if you drive fast enough you wont get wet theory.......

[sawman]

has been largely disproved tonight.

Its fine in moderate rain(windscreen kept clear by wipers), anything over 50mph in the morgan its generally drier with the roof OFF, but in torrential rain(wipers no use anymore) i was still getting very wet - fortunately i found watford gap services just as I was wondering where my snorkel was.

[Animal]

Drive faster.

[sawman]

Animal said:

Drive faster.

i couldnt see anything and anyway all the other traffic on the M1 was only doing 50 or so

Edited by sawman on Thursday 22 July 23:21

Edited by sawman on Thursday 22 July 23:21

[XJR500bhp]

Simple physics, driving faster will not avoid rain, it just means the rain landing on your car would of hit the road if you were driving slower. Someone told me he could drive fast enough and avoid getting wet, he lives in a padded room!

[Urban Sports]

XJR500bhp said:

Simple physics, driving faster will not avoid rain, it just means the rain landing on your car would of hit the road if you were driving slower. Someone told me he could drive fast enough and avoid getting wet, he lives in a padded room!

Have

[anonymous-user]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDDpHlnwm1s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtDch5p_b6I&fea... <<< next part

Mythbusters ftw

XJR500bhp said:

Simple physics, driving faster will not avoid rain, it just means the rain landing on your car would of hit the road if you were driving slower. Someone told me he could drive fast enough and avoid getting wet, he lives in a padded room!

This isn't the same as running in the rain. This is to do with air movement.

Edited by MSTRBKR on Thursday 22 July 23:57

[JonRB]

I have empirical evidence that it does work, but I think it depends on the car. On the TVR Chimaera above a certain speed the aerodynamics would mean the rain would not enter the cockpit but be blown over the car. Mythbusters confirmed the same with a Porsche Boxster.

I suspect that with the Morgan, having as it has the aerodynamics of a brick and a very upright screen, the effect is lessened which is why you're getting wet.

[alfa pint]

It does depend on the car and the weight of the water..... in my B, the rain starts coming back in at about 70-80 ish i.e. the inside of the windscreen and rear view mirror start getting wet. Under 50 mph, everything gets wet.

Slightly different in the alfa due to wind deflector. Rain starts coming around the outside of the side windows at about 80 ish and definitely needs to be kept over 50 to stop the rain coming in.

[RobM77]

Of course it works. At any moment when you're driving, all the air that was in front of your car just a second ago is squeezed and forced up and over the car, so you have an area of fast moving air above your head when you're driving, which catches the rain and sends it over your head. I often drive my Elise in the rain with the top off; provided the rain's not too heavy and you're going fast enough, you don't get wet.

[goffahsez]

Forgive me for being naïve as I am not an experienced convertible driver, but surely this theory is let down at some point,
As surely at some point in all journeys you have to stop, and your not always gonna be lucky enough to be out of the rain by then?
Not doubting it though!
Have heard the same if your windscreen is elsewhere for whatever reason, something to do with cabin pressure and other technical stuff

[SimonV8ster]

Is this another conveyor belt thread ??

[sawman]

RobM77 said:

Of course it works. At any moment when you're driving, all the air that was in front of your car just a second ago is squeezed and forced up and over the car, so you have an area of fast moving air above your head when you're driving, which catches the rain and sends it over your head. I often drive my Elise in the rain with the top off; provided the rain's not too heavy and you're going fast enough, you don't get wet.

I think it has alot to do with aerodynamics, the flat screen of the morgan neans that a fair bit of water trickles up the screen and then drips down the inside, but between 50 and 70(for legal reasons) in moderate rain it does stay pretty dry, but I reckon id have needed to do about 200 to stay dry in the massive ran this evening on the M1

you do get quite damp with the roof on in the morgan in moderate rain so on balance its better with it off!

[RobM77]

in my Caterham the inside of the windscreen got wet. The Elise is just right aerodynamically though :-)

[Sk93]

goffahsez said:

Forgive me for being naïve as I am not an experienced convertible driver, but surely this theory is let down at some point,
As surely at some point in all journeys you have to stop, and your not always gonna be lucky enough to be out of the rain by then?
Not doubting it though!
Have heard the same if your windscreen is elsewhere for whatever reason, something to do with cabin pressure and other technical stuff

of course you're right.. but if you have to stop, then you get that roof up / on asap

but when you're cruising on the motorway and you drive into a shower, you should just keep the speed up and go right on!

(EFA: keeping the speed up according to road, driving and visibility conditions. Don't go faster to stay dry if you're risking your or other peoples lives!)

Edited by Sk93 on Friday 23 July 00:47

[sawman]

Sk93 said:

goffahsez said:

Forgive me for being naïve as I am not an experienced convertible driver, but surely this theory is let down at some point,
As surely at some point in all journeys you have to stop, and your not always gonna be lucky enough to be out of the rain by then?
Not doubting it though!
Have heard the same if your windscreen is elsewhere for whatever reason, something to do with cabin pressure and other technical stuff

of course you're right.. but if you have to stop, then you get that roof up / on asap

but when you're cruising on the motorway and you drive into a shower, you should just keep the speed up and go right on!

(EFA: keeping the speed up according to road, driving and visibility conditions. Don't go faster to stay dry if you're risking your or other peoples lives!)

Edited by Sk93 on Friday 23 July 00:47

Yep, I was in the roadworks on the m25 when it started spotting, I was a bit tense cos there nowhere to stop to get the roof on, but fortunately managed to keep moving and therefore dry.

the bloke in the porker ahead of me wimped out and popped his hood the first time he stopped in the traffic

[Dr Jekyll]

RobM77 said:

At any moment when you're driving, all the air that was in front of your car just a second ago is squeezed and forced up and over the car, so you have an area of fast moving air above your head when you're driving, which catches the rain and sends it over your head.

The air is presumably moving forwards relative to the rain, so why doesn't it catch rain that would have fallen behind you and blow it onto your head?

[5lab]

works in the 5

can get the roof over my head one handed as well (although not clipped in) which is handy for dawdling through villages

[CraigyMc]

RobM77 said:

in my Caterham the inside of the windscreen got wet. The Elise is just right aerodynamically though :-)

Agree with this.

Anything over about 45mph in my elise and even monsoon rain goes over the top instead of into the cockpit.

[andrew.]

RobM77 said:

Of course it works. At any moment when you're driving, all the air that was in front of your car just a second ago is squeezed and forced up and over the car, so you have an area of fast moving air above your head when you're driving, which catches the rain and sends it over your head. I often drive my Elise in the rain with the top off; provided the rain's not too heavy and you're going fast enough, you don't get wet.

that's how it is in the elan too
if you drive in steady "fluffy" snow ( ie not the wet sleety crap ) you can see this happening

[ewenm]

In the Caterham (assuming you've got a windscreen, not an aeroscreen ) it depends on your speed and how heavily it's raining.

In drizzle or normal light rain, drive at over 50 and you won't feel much of it at all.
In moderate rain, drive at 50 and you'll get hit by a little spray, go faster and you'll get more spray as the steep windscreen causes it to be dragged into the car and it lands on the inside of the screen.
In heavy rain, you'll get wet no matter how fast you drive.