Since I am a never ending tinkerer, and have pretty much finished messing with the drivetrain of my WK, I am now beginning to see what can be done with the front end aerodynamics. A little background first.....a year or two ago I first installed an SRT front bumper because the difference in drag coefficient (CdA). The stock WK is .41, and it's .39 for the SRT. I don't know if it really made much difference, as I was doing engine mods at the same time. I also have Airtab (http://www.airtab.com/ Be sure to watch the video at the bottom) Vortex Generators installed on the WK. They only appear to work above ~40 mph and only help a little with economy (probably within the margin of error), but definitely help with vehicle stability, and especially in keeping the rear window clean. Also, removing the roof rack cross rails helps reduce drag.
I recently joined a "hypermiler" forum to gain a little knowledge on vehicle aerodynamics. Lots of interesting info. over there....they even have a cool Aerodynamics and Rolling Resistance, Power and MPG Calculator. Apparently, a little reduction in CdA goes a long way. Anyway, Since there are an abundance of problems with the WK and SRT (especially 05-07's)front end aerodynamics, I decided to do a little experiment and tape off some of the areas on the bumper, grill, and hood area to see if it made any difference. I also moved the front license plate, and it will be covered soon. Unfortunately I was only able to make one short (~200 mile) trip, and the weather (wind) conditions didn't allow for a good two way test over a known route. On the outbound leg, I usually get around 21 mpg EVIC, and on this trip I got 22.8 mpg EVIC. I know the EVIC is not always reliable but still, at this point, I was comparing apples to apples. Because of time limitations (I am off on another trip tomorrow), I decided to go ahead and do these mods. for real. When I get back I'll post pix and stats. of the results. In the mean time, here are pix of the stock SRT bumper, and the taped off, license moved front end.
Got to go out and finish it now.
I recently joined a "hypermiler" forum to gain a little knowledge on vehicle aerodynamics. Lots of interesting info. over there....they even have a cool Aerodynamics and Rolling Resistance, Power and MPG Calculator. Apparently, a little reduction in CdA goes a long way. Anyway, Since there are an abundance of problems with the WK and SRT (especially 05-07's)front end aerodynamics, I decided to do a little experiment and tape off some of the areas on the bumper, grill, and hood area to see if it made any difference. I also moved the front license plate, and it will be covered soon. Unfortunately I was only able to make one short (~200 mile) trip, and the weather (wind) conditions didn't allow for a good two way test over a known route. On the outbound leg, I usually get around 21 mpg EVIC, and on this trip I got 22.8 mpg EVIC. I know the EVIC is not always reliable but still, at this point, I was comparing apples to apples. Because of time limitations (I am off on another trip tomorrow), I decided to go ahead and do these mods. for real. When I get back I'll post pix and stats. of the results. In the mean time, here are pix of the stock SRT bumper, and the taped off, license moved front end.
Got to go out and finish it now.