The Ultimate DIY Aero Mod

[Smart Enuf]

Take $400 in hardware store materials, one 1992 Honda Civic, and one focused DIYer who doesn't mind being stared at, and you get the AeroCivic with 95 mpg (at 65 mph) and 0.17 Cd:



Aerocivic - aerodynamic mods for maximum fuel economy - aerocivic.com

Not pretty, but props to the guy for a lot of innovative thoughts and hard work.

[Godfather]

Looks like an old Citroen with a hangover..... but kinda cute.

[jwight]

I seem to remember Car & Driver doing a project like this (different car) during the early 70s fuel crisis. They got some good results also just by cleaning up the car's drag, although I don't think they went as far as the "boat tail."

[Smart Enuf]

Originally Posted by jwight

I seem to remember Car & Driver doing a project like this (different car) during the early 70s fuel crisis. They got some good results also just by cleaning up the car's drag, although I don't think they went as far as the "boat tail."

Yup, but I don't think it did anything about the explosive nature of the Pinto's character.



$11 worth of mods plus new tires - Car and Driver improves MPG by 25%

[forestacademy]

Best quote

Since it was a 15 year old car with over 350,000 miles (563,270 km) on the odometer at the time that I started this project, I had no concerns with resale values.

Add $400 in parts and its quite a winner

[Kermit]

He's an old member of one of my MPG forums.. it's been fun watching the car evolve.

[BigWarpGuy]

I have seen some thing similar done to the GM Impact - their electric vehicle that they later got rid of. It too had a 'boat tail'. It was used to see how fast it could go. It was run on a race track. It went very fast because it was more 'aerodynamiclly' clean.

[Smart Enuf]

Here's an attempt at what a boat-tailed smart might look like:



Source: smart cdi (diesel) owner from BC, Canada - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com (user: ebacherville, Post #11).

I think the tail should probably be flattened along the horizontal axis; a vertical tail would probably be unstable in windy conditions.

[Neonspinnazz]

Originally Posted by Smart Enuf

Take $400 in hardware store materials, one 1992 Honda Civic, and one focused DIYer who doesn't mind being stared at, and you get the AeroCivic with 95 mpg (at 65 mph) and 0.17 Cd:



Aerocivic - aerodynamic mods for maximum fuel economy - aerocivic.com

Not pretty, but props to the guy for a lot of innovative thoughts and hard work.

It sure looks futuristic!
But leave it to Top Gear to make it into a boat

[Macaw]

Originally Posted by Smart Enuf

Here's an attempt at what a boat-tailed smart might look like:

I think the tail should probably be flattened along the horizontal axis; a vertical tail would probably be unstable in windy conditions.

I think on the smart a more streamlined front end would get better gains....