The aerodynamic development of road and racing cars is typically carried out through a combination of computational simulations, experimental tests in wind tunnels and road/track testing of the actual vehicle or a full-scale prototype. Each of these development domains offers advantages and challenges, with the best results often achieved by the complimentary use of the three.
Road or track testing offers the correct geometrical representation, and a realistic environment and can offer a good representation of the expected operating conditions, although the range of conditions has to be, sometimes, narrowed down due to practicalities around the testing repeatability and measurements systems in place.
In our recent case study, we discuss the use of complementary information from different tools for the effective development of an aerodynamic design. Head to our case study page to read the full article.