What about a slip-over lightweight body??

[molinee]

I just recently found this forum and find it pretty interesting. Seems like a lot of brainstorming with not a lot of ridicule.... So here goes... What about a lighweight plastic/something sleeve body that is made to slip over a specific model and locks/bolts into place. Aerodynamic fuel savings. If you don't want the full body suit how about a mini-version that fits over just the front/grill/hood. Is there much mileage to be saved by using something like this in the city or one the highway? .... If it would work of course. So you can dress up your Ford Focus like a missile. Or have I entered into the Bizzaro World? I guess I don't have a good feel for increased mileage for this sort of setup if it were practical.

[Nerds laugh at me]

I saw a cartoon of this very idea in an old Road & Track ( 1983 or so ).

A slip-on aero body.

You could always just make an 'art car' that is shaped like a missle or a fish.

Do you get embarrased easily ? I wish I was carefree and could drive whatever the hell I wanted to and not be bothered. Not the case with me.

If you have an idea GO FOR IT !

We are laughing with you ( and wishing we had the balls to go through with our daydreams. )

Good luck !

[lunarhighway]

remindes me of the VW beetle (the original one) although it's not exactly as you describe... but since the body could be removed fromt the chasis with only a few bolts it was a favourable fasis of many a kit car, most wich looked and probably where much more aerodynamic that the beetle with it's terrible Cd.

this is of course very impractical on most of todays cars.
however i wonder why there anen't any tuneing part available that make cars more aerodynamic? with all the crazy "put this in your tank and you'll drive for free" addons i'm sure some pople would invest in abolt on bumper that designed for their car, that's tested and shows earo improvement. it's seems lilke a strange idea but given the fact people will spend loads of money on "aeromods"... spoilers, bumpers etc that make their car worse, why would something that makes your car more aerodynamics and perhaps more modern not be economically possible

[GasSavers_Scott]

This is so weird, I was just thinking of a nose cone that could go over the front of a vehicle for aero improvement. I have been a fan of kit cars for years, the VW chassis is a flat pan, much like the GM Skateboard fuel cell concept. Design anything your heart desires and bold it to a pan. I have seen MG's, Lambo, Porsche Speedsters, pick ups, jeeps, and a mini Humvee all kit car'd to a VW pan chassis. I kind of see it, like a Dodge Superbird, a general perfect aerodynamic shape that fits to the front of any car. My thought was a clear lexan nose cone, or maybe painted to match, with little cut outs for headlights.

I was just over at ecomodder.com and they have a few featured builds, I know people worry about looking geeky, but I think the new way to gain respect is to post your MPG right on the back of your car. Like the owner of the white Honda that has skirts, nose mods and a tail, in bold letters on the back it says "55 MPG". That will scare the paint off any 10 MPG Hummer weaving through traffic at 85 MPH, I seem to see allot of them.

[molinee]

[QUOTE=Scott;98844]This is so weird, I was just thinking of a nose cone that could go over the front of a vehicle for aero improvement.QUOTE]


Scott.... Sorry that you are thinking like me.... Or me like you! On a smaller scale I would think you could fabricate some kind of spoiler/air deflector that would push air up and over and down and under rather than thru your vehicle. Kind of like a giant bug deflector.

[thecheese429]

Originally Posted by Scott

....in bold letters on the back it says "55 MPG". That will scare the paint off any 10 MPG Hummer weaving through traffic at 85 MPH....

lol that it would. when I see a hummer I start thinking about throwing a dollar out the window every 3 miles or so maybe if america started seeing that all these "lame" old small cars got good mileage, then they might actually pressure new car companies to attempt the same (but to be realistic, for america to COLPLETELY switch to high-efficiency vehicles, it would be easier for JFK to serve a second term!)


as for the slip-on nose cone, I think you should try it! think of all the cars that would benefit greatly from that (due to poor body design)

molinee - have you started prototyping anything with cardboard yet?

[molinee]

Originally Posted by thecheese429

molinee - have you started prototyping anything with cardboard yet?

I think I will have to clear it with NASA first......... I do remember my Dad telling me when he was a kid in the midwest, back in the 30s, that he and his buddies had cars that the body components were stripped off and basically they were driving around in the open air on only the chassis and drive train. He did say one of the guys made a cone shaped front end out of sheet metal........ Didn't seem to catch on then either.

[GasSavers_landon]

Something I have been thinking about, but have not acted on yet is a partial boat tail that mounts to a hitch receiver so it can be easily removed when I need to use my trunk.

[ArtFox]

Originally Posted by landon

Something I have been thinking about, but have not acted on yet is a partial boat tail that mounts to a hitch receiver so it can be easily removed when I need to use my trunk.

Fabricate a very small rear bulkhead just large enough for a license plate holder, left/right/brake/backup light set that would plug into a trailer wiring harness. This should keep the local law enforcement happy if the boattail obstructs the tailgate...

What is the optimum angle to taper down to the tail? I think I read that anything steeper than 15 degrees of taper and the air starts to separate and create turbulance?

[ArtFox]

[URL="http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/08/autorucksack_a.php"]



Just take this a step further? How about an inflatable temporary boat tail?