RTT and the important of wind fairing

[alia176]

As most of you know, putting crap on top of the roofs (rooves?) creates air turbulence, which translates to noise and drag. This is version 3.0 of my design and I'm pretty happy with it. I still want to do some minor tweaks, which may never stop, and I'm probably getting 0.0001 mpg improvement, WOOHOO!!! The pics should be self explanatory but lmk if you got any questions. Material is 1/8" alum that includes the brackets and the fairing.

 

[GR8ADV]

As most of you know, putting crap on top of the roofs (rooves?) creates air turbulence, which translates to noise and drag. This is version 3.0 of my design and I'm pretty happy with it. I still want to do some minor tweaks, which may never stop, and I'm probably getting 0.0001 mpg improvement, WOOHOO!!! The pics should be self explanatory but lmk if you got any questions. Material is 1/8" alum that includes the brackets and the fairing.

View attachment 895780View attachment 895781

I like it. I could have used that on a past vehicle to keep branches from going under my solar panels.

 

[alia176]

I like it. I could have used that on a past vehicle to keep branches from going under my solar panels.

hmm, that is something I never thought about it but makes total sense to me!

 

[ITTOG]

I like it. I could have used that on a past vehicle to keep branches from going under my solar panels.

I need to build one of these as well. I get a lot of branches between the cab and cabover slide in camper. They have created a lot of damage because the aftermarket one I bought was too short.

 

[Lemsteraak]

I'm curious, before you put up the fairing did you get a lot of bug debris on the front of the tent?

AutoHome does a lot of aerodynamic testing so the profile should be pretty clean. I played around with tent placement years ago and found that it can make a difference. Sometimes if you move your tent back on the roof it will clean up the airflow. I've also seen weird end-plate effects from wide tents where the tent overhangs the roof on the sides or the front that really disturb the air and create a lot of drag.

Sometimes the height of the tent over the roof will also make a difference. On boxy G-Wagens these tents appear to improve the vehicle aerodynamics.

 

[Kiwibru]

Interesting approach. Wind deflectors have been a standard for many roof racks for years. My issue with them has always been the interference zone where the deflector drops on to the roof. It is either a slight slit of space left to prevent the rubbing issues on the auto roof or a rubber seal which in the long run will cause an issue with the roof paint. How does your setup address this problem?

 

[alia176]

Interesting approach. Wind deflectors have been a standard for many roof racks for years. My issue with them has always been the interference zone where the deflector drops on to the roof. It is either a slight slit of space left to prevent the rubbing issues on the auto roof or a rubber seal which in the long run will cause an issue with the roof paint. How does your setup address this problem?

I opted for direct interference with the roof so that the movement is just about zero. I also put a clear plastic protection layer on that part of the roof, and I think it's about 4 in wide and spans the entire width of the roof. The edge seal rests on this clear plastic film and the entire fairing is under mechanical pressure by the way of the angled pieces.

Additionally, damaging the paint is a non-issue for me. None of my 4x4s will be ever considered cream puffs as they get used as intended.

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[alia176]

I'm curious, before you put up the fairing did you get a lot of bug debris on the front of the tent?

AutoHome does a lot of aerodynamic testing so the profile should be pretty clean. I played around with tent placement years ago and found that it can make a difference. Sometimes if you move your tent back on the roof it will clean up the airflow. I've also seen weird end-plate effects from wide tents where the tent overhangs the roof on the sides or the front that really disturb the air and create a lot of drag.

Sometimes the height of the tent over the roof will also make a difference. On boxy G-Wagens these tents appear to improve the vehicle aerodynamics.

I don't recall if I had a lot of bug splatter, probably no more than the usual. I did version 1.0 so long ago that nothing stands out in my memory. I still get a little bit of bug splatter even with the windfaring but it's easy enough to clean up.

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