Effect of Cross-Winds on Motor Car Engine Cooling

970138

02/24/1997

Event
SAE International Congress and Exposition
Authors Abstract
Content
The sensitivity of cross-winds in reducing the engine cooling ability in motor cars is highlighted. Tests on three different motor cars were conducted in the Monash University full-scale wind tunnel at different yaw angles under different wind velocities. The test results show that motor car engine cooling capability decreases with an increase in yaw angles. For a wind velocity of 14 m/s, a 13% decrease in radiator cooling capability was found at a yaw angle of 20° compared to a zero yaw angle. The effect of yaw angles on the engine cooling also depends on the motor car front-end configuration, but this becomes less important with increasing wind velocity. The effect of cross-winds on car engine cooling was also evaluated by on-road engine cooling tests. A convenient experimental method to measure wind velocity and yaw angle relative to a moving car is also described.
Meta TagsDetails
DOI
https://doi.org/10.4271/970138
Pages
15
Citation
Lin, C., Saunders, J., and Watkins, S., "Effect of Cross-Winds on Motor Car Engine Cooling," SAE Technical Paper 970138, 1997, https://doi.org/10.4271/970138.
Additional Details
Publisher
Published
Feb 24, 1997
Product Code
970138
Content Type
Technical Paper
Language
English