks the flow down but that it will bend it round the corner another 10 or 15 degrees or so. Also pre-empts formation of large vortices that may stagnate against a rear surface, or cause noticable pressure forces on it, and makes smaller easily shed vortices. So overall one should get a reduction in base drag. However, can be a tricky thing not to cause more induced or shape drag by altering the aerodynamic form factor.

[suspendedhatch]

Anyone else notice that they stopped using vortex generators on the Lancer Evo?

[trautotuning]

yes but we can't base anything that they remove from production cars since sometimes they do it because of production cost

[Loserkidwac]

Saw I was quoted above, I haven't mounted mine yet, I am using them with a combination of aero mods to help with the poor aero of the Del Sol and the turbulence created by the rear, I imagine the benefits change from vehicle to vehicle and placement, I am not expecting any major gains but for $20 I felt like they were worth a shot

[JohnNeiferd]

A quick question.

I'm not completely educated on how these works, but I heard they work by directing air up. Which is why they wouldn't work mounted on the front bottom of a vehicle, they'd direct up air into the engine bay. If they do indeed direct air up, couldn't you place them on the hood of a vehicle to help the air flow over the windshield better?