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Automotive aerodynamics is the study of the aerodynamics of road vehicles. Its main goals are reducing drag and wind noise, minimizing noise emission, and preventing undesired lift forces and other causes of aerodynamic instability at high speeds. Air is also considered a fluid in this case.
The two main factors that impact drag are the frontal area of the vehicle and the drag coefficient. The drag coefficient is a unit-less value that denotes how much an object resists movement through a fluid such as water or air. A potential complication of altering a vehicle's aerodynamics is that it may cause the vehicle to get too much lift.
Vehicle dynamics is the study of vehicle motion, e.g., how a vehicle's forward movement changes in response to driver inputs, propulsion system outputs, ambient conditions, air/surface/water conditions, etc. Vehicle dynamics is a part of engineering primarily based on classical mechanics.
Aerodynamics is a significant element of vehicle design, including road cars and trucks where the main goal is to reduce the vehicle drag coefficient, and racing cars, where in addition to reducing drag the goal is also to increase the overall level of downforce. [21]
Aerodynamics plays a critical role in a car's behavior at higher speeds. Vehicles must be stable and balanced first at lower speeds through their mechanical grip on the road via the chassis, suspension, and tires. [3] Aerodynamic aids can then be used to provide the necessary balance and stability characteristics at higher speeds. [3]
In car design, ground effect is a series of effects which have been exploited in automotive aerodynamics to create downforce, particularly in racing cars.This has been the successor to the earlier dominant aerodynamic focus on streamlining.
It is important to understand the aerodynamic behaviour of a motor vehicle when drafting, for example if the rear car is too close to the front car, the air supply to its radiator will be reduced and there is a possibility of the engine overheating. Most motor sport aerodynamic analysis is performed using wind tunnel testing.
Stability and control derivatives change as flight conditions change. That is, the forces and moments on the vehicle are seldom simple (linear) functions of its states. Because of this, the dynamics of atmospheric flight vehicles can be difficult to analyze. The following are two methods used to tackle this complexity.