Turbo Wing's Effect On Milage?
Discussion in 'Trucks [ Eighteen Wheelers ]' started by Disturbed Canuck, Apr 10, 2009.
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kay_ray Thanks this.
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Read an article in HDT sometime back that addressed things like the fairings, air dams, etc. According to them, one of the most detrimental factors to fuel mileage was the distance from back of cab to the trailer nose. Wind tunnel tests showed the best result was an unrealistic distance of 11", and results got progressively worse until a distance of 36" (iirc). Greater distance than 36" caused the results to take a giant leap the wrong way, almost negating the gain of a rooftop spoiler.
Red Fox Thanks this. -
This somewhat countermands the studies done on the pickup gates. It was determined that lowering the gate did nothing to assist in FE on a pickup, although removing it (for weight) would help somewhat.
Evidently the air curling around the back of a semi is acting differently than the air behind a pickup. -
I believe the difference is the AMOUNT of drag created. Now on my Power Stroke, removing the tail gate made no difference whatsoever. However on my dually, with the big gas engine, (unfortunately) in it, it made a difference of a little over a mile a gallon. Considering that this gas hog averages 11 MPG on the hwy. . .
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Good call. As I study a lot on FE devices and am engaged in research on hydrogen gas and other fuel additives, we find a lot of disparity due to external influences like tire pressure, open windows, etc.
OTOH, a truck that goes enormous distances on tanks of fuel will be a much more accurate indicator, the distances tending to negate any small variables.
I hate it when John Q. puts a device on his car, drives to work and back, refills and claims 40% better FE...when all it was is the fuelup was done at a different pump, and the car was tilted another direction, allowing 1/2 gallon more to be filled.Big Don Thanks this. -
If I had to guess, I'd say they tried to duplicate road conditions, as Heavy Duty Trucking has been a great mag to get good information from, imho. This was done not to tout some advertiser's product, but to give truck owners ideas on how to set-up their equipment for fuel economy, utilizing things such as air dams, spoilers,etc.
You probably have seen the full length fairings that a lot of trailers are now being equipped with, to block the air drag generated under a trailer- that was one option they highly recommended, supposedly getting excellent results.
All in all, to me a realistic comparison would be two identical rigs following one another, one equipped with, and the other without.oneshot Thanks this.
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