Purpose of Winglets
Purpose of Winglets
(OP)
So, I'm stuck in some traffic on the freeway, going slow, or I wouldn't have noticed this. The car in front of me appeared to have little black winglets glued to the bottom of their rear bumper. Is that a "thing?" It's obviously after-market, otherwise, it would be color matched to the rest of the car, or the owner wanted to make sure they would be noticed.
so, do they actually serve some aerodynamic purpose? or was the owner simply a gullible ninny? I've looked on Google, but nothing I've seen looks like those.
so, do they actually serve some aerodynamic purpose? or was the owner simply a gullible ninny? I've looked on Google, but nothing I've seen looks like those.
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies forum1529: Translation Assistance for Engineers





RE: Purpose of Winglets
As an aftermarket stick-on part to a Honda Civic: Makes it look like an F1 car.
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Neither appear to be true of my winglets; they were THIN, possibly less than 1/16 inch, and were TINY, about 4" square
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies forum1529: Translation Assistance for Engineers
RE: Purpose of Winglets
They absolutely are an important part of a 'real' diffuser, which some cars do have.
RE: Purpose of Winglets
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies forum1529: Translation Assistance for Engineers
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Impossible to tell from the blurry pic, but if they were black, they were most likely carbon fiber.
Dan - Owner
http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com
RE: Purpose of Winglets
it's just that these winglets are TINY; now that I've got the picture up, I can see that these things are barely 2" square, if even that much
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies forum1529: Translation Assistance for Engineers
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Ah, or they may have been on a styling exercise. This sort of thing, but less ugly
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?
RE: Purpose of Winglets
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies forum1529: Translation Assistance for Engineers
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Didn't quote your photo to keep the thread clean.. but that's called a vortex generator, and they actually do (at least a well-designed OEM implementation) make a measureable difference in drag, even on a street car.
RE: Purpose of Winglets
RE: Purpose of Winglets
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies forum1529: Translation Assistance for Engineers
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Heck, even ridges on an antenna keep it from whistling at 45mph.
Dan - Owner
http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Remember when skirts were the rage? Did they "work"? Who cared?
RE: Purpose of Winglets
Steve
RE: Purpose of Winglets
I've read research showing a lessening of wind noise with this. Also, fewer cars have mirrors that blend, instead most are on stalks and they tend to be placed farther behind the edge of the windshield. Again, wind noise is being considered, but the improvement also helps aerodynamics. IMHO, the straight aero benefit is not as compelling to the designers as is wind noise.
RE: Purpose of Winglets