4 ms·

... something like having every car slipstream the car in front of it?

• ericd 14y ago
  Yeah, potentially, but you're not going to reach the efficiency of a train as long as you have individual cars with a bunch of different use cases/designs.
  • LockeWatts 14y ago
    Put the largest one in front?
    • ericd 14y ago
      I never opted to take any courses in aerodynamics, unfortunately, but my understanding is that establishing a laminar flow ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laminar_flow http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laminar_flow ) is vital at those kinds of speeds, which requires a surface that the air can flow along smoothly. With a biggest-in-front arrangement, you get some slipstream benefit, but you also get a whole mess of turbulence, and there's no way you're going to rival the speed of a bullet train without a lot more energy spent. You want a mostly smooth/unbroken surface that the air can flow along.
  • philwelch 14y ago
    ...and as long as you have 2500 marginal pounds of vehicle per 1-2 passengers.