Fascinating chat on the Peugeot stand last week with its design boss Gilles Vidal about the use of active aerodynamics. The stunning HX1 people carrier concept had some genuine innovations on it, including the six seats which slide into the back of each other like spoons, allowing maximum use of cabin space. But I was most interested in the wheels, which as you can see from the picture above, feature fold-out blades. At speed they automatically deploy to create a flat wheel surface to improve airflow. There are three rear spoilers which move away from the boot top to do the same thing, and even the headlamps have an active element to reduce vortices. Vidal told me: “Active elements such as a rear spoiler have traditionally been about generating more downforce, but now we are moving to a time when it’s more about aerodynamic efficiency. For example, we all know that a tapering rear end of the car is good for that, but it’s not always good for the aesthetic. So we design the car as we want, but when you move in it, elements of it move too.” He was honest enough to say this is long way from a production possibility, not through design and engineering competence but from a development cost perspective. Clever stuff, though.
No comments:
Post a Comment