Interesting.. How is the W211 SO much more aerodynamic than a CLS?!
If you put a W211, W220, W221, and a CLS side by side, obviously the CLS looks like the most aerodynamic of them all.
However, that is way wrong. The CLS gets a pretty "poor" .31 C/D, while the W211 and the two S's all get about a .27 C/D.
That's a pretty big difference.




Last edited by gaazmon; Sep 30, 2009 at 07:18 PM.

Really though, I part next to a 219 and it looks like my car would be pushing against the air more, the 219 seems like it would cut right through easier. Makes you realize aerodynamics are more than just about shape..... Well it makes me realize that, lol, I'm sure many people had already known that by now.
I recently read that the new BMW 7'er gets a .31 or something like that, and the Audi A5 gets around there too. The W212 is like a freakin' .25, and the Coupe even better. Some of them don't look like total aero mobiles so much (save for the Coupe in this case), but obviously is some engineering wizardry.
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The Best of Mercedes & AMG
That little spoiler on the trunk lid of the AMGs is (theoretically) to force air to push down the rear end. But in reality it's more cosmetic since it's a street car. The GT3, on the other hand, was built to be close to being 100% track ready.
F1 cars are all about wings and wing placement for drag and lift, etc.. (lots of rules on how they can or can't be used, etc..)
This requires a lot of understanding of aerodynamic physics. It also helps if you've been in a wind tunnel. You can't necessarily tell by looking at the car.
Did you know, that within the E-Class, an E220, E350, and E550 might have different aerodynamics! I know that within the BMW 3-series coupe, the 328i and the 335i coupes have different Cd ratings.
That little spoiler on the trunk lid of the AMGs is (theoretically) to force air to push down the rear end. But in reality it's more cosmetic since it's a street car. The GT3, on the other hand, was built to be close to being 100% track ready.
F1 cars are all about wings and wing placement for drag and lift, etc.. (lots of rules on how they can or can't be used, etc..)
Regarding F1 cars, the FIA actually stipulate where you can put the wings and how big the wings can be. The FIA gives a schematic of a chassis with red boxes, each box is labeled with what can be put on it. It may say wing and dimensions allowed, one box will say this has to be empty space, etc...
Oh, believe it or not, your little wing on the E63 actually contributes a noticeable amount of downforce at high speeds. It looks subtle, but everything helps. Basically, these tiny lip wings increase downforce with almost no increase in drag, so it's a good tradeoff.
Nice to see someone who knows a bit about aerodynamics. You sure can learn quite a bit by just looking closely at an F1 car.
This requires a lot of understanding of aerodynamic physics. It also helps if you've been in a wind tunnel. You can't necessarily tell by looking at the car.
Did you know, that within the E-Class, an E220, E350, and E550 might have different aerodynamics! I know that within the BMW 3-series coupe, the 328i and the 335i coupes have different Cd ratings.

True about the different models, it has to do with the body cladding I'm sure. I know the AMG body kits lower the CD by .1 or so points.
More like a 10!

j/k
In all seriousness, this wikipedia article has an interesting chart of drag coefficients: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automob...s_and_examples
Given that a Hummer H2 has a coefficent of 0.57, I'd imagine the G-Wagon would probably be around there (maybe a little less, but probably in the 0.4-0.5 range).



