Fuel Saving Trailer Tails?

There are some valid points regarding the longevity of the aero trucks but there is no denying that they will be on the increase.They will do this at the expense of market share fought off classic type trucks.Regardless of your taste there is also no denying they are more fuel efficient then a classic.It is plain stupid to argue otherwise.Are they better for the environment?I really don't know.A classic made almost entirely out of metal is almost 100% recyclable (better then biodegradable).The cycle from cradle to grave is at least 20 years on a classic , probably only about 10 on an Aero.This equals twice the environmental impact during manufacture for the Aero.The extra hours spent on maintenance on an Aero type over a 10 year period add to the environmental impact of this type of truck.
What the bottom line is , I don't know. What I do know is that often what seems obvious is not always the entire picture.

 

how people change climat? seems to me no such impact. we produce less CO2 then animals!

but plastic parts may stay in envirement for many years! so I think the only reason to build aero trailers in future - save $$$$.

aero tail... it is kind of compomise. the best way - build aero trailers on plants

 

Thank you for all of these replies. I absolutely agree that engineers often have no clue about the real world. But, as I said, I am familiar with Smart truck and have contacts with them. I have found their designs (yes, you can buy only what you want and at whatever price you can afford and no, $4k is not the actual cost of a complete system, it's less) make the most sense concerning mileage, placement, and lack of moving parts. Someone posted a link to their website, you may want to check it out.
Fleets with deep pockets are putting skirts on their trucks. Obviously, someone did their homework and concluded that these things might actually work. I will try and get some updated info from Smart Truck as far as their testing goes.

 

This one's sure to work. I ordered two, I'm thinking about going to quad exhaust so I can run four of these.

 

OMG, I think I just peed a little. I would pay $1500 to shove this POS up the designers rectum. Is this being sold by the Turbo3000D guy?
Just wait, there will be a thread on this POS and someone will SWEAR it helps. Just like all the other snake oil products.

 

I just spit tea all over my laptop screen
I may email them and ask if they fit a 8" pipe
You could always pull the thing off and use to put that new piss water in the tank

 

Rag, if you do email them, please keep their response to yourself, I'm not sure I can handle it.

 

I saw this one on the road a few times already and did some research... It deploys automatically at highway speeds via a built in GPS unit. It will stow itself when you slow down or pull off of the highway. And they claim to save 5.3% on fuel. Sounds like a no brainer to me if the price is right.

http://www.ats-green.com

[ame]http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGqT81I53Rw&feature=player_embedded[/ame]