- Honda Car Owner's Manual

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22
AERODYNAMICS
Regardlessofwhatpowersourceacarisusing,thelessitsaerodynamicdrag,thelessenergywillbe
neededtotravelatanygivenspeed.AgreatdealofefforthasgoneintodesigningtheInsightaroundthe
goalofachievingexcellentaerodynamics,theendresultbeingadragcoefficientofonly0.25,thelowest
achievedbyanymassproducedcar.Incomparison,theHondaCivicHatchback,withroughlythesame1.9
square-meterfrontal area as the Insight,hasa Cd of 0.36, and needsaround32 percent morepower to
operateatthesamespeedastheInsight.
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TaperedTear-DropShape
The Insight's body is tapered so that it narrows towards the back,
creatingashapethatapproachestheoptimaltear-dropshape.Toallowthe
body to narrow, the rear wheel track places the rear wheels 4.3 inches
closertogetherthanthefrontwheels.Thecargoareaabovethewheelwells
isstillnarrower.Thefloorundertherearportionofthecaractuallyslopes
upwards, while the downward slop of the rear hatch window also
contributestoanoverallnarrowingofthecarattherear.
AttheverybackoftheInsight,theteardropshapeisabruptlycutoffin
whatiscalledaKammback(adistinctivedesignfeaturealsosharedbytheHondaCRX).TheKammback
takesadvantageofthefactthatbeyondacertainpointthereislittleaerodynamicadvantagetobegainedby
rounding offor tapering and extendingthe tailsectionof anautomobile, so one mightas wellabruptly
truncateitat thatpoint.TheKammback isadesignfeaturethathasbeenincorporatedintomanyhigh-
performanceautomobilesandracingcarsovertheyears.
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Flatunder-bodyCovers
AnotherimportantaerodynamicdetailthatgreatlycontributestotheInsightbody'slowcoefficientof
dragisthecarefulmanagementofunderbodyairflow.TheInsightbodyfeaturesaflatunderbodydesign
thatsmoothesairflowunderthecar,includingthreeplasticresinunderbodycovers.Areasoftheunderside
thatmustremainopentotheair,suchastheexhaustsystemandtheareaaroundthefueltank,haveseparate
fairingstosmooththeairflowaroundthem.
Inordertominimizeairleakagetotheunderside,theloweredgesofthesidesandtherearofthebody
formastrakethatfunctionsasanairdam.Attherear,thefloorpanrisesatafive-degree-angletowardthe
rearbumper,creatingagradualincreaseinunderbodyareathatsmoothlyfeedsunderbodyairintothelow-
pressureareaattherearofthevehicle.
Notethathighvoltagecablesthatarepassedabovetheunderbodycovers,andsothecoversmustbe
replacedifremovedforanyreason.
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OtherAerodynamicFeatures
• Otheraerodynamicfeaturesincludes:
• Optimally designed air intake shape, including shape of
louvers
• Aerodynamicallyshapednose
• Steeply raked windshield with edges that blend smoothly
with the cabin roof, and with the aerodynamically shaped
windshieldposts
• Lowhood-line
• Lowheightandsmallfrontalarea