I recently made my own splitter on my race car that goes back as far as the firewall starting at the front bumper. I did this to reduce drag and improve aerodynamics. I have been thinking about applying the same upgrade to my f150.

I am thinking that not only will it aid in handeling and stability at speed, but gas mileage as well. take a look underneath any of the high MPG cars and/or hybrids. you will see the under body of those cars are very flat. then compare that to the under body of your truck.

I'm wondering if anybody on here has done something similar or at least has seen it before on these trucks?

 

You plan on doing 140+mph?

It's a truck... Can't say Ive heard to many people trying to improve the aerodynamics of a daily driver truck. Not much you can do, worth the money body wise that will net you any mileage savings.

 

Does a prius drive around at 140? No, that's because even at low speeds a reduction in drag has great effects. Why do you think the Chevy Volt has more hours logged in the wind tunnel than the ZR1 Corvette.

Our trucks are like bricks with wheels. I'm confident that making small improvements in a few key areas could have a great effect. In milage as well as performance. With aerodynamics and weight reduction being the main focus.

 

If you are thinking about doing this for gas savings, its not going to help much. You might get .5mpg at the most. And what it does help with, is just going to hurt the cooling system of the radiator (if you plan to add a splitter or something up towards the front).

 

Go for it. sheet metal the whole underside. Clip the mirrors, go down a size in tires, custom fiberglass the bed. Still a truck... and a funny looking one now. But you saved 1mpg. That's cool.


Your comparing your race car, chevy volt and a prius to a half ton truck.... logic?
"Our trucks are like bricks with wheels"

All trucks are like bricks with wheels.. why? they were designed to do something that cars cannot. They compromise fuel mileage and some comfort to achieve that.

I'm not against improving mileage... There are other ways to gain performance and mileage. To me, aerodynamics are not high on the list. Wait, they are not on the list at all.

 

What exactly is a splitter? What does it do?

 

If ya want gas mileage get a car! I bought a truck cuz its a truck and I needed it to work not be gas friendly or look like a sports car...
Trucks aren't know for aerodynamics and never will be.

 

Weight is more more of a fuel burner than aerodynamics are. OP should be focusing on that. Strip the whole truck down, acid-bath the frame, remove A/C, rear seats, all the glass (replace with lexan) and then get some lightweight 15" wheels. That would probably get you another 1mpg

 

I wouldn't go about making a full blown splitter, but even adding a small lip to the lower side of the valance would net you the same results.

Not sure how high your truck is, but the only thing you are looking to do is push the air down towards the road so your truck will drive right over the "dead zone", giving you less drag.

 

no one that I know of, BUT it's worth a shot