I drive my ride on the highway a lot and every time I have the sunroof open, it handles better and goes faster, it's like it cuts through the wind so much easier. The Coefficient of drag is 0.32 and I wonder if it's lower when the sunroof is open.
So, it would be nice if they tested the drag coefficient with the factory spoiler because with the G35, the coefficient of drag is lower by .01 with a spoiler.

Has anyone put a spoiler on their car and noticed a difference on the highway?

I have checked other posts and couldn't find any answers.

 

To my knowledge a wing/spoiler wouldn't really help a fwd car all that much if at all..its more for looks

 

ok, spoiler, if properly designed, is to provide downforce on the back of the car, it generally doesnt do anything until you are going like 80 and it does nothing for a FWD car, I would also say that there is no way it reduces drag, I would also go as far as to say that a big wing, which is generally poorly designed would increase drag on the car. Opening the sun roof, much like opening the windows would increase drag I would imagine, If it feels faster i'd say its the butt dyno, its open, it is louder so it sounds faster.

 

this one should do the trick

 

haha it even says flowmaster in the back

 

It's true that some rear spoilers can improve drag coefficient, by smoothing the air flow so that it exits the car cleanly, and in that case it doesn't matter whether the car is fwd or rwd. Some can also increase downforce, but most are designed for looks only, not with performance (better cd and/or downforce) in mind.

That said, I have no idea what spoilers are available for the tC that are performance oriented, or whether any exist.

 

haha me thinks the sunroof is having a placebo effect on you.

 

haha, because a drag coefficient reduced by .01 at speeds generally > 90 mph matters right?

I got my OEM rear lip spoiler for its looks.

 

Lots of input here.. that's good, I am glad people got something to say about this. I did some research after I wrote this post and I have my own beliefs now of what should be expected from a spoiler.

Check it out for yourselves, pretty interesting..

--> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spoiler_(automotive)

 

I heard it was not safe to drive with the sunroof open on the freeway because it will mess it up? Is that true

 

it's safe, it flops around a little, if you open it all the way (by pressing the open button once more after it's open) and drive at highway speeds, that would be not recommended because it flops around much more; but, I wouldn't worry about it.

 

says in the manual the sunroof can't be open in speeds over 50...I think. I remember one day when I came home I realized my sunroof was open the entire time I nearly shat myself because I knew that car ride felt a little too good.

 

I had to put these in for fun, someone else started it!

 

you an drive with the sunroof open at highway speeds. i've done it several times in nicer weather driving to and from frostburg (125 miles), at 60+ mph, and the sunroof holds just fine.

strangly enough, since i've started keeping track of my MPG, i expected it to go down when i opened up the sunroof, because i figured the car was less aerodynamic, but to my surprise, it actually went up just a little bit.

now that can't for certain be the sunroof because my driving conditions and behavior are not 100% constant, but seeing how i didn't experience a noticible decline in mpg, the sunroof angleing and deflecting could have been engineered with drag coefficient in mind.

 

well, I regularly drive on the highway with the sunroof open - about the only time I close it is when it rains - at speeds of 70+ and it's never once had a single problem aside from needing some wd40 once upon a time because the rails got dry and it wouldnt close.

 

what else are you going to use the sunroof for? anything is going to affect your drag. people say using the A/C at highway speeds rather then opening windows save more gas or use just as much gas

 

true, at speeds over 55 mph, it is more efficient to use air conditioning than have your windows open.

 

the side windows certainly cause drag... the sunroof i am not so sure - nowhere near the same airflow compared to even one side window being open

 

I don't know about you, but I never get tired fo seeing stupid spoiler pics!

 

yeah good call, lets get some more spoiler pics on this post..!