Numerical Simulation Approach to Investigate the Effects of External Modifications in Reducing Aerodynamic Drag on Passenger Vehicles

This study used a numerical simulation approach to examine the effects of external modifications in reducing aerodynamic drag on passenger vehicles. During the simulation, modifications included reducing mirror size by replacing the side mirrors with cameras and covering the wheel area. The resulting changes in drag force for different combinations of modifications were compared with a conventional baseline model to determine the most aerodynamic configuration. The study found that side view cameras reduced drag forces by almost 2.6% due to their smaller frontal areas and improvement in the overall aerodynamics of the vehicle. Besides, an increase in wheel coverage decreased the drag causing up to 2.7% of drag force reduction for a wheel with an 87% coverage area. This is because of the reduction in wake formation caused by the wheel rims. Finally, using a combination of smaller cameras and wheels with larger coverage areas resulted in a maximum drag reduction of about 4.3%.