maxgladwell.com — The FastSkinz vehicle wrap material is dimpled. By creating turbulance, it reduces the air pressure and drag coefficient thereby increasing the aerodynamics, much like that of a golf ball. This technology can increase efficiency (MPG) by 25%, saving untold millions of gallons of gas and tons of CO2. And it's completely affordable and low tech.
Jan 15, 2009 View in Crawl 4
dirknerpinJan 15, 2009
Cars are not golf balls, they're not spheres, they have a single direction of travel, and they do not spin. If this idea had any merit you would see it in racing, either in use or explicitly banned.
morganmgheeJan 16, 2009
I have to agree with dirknerpin. While the initial image conjured by imaging relieving the downward pressure and thereby the weight to be moved by the engine, it is quickly set aside when remembering aerodynamics.. smooth is better. But I'd love to be wrong, so dugg.
maxgladwellJan 17, 2009
It's not a matter of smooth. Think about this. When the air hits the dimples, it forms turbulence. Picture swirls of air circulating at the surface of the material. All subsequent air passes over the turbulence...not the surface of the car, which has much more drag than the turbulent air. So it forms a pocket of swirling air on every surface, thereby reducing the drag. That's the theory, and the results so far appear to be validating it. There's more to it with the effect of the wake, but we're not a physicists.