The owner of the bizarre Impreza Wagon claims fuel efficiency is up by almost 14 percent thanks to the DIY aero kit
Fuel costs have been all over the place lately, and it’s understandable that most motorists want to cut back on their car-related expenses. But what would you be willing to do to save a bit on fuel bills? The owner of this Subaru Impreza Wagon has taken hypermiling to the extreme by building a crazy-looking DIY aero kit for their car to improve its aerodynamics and maximise miles from the fuel tank.
The spaceship-like Subaru Impreza Wagon was built by Think Flight on YouTube, and the builder claims that the pointed rear end modification has improved fuel mileage by around 13.7 percent.
Think Flight explains the technicalities of his unusual creation brilliantly in the video, but the long and short of it is that the rear modification helps reduce turbulent air produced by the car, enabling it to slide through the air more efficiently. This means that the Subaru doesn’t need to use as much fuel to propel forward, helping the driver get more miles out of a tank of fuel with the same amount of acceleration.
The aero-friendly rear spike is made from foam sections mounted to the car with duct tape. Cardboard wheel covers have also been glued to the wheels to eradicate turbulent air created by the spinning wheel spokes, and cardboard vortex generators have also been glued to the car’s bodywork in various places.
Before Think Flight added the modifications, the Subaru averaged 35.6 miles per gallon on a baseline run. This was later followed up by a test with the changes fitted, and the upgrades yielded 40.52 mpg. The DIY aerodynamicist made efforts to minimise variables between the two tests, so the upgrades look like they have made a difference, albeit small. Would you fit this DIY aero kit on your car to save money on fuel?
See also Hoonigan’s ‘Family Huckster’ Is An 862bhp 1983 Subaru GL Wagon
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