Vehicle aerodynamics characteristics of 35°Ahmed body model in crosswind conditions

Abstract In order to study the aerodynamic characteristics of the vehicle body in the different crosswinds, the simulation model is employed based on the STAR CCM+CFD, and the unsteady numerical calculations of the flow field around the high-speed vehicle are performed. To comprehensively study the changing behavior of vehicle aerodynamic force under various crosswinds, including in-step, sinusoidal, triangular, and exponential wind, the aerodynamic characteristics of the 35° Ahmed vehicle body model are analyzed. The research results indicate that the crosswind of the step wind has the most significant interference with the vehicle, while the exponential crosswind exerts the weakest effect. The wind patterns do not significantly affect the drag and lift coefficients, but the trend of the lateral force coefficients closely aligns with the lateral wind speed.