[Shotimes] RE: Dimples Was: 96 SHO damage report

[Arjun Khosla]

James F. Ryan III wrote:

>>I didn't know that the dimples made it go faster, I thought it would just
>>make it fly straighter!
>>    
>>
>
>Straighter?  No.  Faster?  Slightly (but that's not important to a golfer).
>Stay in the air longer?  Yes; which equates to longer distance.
>
>The problem with a golf ball (or baseball) is that they're round, or
>spherical.  As a ball (without dimples or laces) travels through the air,
>the boundary layer air is unable to conform to the spherical shape and
>separates from the surface of the ball.  This creates 'dirty swirls' which
>we know as drag.
>
>The dimples (or laces) create turbulence which actually allows the boundary
>layer air to conform to the shape of the ball, which in turn reduces the
>dirty swirls/drag and allows the ball to fly farther (and faster).  Also,
>the direction of spin creates a lower pressure area above the ball
>(Bernoulli's principle) and the helps to 'lift' the ball.  Anyone who has
>ever whacked a golf ball is familiar with this upward-curving flight path,
>especially with a nice 1- or 3-wood.
>
>Our cars are not as streamlined as boats or airplanes but they are better
>than a golf ball.  Most cars have a sloped/tapered front end, a high middle,
>and a sloped/tapered rear end.  Not perfect but it does have the overall
>shape of an airplane wing, save for the very tapered trailing edge of the
>wing.  Because of the car's already 'superior' (compared to a golf ball)
>shape the dimples will do more harm than good. 
>
Heh, toss a roof rack on the car to get some turbulent airflow over the 
roof to reduce the boundary layer separation over the back of the car-- 
be delighted at the wonderful whistling sounds the car makes, and the 
dubious improvement in drag!

    -Arjun
    89 SHO lesson: a car is expensive to maintain if the previous owner 
neglected it all its life!