Guidelines for SUV Bodywork Design Focused on Aerodynamic Drag Reduction Using the Generic AeroSUV Model

SUV Aerodynamics has received increased attention as the stake this segments holds in the automotive market keeps growing year after year, as well as its direct impact on fuel economy. Understanding the key physics in order to accomplish both fuel efficient and aesthetic products is paramount, which indeed gave origin to a major initiative to foster collaborative aerodynamic research across academia and industry, the so-called DrivAer model. In addition to this sedan-based model, a new dedicated SUV generic model, called AeroSUV [1], has been introduced in 2019, also intended to provide a common framework for aerodynamic research for both experimental work and numerical simulation validation. The present paper provides an area of common ground for SUV bodywork design focused on aerodynamic drag reduction by investigating both Estate and Fast back configurations of the generic AeroSUV model. Modified bodywork geometries focused at the rear end as well as spoiler angles, are evaluated using OpenFOAM Delayed Detached Eddy Simulations (DDES) utilising a Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) approach, such that not only a sensitivity study of drag response is yielded, but a ranking in terms of the potential for drag savings in certain areas of the car, is produced.