Using Fasteners In Car Design To Improve Fuel Efficiency

If you are in the car design industry, one of the things that you will definitely be very keen on is how to make sure that the ideas you come up with will be fuel efficient. This is on account of several factors including the increasing cost of fuel, which is forcing people to buy […]

If you are in the car design industry, one of the things that you will definitely be very keen on is how to make sure that the ideas you come up with will be fuel efficient. This is on account of several factors including the increasing cost of fuel, which is forcing people to buy more affordable cars. In addition to that, the increasing environmental awareness all over the world has also influenced many people to consider buying cars that are friendly to the environment.

There are many things that can be done to increase the fuel efficiency of the car, including the use of new age materials as well as making sure that the shape of the car is dynamic. However, one aspect of this that most people might not pay attention to but which is important is the types of fasteners used for the design. Some of the ways in which your choice of fasteners can influence the performance and efficiency of the car include:

Weight
Fasteners can be heavy, and the fact that they are an integral part of any car means that you can’t afford to not use them. However, there are a few ways around this. You could decide to buy fasteners that are light so that their collective weight is reduced. For instance, titanium cap nuts and alloy 20 nylon insert lock nuts tend to be very light, making them the perfect candidates for this application. If you are designing a car, preferring to use them rather than fasteners made out of another material would be better for fuel savings.

 
Drag coefficient
One other way in which the fasteners can influence the amount of fuel the car uses is by contributing to increasing drag. If the fasteners are used in such a manner that they jut out of the aerodynamic profile of the car, they tend to spoil the smooth air flow over the body of the car, and this in turn means that there will be turbulence formed behind them. This increases drag, which in turn means that the car will need to consume more fuel in order to overcome it.
In order to avoid this, you should consider using fasteners that are put in place in such a manner that they sit flush with the profile of the car. One way to find out if this has happened is by examining the car in a wind tunnel to find out the patterns of air flow over it.

Vibration
Fasteners that have not been put in place properly tend to vibrate a lot. This might affect the car’s efficiency by increasing the amount of energy that is required to move the car to a particular speed. If the looseness is in an important part of the car such as the engine, the mechanical imbalance is also likely to lead to a loss of power, and this in turn means that the car will not perform as expected.

In summary, if you are designing a car and want to make it fuel efficient, you should not neglect the role of quality fasteners.