Does anyone know if the stock spoiler on the 2-door Integras is actually beneficial from a purely aerodynamic perspective? Or if it just creates turbulence (and hence drag) at the back of the car? Lacking a wind tunnel facility, it’s hard to know.
I ask this because I’m considering doing some aero mods (partial belly pans front and back, partial grill block, rear wheel skirts) to see if I can bump up my mileage stats by a few mpg. My overall average mileage for last 10 years is 32 mpg and my best-ever tank (freeway cruising) was just shy of 42 mpg. I’m curious to see if some aero mods will help much. If the car looks too ridiculous with rear wheel skirts, I can take them off later.
hmmm… this is interesting, in theory it should be more aerodynamically sound to run without a rear spoiler. certain cars run better with it (example: ITR). dunny about our g2’s tho. maybe consider a front bumper cover thats actually made for performance and not just looks?
IMO,I believe that it will create drag because the wind direction flowing across the car will not align with the spoiler height…G2 Integras looks better without it anyways
Compare to the ITR, maybe the reason why the spoiler is high in height is probably to align with the roof for more aerodynamic.
I’ve always wonder about this as well. I know one benefit of removing it, is in weight savings. But I haven’t found any info stating that it does improve aerodynamics.
I think our gen Integras looks better with the oem rear spoiler than without.
Most cars look better with a spoiler.
I think Patrick and his team would be able to shed some light on this, being that they actually circuit race a well prepped 2nd Gen Integra with some significant aerodynamics enhancements.
It SHOULD increase drag. Anything that sticks out and disturbs the airflow around the car will create drag…Maybe not alot of drag, but it will increase it. The faster the car goes, the more parasite drag the spoiler will create…It’s only a function of speed(velocity).:read: I think the real question might be, is the spoiler really functional? I’m sure it creates some downforce, which is what you need to keep the rear-end planted during corners. If you’re looking for fuel efficency, you’re probably better without it. I mean, if the spoiler produces downforce, you’ll get a higher coefficient of drag…and if it produces lift, it still increases your coefficient of drag.
if u wanna decrease coefficient of drag… get speed holes! lol. i really dunno if these work, but i guess it started for a reason, and prolly does work. i’m kinda neutral regarding speed holes, but i’m pretty sure some downforce is needed at higher speeds due to lifting. like formula cars… the faster they go, the lower the car gets, to combat against drag and decrease coefficient of drag.
but since this topic is mainly about stock spoilers… i think the gain/loss that will occur will be very minimal, cuz the stock spoiler doesn’t have very much height or angle. its pretty streamline and low against the top of the trunk. if anything it is helping to direct air flow… which makes the car somewhat more stable.
Hmmmm Very interesting topic. I’m clueless on drag coefficients.
Per Honda Tuning 9/2006 page 52 regarding the DA.
“Its wedge shape was designed through the latest CAD techniques at the time, coupled with extensive windtunnel testing to produce a drag coefficient of only .32.”
