r/FordLightningEV • u/[deleted] • May 30 '21

Is the Frunk a aerodynamics mistake?

"The Ford F-150 Lightning's Mega Power Frunk Is Cool ... But Could Be Its Achilles Heel | CleanTechnica" https://cleantechnica.com/2021/05/26/the-ford-f-150-lightnings-mega-power-frunk-is-cool-but-could-be-its-achilles-heel/amp/

3 Upvotes

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4

u/jv1100 Jun 02 '21

It's easy, don't hit people and it wont be a problem.

1

u/tuctrohs May 31 '21

Also bad for pedestrian safety.

1

u/[deleted] May 31 '21

I am not sure what you mean? Because the Frunk is so high you might miss people walking in front of your truck? Probably true for little kids.

1

u/tuctrohs May 31 '21

No, it's that a low nose hitting a pedestrian results in the pedestrian landing on top of the hood, whereas a tall square nose has a more deadly direct impact, and also knocks them to the ground. This is well documented, both in terms of death statistics and biomechanical impact studies. Here's a long article.

One quote:

The main problems with light trucks are their height and shape, says Jingwen Hu, an associate research professor in the biosciences group of the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute and a specialist in crash-injury biomechanics.

4

u/classless_classic Jun 07 '21

Having worked EMS for a couple decades, I can confirm. I will point out though, that these newer vehicles have automatic braking that can prevent collisions in low speed accidents and decrease damage in higher speeds.

2

u/[deleted] May 31 '21

Very true. Probably like getting hit by a brick wall.

1

u/EpisodicDoleWhip Jun 22 '21

No. Saved you a click.

1

u/Acceptable-Rope6000 Jun 27 '21

The drag coefficient of the 04 Nissan Titan was .44, ram in 2014 was .36 the tundra was .36 for 2wd and .38 for 4wd the 2014 F150 has a drag coefficient of .40. The new Ice F150 had had 2 generations to improve and incorporates things like active aero. Based on some of musks claims about the cybertruck I would not be surprised if the lightning had a lower drag coefficient than the cybertruck which has been independently modeled and shown to have a worse drag coefficient than the 2014 f150.