For Faleh

For Faleh
by Jahanshah Javid
28-Sep-2011
 

Faleh, our driver, and I were sitting on the edge of the sidewalk in Alfi Sq in Abadan and watching the cars go by. That's a '68 Chevy Impala. That one's a '69. I could tell from the differences in the shape of the rear lights.

***

As drivers and passengers we spend more time looking at the back of the cars than any other part. So you would think it makes more sense for designers to pay more attention, or at least equal attention, to the back than the front.

As a car and design enthusiast, the most obvious and interesting change I've noticed in recent years is, of all things, the exhaust pipe. The exhaust pipe! Not the shape of the break lights, not the window, not the fender, not the tires... the exhaust pipe! The change is really significant.

The "egzoz" used to be a nasty ugly tin can with a protruding pipe that ruined the rear look of every car since the very first models a century ago. And nobody really cared. Engineers were in charge of the motor and mechanical parts while designers had a say in what the body and interior would look like. There were exceptions. Fancy Italian makers made sure the exhaust often complemented the cars' overall exciting design.

Now in the 21st century, the rest of the industry is catching up. In a world where there's crazy competition between auto makers in every continent, every little thing matters and the ugly dangling exhaust is no longer tolerated. More and more cars, even some of the cheapest and smallest models, have jazzed up their pipes.

Another thing I've noticed is not so much about looks but rather functionality. How many thousand times have I stared out an airplane from the window seat? How many times have I taken a picture of the wing over the heavens? So how I could I miss the change?

The passenger jet wings used to be straight. Now the tips are curved up. To improve balance? Don't know. But it looks cool.

Faleh would understand :)

Balatarin
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more from Jahanshah Javid
 
divaneh

I remember those cars

by divaneh on Wed Sep 28, 2011 03:34 PM PDT

You brought all the memories back JJ. I remember when tourists came to Abadan and we stared at all those different cars. Otherwise in Abadan you wouldn't see anything but Rolls Royce.

Wingtip vortices were the subject of my major project for my degree. The winglets are indeed mainly to reduce drag. My project was to draw energy out of those vortices with the aid of a wing tip turbine. Good old days.

 


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Anahid Hojjati

that is one good looking egzoz

by Anahid Hojjati on Wed Sep 28, 2011 03:06 PM PDT

in the picture.


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Jahanshah Javid

Faleh

by Jahanshah Javid on Wed Sep 28, 2011 10:29 AM PDT

pronounced Faw-LEH


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Esfand Aashena

Faleh = فعله؟ = laborer?

Esfand Aashena
Wed Sep 28, 2011 10:25 AM PDT

The rear ends have changed.  They are more aerodynamic and they are ghombol ing more!

For the past 2 decades or so the BMWs have good rear ends and bad fronts.  The fronts were good and uniquely "BMV" until they went with four lights covered by glass.  Why cover four lights with extra layer of glass? 

Mercedes on the other hand had good fronts but bad rear ends!  Flat rear ends! Alghouth in the past 4 or 5 years the rear ends have improved and both the front and the back are appealing.  I'm talking about mostly C class. 

Everything is sacred


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Jahanshah Javid

Gliding birds

by Jahanshah Javid on Wed Sep 28, 2011 09:20 AM PDT

Thanks Anahid for the info. Now I know :)

And thanks AO. I had noticed the similarity with birds and how their wingtips would curve up during flight. Nature knows best I guess. Millions of years of evolution beats a few decades of mechanical flight.


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Anonymous Observer

You had a driver?!!

by Anonymous Observer on Wed Sep 28, 2011 09:12 AM PDT

You bourgeoise you (in a Marxist sense of the word, of course)!

The wing tips are, as others said below, put in to reduce drag.  We learned that from gliding birds!  

//jeb.biologists.org/content/180/1/285.full.pdf

Once again, animals showed us the way.  If we could only learn kindness and humanity from them...  


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Anahid Hojjati

amirkabeair is correct and for a longer explanation

by Anahid Hojjati on Wed Sep 28, 2011 07:57 AM PDT

Under "wingtip device" , Wikipedia has a detailed explanation.

Here is the link:

//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wingtip_device

first few lines of this entry reads:

"Wingtip devices are usually intended to improve the efficiency of fixed-wing aircraft.[1] There are several types of wingtip devices, and though they function in different manners, the intended effect is always to reduce the aircraft's drag by altering the airflow near the wingtips. Wingtip devices can also improve aircraft handling characteristics and enhance safety for following aircraft. Such devices increase the effective aspect ratio of a wing without materially increasing the wingspan. An extension of span would lower lift-induced drag, but would increase parasitic drag and would require boosting the strength and weight of the wing. At some point, there is no net benefit from further increased span. There may also be operational considerations that limit the allowable wingspan (e.g., available width at airport gates)..."

I personally believe that they improve how an airplane looks. An airplane which used winglets in US; maybe not the first but it made the news, was 747-400 which came up with winglets in late 1980s.


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Jahanshah Javid

Wings

by Jahanshah Javid on Wed Sep 28, 2011 07:53 AM PDT

thanks AK. Makes sense. Faleh would get it too :)


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amirkabear4u

I knew there was something

by amirkabear4u on Wed Sep 28, 2011 07:50 AM PDT

about you that was different!! LOL

You are a design enthusiast. hmmm

The wings are curved for efficiency more than anything else. They reduce drag. Yes engineers see efficiency as functionality,

However I do not think Faleh would know this.


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