Coefficient Of Drag

[juno_reaction]

I was wondering if anyone knew the coefficient of drag for an old '92 ES in comparison to an 01' ES and an '06 ES 330. I can't seem to find this information on the net.

[Toysrme]

Remember it's not the cd that tells the story. It's only 1/2 the equation.

It's cd & frontal cross-section that tells the story.

While the later cars have margionally lower cd's, they also grew in frontal area. And when it comes to measuring the cd. The longer the object, the easier. :)

Which is why both modern semi-trucks with trailers, and mid-sized SUV's with roof-racks both have cd's around .5!

89-91 Don't know, get on Lexus.com & look up the origianl es 250 ART brochures.

92-96 .320

97-01 .29

01-06 .28

07+ .28

But again... Frontal area is just as important as the cd.

[juno_reaction]

Thats incredible. I had no idea semi-trucks could achieve a CD anywhere near .5! You learn something new every day. '92-'97 saw a substantial drop in the CD, which is exactly what I was looking for becuase I'm planning on getting an '01 ES, and which also explains yet another reason why I get such bad gas milage on my '92. Thanks for the frontal cross-section tip as well.

[Toysrme]

LoL! Na, it aint the cd. :P Check the o2 sensors & the injectors. If you want, lean it out acouple of clicks & add alittle timing. May pick-up a mpg.

If you do alot of highway driving, I calculated my cd to drop down to sub 30's when I amde a larger undertray.

[juno_reaction]

Exactly how do you calculate the CD? Wouldn't you need a wind tunnel and a bunch of sensors for something like that??

[Toysrme]

Not really. Just take the top speed before & after, then calculate the aerodynamic loss. That will tell you the cd.

Oh, and keep in mind that the 3vz-fe in your car at low (cruising) rpm's literally makes 50-100% more power than the 1mz-fe that replaced it.