CalSol has upgraded Zephyr; a feature that no past solar vehicle produced by CalSol since 2005 has had will be debuted at the 2014 FSGP and ASC races. So what is this groundbreaking new feature? Front fairing doors. Masterminded by members of the Chassis and Suspension subteam, the whole team has worked tirelessly to integrate the fairing doors. A lot of thought has gone into the operation, manufacturing, and implementation of the doors. We especially give a shout out to the Shell subteam for being ready to make the incorporation possible. As a team, we all hope to increase the aerodynamic efficiency of Zephyr with the addition of the inner and outer front fairing doors.
So here is the catch- the fairing doors must open up enough so that the solar vehicle can complete a U-turn with a six meter inner turn radius. Thus, the hinge and the fairing door cuts had to be placed carefully to minimize drag and still meet requirements. This takes concerted effort to achieve. Here is a clip of the first turn radius trial-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABhijCQ2Jj8&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Since then, we have accomplished our goal of having under a six meter inner turn radius. In fact, the car clears the turn with three feet to spare on both sides! We look forward to putting these doors to good use for the upcoming 2014 American Solar Challenge.
Thanks for your interest in CalSol and keep posted for more updates on Zephyr!