Most Surprising MythBusters Result

[@tested]

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[@melisanders40]

Mythbusters has always been my favorite

[@aleeenn4350]

"We wasted their time!" :D

[@larryscott3982]

At 2:18 “undimpled ball goes farther” ????

[@MasTommy21]

Z

[@maxximumb]

Now that simulated shark skin texture swimwear has shown to give swimmers an advantage, so much so it's banned from competitive swimming. Would a car with a similar surface finish benefit from very small dimples like the shark skin, or would the dimples need to be larger? I don't know how different the fluid dynamics of air are to water.

[@KBABZ]

My most surprising result when watching the show was Are Elephants Afraid of Mice. Jamie and Adam go all the way to Africa and get a real elephant and hide a mouse under a dung trap on a string and they pull it and the elephant stops in its tracks gives it a WIDE BERTH. And Adam and Jamie are just sitting there holding the string chuckling and bright red like "I can't believe there's some ACTUAL truth to this!"

[@Bastacat]

I think someone actually explained the reason behind it, not sure if in mythbusters or somewhere else - mice make barrows, and they can start making one in an elephant nail, and if that little thing is determined enough, the elephant really has little to no purposeful defense against it, and if that mouse is successful, the nail can get infected, hence why elephants are afraid of mice.

[@AcmeRacing]

@@Bastacat On another episode a little kid questioned why they used white lab mice, because the elephant may never have seen one before in the wild. Adam admitted she had a good point, and that it might call their result into question.

[@microbuilder]

Bull in a china shop was also pretty surprising...who knew they could be so dainty??

[@garageliving3658]

I remember that one. It looked like that trap thing they turned over was more startling than the mouse itself. Edit; yeah they tested it without mouse and no rection

[@MunchKING]

@@Bastacat the version I heard was that elephants have poor eyesight, so anything small and skittery moving around them they think might be a poisonous snake, and so they avoid it.

[@TheCptnOfFail]

I don't have hail damage that I can't afford to fix, it's a fuel saving system.

[@PerfectlyNormalBeast]

I was just going to type about hail damage - that it's actually desirable and the dealer discounts it for us :)

[@baybrothersfishingandhunti9776]

@@PerfectlyNormalBeast could you explain I don’t understand ?

[@PerfectlyNormalBeast]

You can buy hail damaged cars for less money. So if the dimples save gas, then even more savings I kind of doubt fuel savings would be noticeable. But who knows, maybe someone has studied it

[@hbsavage0387]

@@PerfectlyNormalBeast it’s noticeable if done properly if not it results in next to nothing

[@mityakiselev]

I love how the question was from Mike R. ("my car")

[@romeo_alpha0176]

Nice catch 😁👍🏼

[@yahmahar6]

Mike Rowe is who I like to think asked this question

[@JonatasMonte]

@@yahmahar6 Mike Rover?

[@evandavis5223]

Do you like..... Mike R?

[@ailaG]

OMG

[@kalinringkvist]

I also have dimples on my car. I got a discount on it because of this. They called it "major body damage" but people rarely notice it unless I point it out. The theory is the previous owner left it out in a hail storm but it could have been someone with a rubber hammer who had seen this episode and thought they could increase their gas mileage.

[@TheAero1221]

I had an old '02 Subey WRX with the factory original engine hood... which they made out of Aluminum. That baby was golf ball textured alright- previous owner did exactly what you suggested and left it out in a hail storm. I always liked to think that it added to the fuel efficiency specifically because of this Mythbusters episode.

[@Hotrob_J]

That happened to my father's car - we call them Mazda Speed Dimples

[@chrish4439]

My buddy had insurance completely replace his 1 year old car with a new car cus it was covered with dimples after a hail storm. So they definitely will write a car off for that and that's much more likely then someone rubber malleting it. Kinda funny you ended up with one though lol

[@paulorchard7960]

If you live in QLD Australia its hail damage! Cars here get beat up every year if you ignore the ominous green thunderstorms and dont get the car under cover!

[@CinemaDemocratica]

Those are speed holes, Homer. They make the car go faster.

[@piksnapper]

The result that shocked me was the one where they tested if a tree or a plant could be stressed if you yelled at it or threatened it. The results were pretty amazing.

[@milesmccollough5507]

the plants listening to heavy metal being either the healthiest or second-healthiest following the ones listening to classical music was my favorite part.

[@jesuschristiskingandsavior461]

I love all the comments saying this without saying the results …

[@legolorian3271]

@@jesuschristiskingandsavior461go watch the episode lmao we’re not here to recap it

[@travisjohnson6703]

Crowley has known plants grow better when abused appropriately for decades.

[@ChuckleCharlie69]

@@jesuschristiskingandsavior461they found that the plants did not get stressed. Pretty amazing stuff!

[@DeadlyPlatypus]

I expected the letter from the auto manufacturer engineers to say: "Ya, we know, but the marketing guys said dimpled cars are hideous and impossible to keep clean."

[@F14thunderhawk]

that was probably the First Draft that didnt leave PR. But in reality, the actual reason that They wouldnt do it is the manufacturing difficulty. Remember that a Golf Ball is engineered without any preferential aerodynamic flow. They are dimpled so that they have lower effective drag but that that drag is not servicing its control. To contrast, a car that is actually dimpled for performance would not be regulated to have uniform dimpling like a golfballs 300-500. it would only have about 500 dimples, only along aerodynamic shear points and facing into the primary direction of travel.

[@VulpesHilarianus]

@@F14thunderhawk That's the reason why often times aerodynamic control devices are things that are easily made out of plastic or aluminum. Look at the headlights of your average current production car for example, and see how much they stick out compared to cars from the past. Or the very sharp creases in the hood that start towards the middle and end near the edges of the windshield. Or the little nubs or fins underneath the side mirrors. Or the fact that many sedans have taken on almost a fastback profile. That's for aerodynamics. In front of the windshield, around the wheel openings, and the top of the trunk are some of the highest sources of drag on a car because they're trapping pockets of low pressure air and redirecting air around them. The dimples on a golf ball do the same thing. But a golf ball's areas of low pressure are unidirectional and form low pressure pockets across the entire surface of the golf ball. On a car the low pressure areas are a problem because the drag they create above or around them are the opposite of the car's direction of travel and not uniform across the entire surface of the car. Ironically this makes many of those "suppository" cars Adam hates so much some of the most aerodynamically efficient. Especially the much maligned third generation Ford Taurus station wagon, which had a drag co-efficient of 0.29, which is just as good the current Prius which spent millions of dollars to be designed to be slippery.

[@JohnDoe-bd5sz]

Maybe another reason they got a different result, is that newer cars have been optimized for wind drag, so the car they used had those optimizations "ruined". So basically the dimples did improve the fuel effiency by 14% but at the same time make the aerodynamics of the newer car, 14% worse, negating the improvement from the dimples.

[@texmex9721]

@@JohnDoe-bd5sz I love the show, but the guys are not scientists, and occasionally reach a conclusion that is valid for their experiment, but not for the general case. I think that is what happened here. They proved that if you are covering your car with 2" of clay, best to cut golf ball like divots.

[@xDarkTrinityx]

I can only imagine the nightmare of having a dimpled car during the winter or having it rain.... or rain then freeze in the dimples, defeating the entire purpose of it. lol

[@danielharmon15]

After seeing this episode as a kid, I tried to make a dimpled pine wood derby car for Cub Scouts using a drill press.

[@joshuagibson2520]

But did it work?

[@buddyclem7328]

My friend filled his car with lead, so they had to drill dozens of holes in the bottom until it was light enough to race! 😂 He was pulling his hair the entire time.

[@aaronkortas8336]

Yeah what Joshua said "did it work" we gotta know

[@joshuagibson2520]

@@aaronkortas8336 I guess if anything it got lighter lol.

[@davidburroughs2244]

How did your car do in it's race?

[@GeneralCuster14]

Adam, to clarify: It was an early 2000's Ford Taurus you guys used, and you ran the test with just the car at speeds to test fuel economy, then ran it again with it covered it clay (and no dimples) to verify the results with the extra weight, followed by the third test with the dimples and their cut outs in a crate in the back seat. I also seem to recall that "holy hell!" moment between you and Jamie being genuinely hysterical, and Jamie uttering an iconic one liner at the results: "I feel like eating my beret!" That was a GREAT episode! Thank you for sharing!

[@Hoeech]

The original myth was that a dirty car has better fuel economy due to the dirt imparting a "golf ball-like effect". When that proved to be bogus, Adam & Jamie then proceeded to do the actual golf ball dimples on a car to see what would happen. And hilarity ensued

[@WJV9]

I would submit that the air temperature, wind speed, humidity, etc. differences between the first and second tests were more important factors than the dimples. You could repeat the test with a modern electric car which would give you the Kw readout to maintain a constant speed or better yet, use a wind tunnel like aircraft and auto manufacturers use. If dimples were able to reduce wind drag by 15% then all aircraft made would have dimples, which they don't. I think the golf ball dimples are there for the same reason the lace ridges are on baseballs, it allows you to make the ball curve and to put spin on the ball thereby enhancing ability to control flight of the ball.

[@mikeznel6048]

Dude... You're gonna try to tell the guy that did the show, THE GUY THAT DID THE SHOW, what he used and did? He did the show....

[@bloodleader5]

@@mikeznel6048 ... he probably went back and watched the episode to verify.

[@StellaBorneWatches]

@@mikeznel6048 He had issues remembering all the details (which is reasonable considering how long ago and just how much stuff they did that hit the TV alone), so he clarified the details for Adam who couldn't in his singular take. Adam appreciates such things as well, based on previous reactions to such reminders live at conventions where he's having issues while a fan remembers very well (usually the one asking anyways).

[@alexanderwhite8281]

I watched this episode with my brother when we were kids. at the time we were in scouts, and took part in a competition where made miniature wooden cars and raced them against each other down a slope. my brother was inspired by this episode and made a car with dimples. not sure how much this helped since we didn't race it against an exact control, but the car did end up winning the competition.

[@Skylancer727]

My dad used to own his own race track for pinewood derby being an old Eagle Scout. Shame he gave it away years ago to a troupe that wanted one for in troupe competitions

[@sooner811]

If you had given me three guesses, I would’ve guessed: 1. The episode where they polished poop 2. The strength of interlocking pages of a phone book 3. The toilet paper prison escape rope (though that was a Tori, Adam, and Grant B story)

[@Zack-bl2gg]

Wait they polished poop?!

[@hunnidisblack9337]

Polished poop episode had my rolling balls of mud tryinh to make them shiny haha

[@NoriMori1992]

The phone book one will always be the craziest one to me.

[@tangydiesel1886]

As a kid, I remember bringing two (small) phonebooks on the school bus during a trip. We probably wove and unwove those phonebooks a half dozen times passing them around amassed that they couldn't be pulled apart.

[@jackdixon6681]

​@@Zack-bl2gg I know this is like 9 months later, but if you wanted to know more you can look up "dorodango". Doesn't need to be poop! Mud works just fine

[@pseudohippie55]

I think the most surprising was when the bull in the China shop actually avoided the China cabinets. Just seeing a bull avoid the cabinets was impressive.

[@jedielfqueen]

This was mine too!

[@RCAvhstape]

The bull was like a giant house cat, the way cats walk around on a table without knocking stuff over.

[@Soup0066]

Ohhh i remember that

[@chriscollins550]

Pigs in the corvette

[@terot8341]

@@RCAvhstape oh no you'd think that happens, but who wrong can you be. 😂😂

[@racheldixon848]

My favorite was when you showed that an adult bull African elephant really was scared of a tiny little mouse. That blew my mind.

[@notanonchampignon9837]

@Man kzbin.info/www/bejne/aqbbmqtrdtNjos0 Specifically, a girl asked them why they used a white mouse instead of a brown/gray one, since the colour white isn't common in "nature found" mouses.

[@WCGwkf]

How about a bull in a china shop is careful

[@colinmiller7546]

It’s kinda the same thing as humans being afraid of insects.

[@altergreenhorn]

It was a white mouse unnatural thing for the elefant

[@efox2001]

Yep, I was thinking that would be the myth that he would mention!

[@squibblez2517]

i love how, even though its been several years since the show ended, Adam still has so much passion while answering questions about Mythbusters.

[@石谷じょう]

I love how excited he gets about these stories, even after many years! His curiosity and love of science and engineering is palpable

[@paulcapps103]

?8 y

[@daltonwright490]

It's crazy that Buggattii actually did this on their newest track car

[@CrashingThunder]

I could listen to Adam talk about these Mythbusters stories for hours.

[@fleducation001]

I envy his nieces, nephews, and grandchildren if he has any. They must hear the coolest stories.

[@abyssalspecter93]

Same...and I have been.

[@OMrkithO]

I wonder if he gets tired of getting asked about Mythbusters....

[@hailstormtrenhaile114]

When he tells a story I try to remember the epsiode that he is talking about.

[@dylanstarzec2099]

Same

[@superdupergrover9857]

"suppository sedan" is the term I needed. I had been using "melted potato" for those things.

[@GaryCameron780]

Agreed. I laughed my ass off when I heard him say that.

[@shubinternet]

We always called them “jelly bean cars”. I had never heard the term for the output end of the process. 😱

[@nikkoskakki3518]

As a non-native speaker I had to google "suppository", the awkward pause of opening a new tab, typing in and seeing the results from image search made for a priceless comedic timing. Made my day.

[@MaximilianonMars]

It's a very good descriptor, we all know what he's referring to 😂

[@davidcook4773]

Something like a Ford Probe is a good example of one

[@magwitch]

So homer Simpson was onto something when he started putting "speed-holes" in his car with a pick axe?

[@kevinjohnson7300]

My side garage door opens faster now after my little cousin used it as a bb gun target lol.

[@qasimmir7117]

Simpsons predicting the future once again.

[@homerunman9381]

To be fair, those were more for weight reduction. Lightning cut speed holes baby, Homer was ahead of his time and built a no prep street car years before the 1/8th mile race scene took off.

[@nathanbabiuk6286]

Homer is actually a genius

[@chazzcoolidge2654]

@@homerunman9381 IIRC Pontiac made a short run of "Swiss cheese" Catalina's in the early 60's with the goal of making a "factory" drag car. These Catalina's had a series of holes drilled out of the frame and certain parts of the car's bodies at the cost of frame rigidity,thus earning the "Swiss cheese" moniker but the 1/4 miles were remarkably better than a regular Catalina.

[@johnsmulders8535]

I loved that episode too, and still think about it a lot. I wonder if a rounder vehicle (like a beetle) would be more likely to be aerodynamically enhanced by dimples than a square- bodied vehicle like an SUV? P.S, I’ve introduced Mythbusters to my kids, who love it!

[@isaactrockman4417]

Beetles don’t actually have very good coefficients of drag. Aerodynamics is super counterintuitive

[@BillyAltDel]

Hey Adam. I remember this episode vividly. Both tests had a clay layer on the vehicle. Dimple car had the shedded clay in a box i think either in the trunk or one of the seats.

[@rickboivin7732]

As I recall, the removed clay went in a box or boxes in the back seat. Most times K.I.S.S. ruled the day on Mythbusters.

[@robm2199]

Yep, it went in the back seat.

[@itzac]

That's exactly right. I watched this episode with my daughter just last week. They also ran a control without clay as part of the dirty vs. clean fuel efficiency part of the myth. What surprised me was that the added weight of the clay didn't affect the fuel efficiency much at all. They explain very briefly in the episode that it's because the car was already at speed when they start measuring consumption. The difference made by the weight of the clay is in the acceleration which is deliberately excluded from their measurements. That's some very clever reengineering.

[@youngturksfan]

I’ll have to watch the episode for more context, but I’m a bit mystified by Adam’s (and the car company’s) response. Could it be a real effect, or just a quirk of the experiment? Why isn’t serious research happening if adding dimples saves 14% fuel?

[@rickboivin7732]

@@youngturksfan the auto industry has to decide whether the fuel savings will lead people to buy what was an admittedly ugly car. Esthetics play a large part in car purchase decisions. The auto industry at the time and probably today measures official fuel consumption numbers by running a car on a dynamometer in a closed room and this myth is pure aerodynamics. The industry probably tests aero in wind tunnels and relies on math to extrapolate results. Different testing methods will yield different results.

[@Basheequa]

I remember that episode. Jamie even said " I feel like eating my beret. "

[@gina7280]

Ha! I actually didn't remember that episode exactly, but i DO remember Jamie saying that!

[@MoreEffinCowbell]

FACT: As his story progresses, Adam's giddiness grows exponentially. ...and it is quite fun to watch!

[@rebelguy9487]

I swear.....Adam Savage seems like he has the natural curiosity and love of learning of a 5 year old child. Very wholesome and inspiring man!

[@ailaG]

I was watching at 2x speed so he was giddy from the get go and even giddier towards the end!

[@MoreEffinCowbell]

@@ailaG Double the giddiness, Double the fun!

[@AkiraSatou]

Cringe

[@MoreEffinCowbell]

@@AkiraSatou ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@PawelTylinski]

Inspired by your experiment, I designed and 3d printed panels with dents for my car. My theory was that you don't need to cover whole car, but just end to reduce air drag effect (btw this is a combi). After 4 years, the average fuel consumption drop is around 7%. Thank you for saving my money:)

[@garythecyclingnerd6219]

Did you save enough to offset the cost of plastic?

[@stevetheduck1425]

The aircraft designers at Supermarines in Britain were worried all those complex and expensive flush-headed rivets were going to make their new Spitfire too expensive. - so they took the first smooth, flush-head riveted Spitfire and glued split peas (half-peas) all over each and every rivet. They flew the plane, took off a few of the front-most peas, flew it again, took off some more, etc. When taking off peas did not improve performance, they went into production with flush rivets where it helped, and simple round-headed rivets where it didn't matter. Spitfire = success, work involved about ten man-days, production not slowed at all.

[@davidfernelz]

@@garythecyclingnerd6219 7% on his gas bill is WAY more than what a few plastic 3d printed panels would cost. Although its important to note that, like Adam Savage said, that is within the margin of "error"/could be a placebo from him wanting it to work.

[@PawelTylinski]

@rhamlet5290 What do you mean by "get"? Someone will give it to me for free?

[@PawelTylinski]

​@@davidfernelzit can be also "global climate warming" efect:) Hot air is less dense now days:)

[@JohnDouglasist]

Super late to the party, but had to jump in and say that your explanation of how dimples on a golf ball work was one of the best descriptions in layman’s terms of an aerodynamic phenomenon I have seen in a while. Bravo!

[@carazy123_]

But it’s not right…

[@qwerty_69_rape]

​@@carazy123_🤓

[@Jenny-sq2pr]

I'm caught between bull in a china shop and elephants are afraid of mice. Though mythbusters had a ton !!! Happy holidays Adam!!!

[@moonlight5050]

I was going to say Bull in a China Shop too.....brilliant 👏

[@jamesonweimann4720]

But remember what kept you watching was the big booms

[@TheAngelsHaveThePhoneBox]

Funnily enough, in my native language the saying is "like an elephant in chinaware/porcelain", so the whole episode I was wondering how an elephant would act.

[@DarthScrewtape27]

You know, I was the same way. In retrospect I realized I wasn’t giving the animal part of the experiment tho credit it deserved. They aren’t humans, but they are hardly mindless robots. Sure they don’t approach the morality the same way as us, but that doesn’t mean a bull will just walk through something given the choice, nor an elephant just smashing a mouse for no reason

[@terot8341]

if you put bull elephant to china shop and then release mouse there, what would happen?

[@klasandersson7522]

"We wasted their time!" Oh Adam, you are ever so spontaneous and lovely! Please never change! 😄

[@LordofSyn]

Seriously... Uncle Adam is the Uncle we all need and are so thankful to have. Best wishes and happy holidays and new year to all who read this message.

[@peterkelley6344]

He did not waste their time. They add to the knowledge base of car design. I have to wonder if the test was done others and what did they find?

[@derekpospisil747]

@@peterkelley6344 even in a failed test, where you even fail to get a valid result, you have learned something. My biggest disappointment in Mythbusters is insufficient testing of myths that could really help. They basically only looked at "how can we replicate the myth" did it a few times, and called it a day. I understand budgets being what they are, but things like this, or the one about plants and music, could have been done with actual scientific rigor.

[@EmissaryofWind]

For a 14% gain in fuel efficiency, it's worth a try

[@peterkelley6344]

@@derekpospisil747 I don't think I am disagreeing with you. I think that i wrote that even with a failed result you get data anyway.

[@potawatadingdong]

I swore he was going to say the elephant afraid of mice myth. They almost busted it before they even tested it.

[@dubz5149]

That wasn't busted though...

[@Subpar1224]

@@dubz5149 exactly! That's why it was so confusing to them haha

[@corylohanlon]

He is an awesome storyteller and his energy is infectious :)

[@dominicbaumback477]

Aw man i just now found out that Adam has his own KZbin page after years of watching myth busters as a kid. That’s is the best. He’s still the same guy he was all thoes years ago and is following his passion. Such an down to earth and creative mind.

[@shin14100]

The bull in a China shop was my most surprising one, growing up I've heard that saying so many times, and to see that bull be _so very careful_ surprised the heck outta me!!

[@theodurbin8672]

also good

[@phoenix-king779]

?

[@stephenharper6638]

Having grown up with bulls, I wasn't surprised. But an enraged bull... I've seen them throw 100lb bales about like toys, destroy fencing, break the neck of our personal milk cow and kill my neighbor.

[@xavierpaquin]

@@stephenharper6638 All that during your time as Prime Minister of Canada?

[@ksavage681]

The cat broke the china, and the bull was setting the record straight.

[@MiddleAgedBob]

I think the one that surprised me the most was the one testing whether or not water would protect you from a gun shot. I was blown away when they showed that the more powerful the gun, the less distance it penetrates the water. I mean, the explanation for why makes perfect sense when you think about it, but I hadn't given it that kind of thought before.

[@fododude]

"I was blown away." I see what you did there.

[@ronblack7870]

if you define powerfull as higher velocity. a shotgun would do better with a slug since the velocity is lower. that's why they use spearguns underwater. get a relatively heavy arrow moving not superfast so it has kinetic energy that doesn't dissipate too quickly.

[@AlexanderMoen]

haha, I literally thought about that a day or two ago in the pool. It's kind of strange how many random factoids from Myth Busters still floats around in my head.

[@scorpiusbalthazar4327]

@@ronblack7870 They showed this in John Wick 3. The bullets weren't having an effect but then John got the gun right on the guy and that of course worked.

[@Roanstar]

It's all about the projectile having high linear density (long and not wide) and going slow enough that the impact doesn't damage the projectile. Arrows go through sandbags

[@everydayjokes2321]

Christmas joke of the day: Wife: I regret getting you that blender for Christmas. Me: *sipping toast* "Why?"

[@andon_RT]

This is absolutely the dumb type of joke that I love.

[@theragingdolphinsmaniac4696]

What a crumby gift...

[@johnmccallum8512]

yah gota love Dad jokes

[@shootthemoon6072]

@@johnmccallum8512 How do you know when a joke is a "dad joke"? When it's apparent.

[@eclectichoosier5474]

@@shootthemoon6072 Unfortunately, you can only tell that it's apparent after the delivery

[@thesledgehammerblog]

I think the one that surprised me the most was that the "Barrel of Bricks" was deemed plausible.

[@grutarg2938]

The golf ball car episode was the first one I watched and it got me utterly hooked on Mythbusters. The way you followed the myth all the way to the extreme of making a golf ball car - no one else would have done that.

[@ImperatorSupreme]

I actually just watched that episode again. Some of the things Adam forgot in the intervening years: 1. For the dimpling test, they first covered the car in clay, did the test, then carved the dimples, put the removed clay in the back seat, then ran it again. 2. The NASA Ames research center wind tunnel guy they worked with was (based on the credits at the end of the show) Kurtis Long 3. The original myth that was being tested was that you would get a "golf-ball like" affect by driving your car around dirty. That was busted, driving the car around dirty was less efficient.

[@zenistfpv]

cant find the full episode quickly but from the short one it doesnt look they had any consideration for how much weight the clay lost as it dried out between the control test and the final test post carving.

[@ominarous]

@@zenistfpv certainly not 14% of the car's weight

[@brianwest2775]

But did they provide a proper explanation of why dimpling reduces drag on a golf ball?! Because the whole thing is so wrong! A dimpled surface will have more drag than a smooth surface. The savings come from the way the dimples change the effective shape of the object! The dimpled surface causes a high drag energetic turbulent boundary layer that is better adhered to the surface than a low drag low energy laminar (smooth) boundary layer. The airflow around a ball with no dimples will be roughly the same as a half ball with a flat backside, which has huge drag. The dimples enable the airflow to follow the curve of the ball and make the airflow look more like a wing and thus low drag. (exaggerating, the effect is more subtle.) The whole experiment depends on the shape of the car! Did the dimples make the resulting airflow more aerodynamic or not? Glad that they didn't dump all of the clay in the trunk because that would change the angle of the car (low back end) and create more drag (imagine a car at an exaggerated 45 degree angle.)

[@brianwest2775]

Also, what speed did they drive? Fast enough to have significant drag? How did they ensure that acceleration was the same? Really, probably better to have a switchable supply. Accelerate on one tank, then switch to the other measured one for the constant speed lap.

[@ki-kodevorne7318]

@@brianwest2775 Backseating much? Get out there and run some tests yourself, or shut your yap.

[@alanbarnett328]

I really love how there aren't any cuts or obvious edits to these videos. It feels like you're actually sitting in front of us answering a question we asked you, instead of watching a video. It feels so personal!

[@ericzhang4243]

The sheer charisma certainly is a nice change of pace from most overly edited quick cut content these days

[@sturniboy]

It's too bad there's ads instead...

[@capthappy8884]

Cuts and edits sure, but he also clearly improvs the answer. No script can make something like this feel way more....well, human!😋

[@MeanBeanComedy]

@@ericzhang4243 Loving what you do and being *super competent* can make a decent presenter a superstar.

[@MeanBeanComedy]

@@capthappy8884 I love human stuff.

[@nitePhyyre]

Now I want to know the opposite. What was the biggest surprise when a myth was busted?

[@milkpigeon]

@Bob really? it's very easy to do the math and see it's possible to get enough lift so it was proven before it was even tested. the whole deal with lead balloon was just the ENGINEERING. lead balloon was possible from the very start, it was all up to whether or not they could engineer it to last long enough TO get lift

[@Chevsilverado]

@@milkpigeon Yeah I was never surprised when that worked. Anyone who knows the surface area-volume relationship of a 3d shape would know it works. It’s just a matter of making a big enough balloon to maximize volume.

[@rhys180606]

I believe golf balls got dimples because golfers realised that old damaged balls went further.

[@Frostycrypton]

I still remember this myth very distinctly because of how mind-blowing it was!

[@jbrisby]

My favorite mythbusters episodes are the ones that gave definitive answers to tricky and contentious scientific principles, like: "If two cars collide head on at 50km/hr, is it really equivalent to each hitting a wall at 100km/hr?" or "Can a plane take off if it's on a treadmill moving the opposite direction?" My least favorite mythbusters episodes are the stupid ones that take idioms literally, like "lead balloon" or "hit the ground running" or "knife to a gunfight".

[@zsoltbartus169]

"WE WASTED THEIR TIME!" That's hilarious and totally Mythbusters-Adam Savage like. 🤣🤣😅

[@human_brian]

I was sure you were going to say exploding water heater. That episode still scares the crap out of me that there's a bomb living in my garage just waiting to go off and destroy my house. haha

[@RCAvhstape]

I love how the water heater launched through the roof of the house like a Polaris missile from a submarine.

[@tissuepaper9962]

It's not "waiting to go off" unless you've intentionally disabled all of the safety release valves. The result of that experiment was "surprising" the same way it would be surprising if your pressure cooker exploded after you welded the port in the lid shut. But yes, I agree, steam explosions release a truly awesome amount of energy.

[@andregon4366]

Make sure you film it when it goes off.

[@aashaytambi3268]

Well remember you got like 5 layers of failures before that happens.

[@sweetkellymay]

They couldn't contain their emotions, on that episode..

[@DanKetchum007]

"Elephants ARE afraid of mice??" That's what I said during that episode .

[@AC3handle]

It seems less like they're afraid of mice, and more like they're conscientious about them.

[@SimplyNon_sense]

I loved how they were totally shocked at the result but had to whisper in that episode. lol

[@danlorett2184]

Elephants are REALLY careful about stepping on things because if they slip and fall that leads to serious injury and in the wild, generally means death. It's not so much that it's a mouse, it's that the Elephant doesn't want to slip and fall.

[@AC3handle]

@@danlorett2184 So basically...mice are the banana peels of the elephant world.

[@brasshouse-og]

I mean... people are afraid of mice and you can kill it with a flick. Maybe we shouldn't be shocked. People are scared of ladybugs and that is comparable to an elephant and a mouse.

[@tyleraube6066]

The "oily" air layer around the golf ball is actually caused by a turbulent boundary layer of air created by the dimples. The air is "tripped" into becoming turbulent by the dimples, which therefore increases the Reynolds number of the flow around the ball, which means it has more energy than a low Reynolds number, "Laminar" boundary layer would. This gives the air the ability to hug tightly to the ball for longer, creating a smaller "wake" behind the ball, resulting in less pressure drag. Sincerely - A mechanical engineering graduate

[@hamradiojim6788]

I remember traveling to Munich Germany many years ago, where I noticed an occasional car with dimpled hoods and trunk lids. Curious, I asked a local who told me there was a terrible hailstorm that caused much damage. Some car owners, however, took this as an opportunity and replaced their broken window glass and continued to drive their cars as unique statements of survivorship. That image will stay with me forever and was re-kindled when I saw your golf ball car episode. Thanks for so many informative - and entertaining - productions.

[@googiegress]

I firmly believe that all motor vehicles driven in the US should be legally required to use one of two specifications of bumpers (the bigger ones would go on large trucks, small size for everyone else), no paint or other covering allowed, same bumper front and back, and it's bolted to the frame so anyone can replace it with the same size socket wrench. And it's a big heavy ugly steel bare-metal bumper. And when it comes off the factory line, every bumper gets whacked randomly by a hammer so literally every bumper in the US has at least one big ding in it. No more replacing a whole plastic fairing when you scrape on something or get into a fender-bender. Can you imagine how much money everyone would save? The resources that our civilization could put toward something useful? Collector Car Guy: ER MA GERD, BUT MAH RIGHTS Me: Go screw.

[@Ben-mw9vz]

@@googiegressThat big ugly bumper was terrible in terms of aero, now go eat ze bugs and sleep in pods for ze efficiency

[@ironwolfstudios2857]

"I feel like eating my beret..." -James Franklin Hyneman

[@wuzzy41123]

"...but I'm not gonna."

[@manuthchek]

I remember this quote and I haven't even watched this video 😂

[@alienpoker]

Fact. confirmed.

[@AmmeMgee]

Whats your profile pic, it looks cool 😎

[@ironwolfstudios2857]

@@AmmeMgee it's a picture of Ulrik the Slayer, Wolf Priest of the Vlke Fenryka. It's from Warhammer 40k.

[@Primus011]

"We wasted their time! I love that!" I love and respect this man so much

[@CRneu]

the great thing is if they collected and shared their data then their time definitely was not wasted.

[@blindedbliss]

2:23 - Dimpled golfballs go further. He misspoke.

[@peterkelley6344]

Sounds like we need a PGA player to reprove that. Not at hard thing to set up.

[@fixento]

I'm confused the clay would increase the size of the vehicle, thus air resistance, so putting the clay in the trunk for same weight was not a true comparison.

[@nickwilliams2745]

I bet the reason the car co got a dif result is that modern cars are prob around ~10% more aero dynamic atleast so the benefit from adding dimples is lessened

[@suzannepottsshorts]

My favorite surprise was the sheet fooling the motion detector!

[@theodurbin8672]

bedsheet beats ultrasonic, glass pane beats IR, yeah - that was a cool one with the build team

[@tissuepaper9962]

@@theodurbin8672 I think it was the other way around, wasn't it? EDIT: NVM, I was misremembering

[@tissuepaper9962]

@@Nico_M. Okay, seems plausible to me. I must have just misremembered. -I guess if you used a treated window pane it might be opaque/reflective to IR, but most glass is transparent to IR (you can feel the heat radiating from an incandescent bulb, for example).- EDIT: This is dead wrong, glass is opaque to IR.

[@tissuepaper9962]

@@Nico_M. watched it back again and now I hear "pane of", even though I watched that section a few times before and heard "painted" each time. Weird.

[@bart2019]

@@tissuepaper9962Are you sure that isn't because the outside of the bulb is hot, therefore radiating heat itself?

[@schwarzerritter5724]

So... when Homer Simpsons was hacking speedholes in his car, he was on to something?

[@LowellMorgan]

Hmm, maybe I should consider sprucing-up the old Morganmobile.

[@benjaminsmith7228]

Plus holes = weight reduction

[@1320crusier]

@@benjaminsmith7228 Homer didnt remove material =p. In reality vents in the right part of the hood will increase cooling efficiency and lower front end lift.

[@pixfdave]

This is why the Death Star has that detent in it - better mileage.

[@soundped]

* parsec-age

[@MoreEffinCowbell]

Good try, but... No. Not at all, actually. Engineering aerodynamics into the Death Star would have been (as Adam put it) "a total waste of their time" as it was located in the vacuum of outter space, where, there is no air, which would be needed to cause friction from it's movement through said medium in order to factor in aerodynamics as a means to improve upon it's rate of movement as it travelled through a gasious medium as such. But, Thanks for playing!

[@andrewhawkins6754]

@@MoreEffinCowbell As if space is devoid of anything. At sufficient speeds, aerodynamics matter... even in space. Now, this doesn't cover fantastical devices like warp drives, so as far as we can do in our own universe, aerodynamics would matter when going very fast in space.

[@MoreEffinCowbell]

@@andrewhawkins6754 Touche. Though, I'm not sure I agree. I'd be very interested to hear, if you'd care to elaborate with further explanation on this theory of how aerodynamics ("the study of the properties of moving air and the interaction between the air and solid bodies moving through it") would come into play with the movement of an object (at any speed), without the presents of air surrounding it in a contained pressurized environment (atmosphere). And please, show your work.

[@rytan4516]

@@MoreEffinCowbell I'll note that at the legal line for space (100km), the density of space is 3.2E-3 Pa. In comparison, the density of the atmosphere at sea level is around 1.2E+1 Pa. This means that you'll have to push the same amount of mass out of the way if you travel 1 meter at sea level, or 3750 meters at the Karman Line. The vacuum of space isn't perfect. It's a pretty good vacuum, but there is a very small amount of gas there. It is true that aerodynamics doesn't apply to solid objects passing through a volume without the presence of air. However, the vacuum of outer space does not meet the criteria of "without the presence of air".

[@FloatingOnAZephyr]

I just love Adam's enthusiasm and generosity. It's so mood-lifting.

[@carazy123_]

Correcting the physics: The dimples create turbulent (“bumpy”) air around the ball rather than laminar (“smooth”). Technically, this should be a BAD thing because turbulent air creates more drag (skin friction). BUT, in the case of the golf ball, laminar (smooth) air detaches (doesn’t follow) the curve of the ball all the way, leaving a big area of low pressure (suction) behind the ball. That means a lot of drag. The turbulent (bumpy) air follows the curve more and reduces that low pressure zone (suction), which reduces the drag a LOT! So it’s adding a little bit of drag to reduce way more :)

[@Nick85]

His gleeful "we wasted their time!" Gave me genuinely hearty laughter.

[@FLPhotoCatcher]

*But* what *result* did the *car company* get with their *clay model??*

[@immortalsofar5314]

I'm glad he did a double take. Negative results are actually far more informative than positive ones - cf heavy objects fall faster than lighter ones, if the earth were flat the midsummer sun will shine down a well here as well as there etc. The greatest discoveries aren't accompanied by a cray of "eureka" but "Funny, that shouldn't have happened."

[@davidweihe6052]

Having work at AT&T Research a decade ago, I can guarantee that the engineers doing actual engineering tests on dimpling auto bodies was the most fun they had in years. And all the engineers that let themselves become managers were likely almost giddy about it. At the Shannon Laboratory, the researchers designed and built themselves a unit that recorded every channel possible to disk (with a reasonable numbers of spare recorder units to handle other units wedging), coding the control software all by themselves, and limited the project to salaried PhDs on their off hours (Why let the coders have the fun? Much like tournaments became limited to nobility whose grandparents were all noble, after jousting and melee had no use in war.). Seeing the C-Level managers giggling on the Making Of video was disconcerting, to say the least.

[@christiandauz3742]

Why don't we have dimple cars and other vehicles then? I think Dimple golf balls have been invented over a century ago

[@Nervadane]

@@christiandauz3742 hard to clean and looks horrible

[@noelchignell1048]

@@Nervadane also people don't care about efficiency especially in USA where the most popular "cars" weigh 2-3 tons and are shaped like brick shit houses and have ridiculously huge crude engines.

[@89ludeawakening1]

@@noelchignell1048 do you even live in the US? It really doesn't sound like you do. The cars and trucks are getting lighter, more aerodynamic and most manufacturers are downsizing the engines and making them more fuel efficient. Pretty much only special models have the big stupid hp engines now. Even the Ford GT dropped down to a 6 cylinder and became way more fuel efficient. The trucks are starting to come more with twin/bi turbo 6 cylinders instead of 8 cylinders. I'm not sure where you're getting your facts from, but you might want to change your resources.

[@noelchignell1048]

@@89ludeawakening1 The Top 3 best selling vehicles in the USA in 2020 (according to Car and Driver ) are : #1 Ford F series Pick Up #2 Chevy Silverado Pick Up #3 Dodge Ram Pick Up The EPA says the 2020 F series gets between 17 and 22 mpg depending on the engine #1 best selling vehicle in the world is the Toyota Corolla The EPA says the 2020 Corolla gets between 32 and 35 mpg depending on the engine and the Hybrid version gets 52 mpg I live in New Zealand and I drive a 2004 Corolla because I don't like wasting money

[@MrSlipperHat]

Adam, I've been watching you since the beginning of Mythbusters. You've inspired the way I approach problems and how I live my life! Keep being amazing and Happy Christmas!

[@joshuagibson2520]

Scientific method is a hell of a thing.

[@scottdoesntmatter4409]

HEY! You didn't answer the obvious question: Did the automakers DISPROVE your results? What were the automakers results?

[@Bean-Time]

14% more fuel left in the tank does NOT mean 14% more efficient. For example: control has 0.01 gallons left in the tank, and dimpled has 0.02 gallons left. That is not 2 times as efficient (0.02/0.01). It is actually insignificant (0.99/0.98) (about 1%). Without knowing exactly how much fuel was left, we can only conclude that it was more efficient, even if by a tiny amount. (A tiny amount that could be explained by the reduced weight of the dimples being cut out of the car).

[@jordonfreeman166]

I still remember Jamie saying after Adam announced the results of the dimpled car test “I’m gonna eat my beret.”

[@nicholaswroblewski3069]

i thought that was the head on semi truck collision episode

[@FoCoPuffs]

After you did the run with the non-dimpled clay-covered car, you carved the dimples out with wire loops and put the removed clay inside the car to keep the weight.

[@zenistfpv]

minus the water weight lost while carving.....

[@mosmicke]

Thanks for this amazing answer to my question 🙂 Merry Christmas!

[@tested]

It was a great one! Thanks for your support!

[@jdinhuntsvilleal4514]

You're confusing me. "...UNdimpled golf balls go farther because of their aerodynamics..." This seems backwards to what you were trying to say.

[@Wailwulf]

So, wouldn't dimpling affect aircraft also? Longer range would mean less fuel, which would mean less pollution which would mean less destruction of the Ozone Layer...

[@Minotaur1975]

I remember the one that threw me. The "Does running in the rain make you more wet?" segment

[@crstph]

I THINK ABOUT THAT A LOT IT SEEMS SO IMPOSSIBLE

[@WBensburg]

This excellent episode was ruined at the very end by two words. They did a lot of stuff: wet suits to insulate from sweat, controlled rain, timed runs, etc. After 55 minutes of the show, Jamie says, "We proved, that *OVER TIME* [emphasis mine], running in the rain causes you to get wetter." Absolutely no one on the face of the earth cares one iota if you run in the rain for 2 minutes, or walk in the rain for 2 minutes, which will get you wetter. NO ONE. You care because you are running some distance, and you want to be less wet when you get there.

[@bruh3410]

they went back to that myth and proved they did it wrong somehow

[@joepickles8689]

@@WBensburg The point was , they discovered that time was NOT the major deciding factor on how wet you get (as we'd expect) but rather, whether you should run or walk. There is a difference between the wicking of water throughout your clothes, and the direct contact of water on your clothes. "Time to saturation" is not constant. If you must be in the rain for 2 minutes, walk always. If you must cover a distance, and you know your speed will reduce the time sufficiently, then run.

[@acatwiththreenames3658]

I have always understood the dimples on a golf ball help keep the laminar flow attached to the ball further around the curve of the ball which reduces the pressure wave drag. So the overall shape of the vehicle would be important. They wouldn't be helpful on a square backed vehicle like a truck, but might on an aerodynamic vehicle like a sedan.

[@kirill2525]

thats what i was thinking too. like if you dimple a cube and throw it in the water its not gonna have much of an effect but if you dimple a torpedo shape and srop that, it may work. now im wondering can you dimple bullets

[@limprooster3253]

@@kirill2525 that would be a great question for Taofledermaus

[@kirill2525]

@@limprooster3253 id like something with more usefull data then how it flyes into a cd drive

[@limprooster3253]

@@kirill2525 Yeah the hard drives are kinda useless targets. They also tend to have their chronograph so close to the muzzle that it sees the wad and the projectile both and gives stupid numbers. But it's mildly informative sometimes

[@Chevsilverado]

I heard that after a certain speed the extra boundary layer you gain from the dimples gets stripped away by the air rushing past at the high speed, and the difference between dimpled and non dimpled almost goes away.

[@navcop031]

I will never get over the fact that when I’m watching him answer questions, a ten minute video seems like it just takes a couple of minutes. Blows my mind.

[@logiclrd]

If this were being done scientifically, you'd have multiple trials and multiple cars. You can't get a meaningful result from a single trial. I guess most viewers aren't scientifically-minded though. :-P

[@HelloKittyFanMan]

"Undimpled golf balls go _farther_ because of their aerodynamics"? Are you sure you didn't get that backwards?

[@SirMildredPierce]

"Suppository Sedan", totally stealing that one, lol.

[@KnuckleHunkybuck]

I was almost a little annoyed that he thought he had to explain it. It's such a perfect description that I understood what he meant right away.

[@diamondsmasher]

Well, there was literally a car called The Probe...... his description isn’t far off the mark of that time period.

[@Zoreta]

@@diamondsmasher Ah yes, the Ford Probe. My dad loved them, and conveniently decided to overlook that the parking brakes had a chronic sticking problem. Not just his Probe, apparently this is an issue ALL Probes have, because the factory-original return springs aren't strong enough to do the job once the brake calipers are anything but pristine. His solution was to override the neutral safety switch and park the car in 1st gear, and never facing downhill. Could never convince him to just... get a better car.

[@noatrope]

“A golf ball has dimples.” [citation needed]

[@grandpaobvious]

Try to buy a golf ball without dimples. That's called proof by exhaustion.

[@noatrope]

@@grandpaobvious Ah, the “all swans are white because I’ve never seen one that’s black” proof.

[@paulovinicius9940]

@@noatrope In this case debating about it is a waste of time.

[@noatrope]

@@paulovinicius9940 Yes. I’m not sure why you started arguing with this joke in the first place.

[@craftminerCZ]

I'm actually so happy that some company went through with their own tests. It implies they're actually trying to improve their cars and influence the world in a positive manner

[@IstasPumaNevada]

Oh no no no, heheh. It wouldn't be to influence the world in a positive manner. It would be so that they could make more money. The individual engineers might care about making the world better, but using company resources to do a test like that would only be approved by the higher-ups in pursuit of more profit. Any benefit to the world would be purely secondary. (In this case, improving aerodynamics would make it easier for them to hit government-mandated fuel efficiency standards, giving them more leeway in stuff like engine power.)

[@fort809]

“Company” “influence the world in a positive manner” HAHAHAHAHAHA nice one, I really hope you don’t genuinely believe this

[@scorpiusbalthazar4327]

@@IstasPumaNevada I was about to say that the only thing they are trying to influence is money out of our wallets.

[@jeffreysiebrecht4823]

All the weight in the trunk caused that sedan to tip up remarkably, which would have wasted a lot of fuel due to the reduced aerodynamic effeciency. I remember watching that episode and seeing that car with the front up and thinking, 'well, there's your problem.' Also, later with the clay all over the car, the car was level as the engineers who designed it intended, with the added effect of being closer to the pavement. The clay pushed the car down noticeably, which would have improved the aerodynamics. Which is probly why we don't ever see new cars with dimples. Additionally, those dimples y'all applied were way too big. Carry on, you're doing gods work.

[@kierancreighton96]

I might be wrong but my take is that the dimples creat a vacuum, because the ball rotates fast enough,that the dimples cannot catch air long enough to resist. And also popells air infront of th object at equal speed, but not enough to settle Essentially creating a slipstream So the ball negates resistance by creating slip stream, and doesnt catch the resistance, Slipstream So negates, slipstreams Edit; the personal most surprising resuly is multiple positives being a negative and multiple negatives improving efficiency *I was not educated, it just kinda makes sense to me**

[@SirIdot]

Short days in SFO? In Sweden, where I live, the sun rises at 9am and sets at 3:30PM today.

[@dudbike]

I laughed too. I live in Northern Alberta.

[@Jamie-st6of]

i mean, it's all relative

[@oscarn-]

Yeah, and a bit more up north, you’d be checking the sunrise times from a calendar, not from your watch.

[@dirkcornelis5708]

But epic long summer days!

[@ebirch90]

At least you don't live in Kiruna!

[@cliftonsuber]

I personally think the episode where buster survived a very long fall, using only an airplanes emergency escape slide was the most surprising result. He just gently floated down to earth with the slide rocking back and forth.

[@MrKrayona]

favorite moment: trolling a billion dollar company me: HAHAHAHAHAHA

[@tedspeed3338]

As a mechanic for 30+ years, I would take your test over the manufactures test. Theirs was a simulated environment while yours was real world. We've had plenty of issues with items that worked well in their simulated environment but failed in the real world.

[@Knackebrot]

Well if you didn't carve out the dimples on the reference run, or had the clay in the trunk before it was used for the dimpled car, the mass of the clay that was carved out was negatively affecting that run, making it easier for the dimpled car to beat the reference car, but damn... 14%?

[@KingMasteron1]

God, imagine being a college student and the Mythbusters ask you to work on a project for them, that'd be AMAZING.

[@SolaceEasy]

God, a college student?

[@littlejason99]

"I reject your reality and substitute my own!" - Adam Savage

[@AmjidMajeed]

Adam, thank you for all that you have done this year in lifting our spirits in these difficult times, I sincerely and truly mean that. You have brought back the fantastic memories of you and the MB team, made the most wonderful creations in your cave, and recalled the countless times your adventures in this industry have made the man you are today. I, for one, cannot thank you enough. Happy Holidays to you and yours. Much love, peace and a better, more prosperous new year to you and your family, to all your colleagues in this industry past and present, to all your viewers and supporters. Have a safe and pleasant Christmas. All my best for 2021! Midge from Scotland, UK.

[@tokesalotta1521]

Seems like the dimples would create more lift while the ball is spinning. Don't see how they would make a car more aerodynamic. Was the grill of the car also covered with clay?

[@HotelPapa100]

The dimples on a golf ball actually do the opposite: They make the boundary layer sticky. Friction losses actually increase. BUT, as you say: the higher friction boundary layer is stickier. Which makes it attach to the body of the ball way beyond its largest diameter. That in turn reduces the zone of turbulent air in the wake of the ball. This has a much larger influence on drag, pressure losses are way smaller. If you want more details read up on turbulent and laminar boundary layers, their role in aircraft profiles, the influence of the Reynolds number, and sub- and supercritical (as regards to Reynols number) aerodynamics. That also explains why a slightly wind-slippery car could reap benefits, and a blocky design could not. If your shape is a brick, the airflow will detach, regardless of the state of the boundary layer.

[@whengchung90]

2:20 "un-dimpled golf balls go farther" whoops

[@Tombsar]

"Don't take my word for it; it's just a simple fact".

[@Doug_Hannon]

It was clear from the context what he meant. He just misspoke.

[@gina7280]

Oh thank you, I was looking for this comment! I had this on in the background and thought maybe i misunderstood something so I rewound it and then just got confused.

[@DiscoFang]

Even tho he misspoke, it seems almost anti mythbusters to make the statement "don't take my word for it, it's simple fact." The basis of the show is "Is it really a fact?". Did they test the golf ball "fact"?

[@oypingppei]

You keep using that word, "detent", I do not think it means what you think it means.

[@jattellez]

I guess we just change the word for Adam at this point.

[@charlesshreeve319]

@@jattellez I guess we just get people to use the English language properly.

[@SamuelWallsJames]

That seems to make sense that a dimpled SUV wouldn't see as much of an improvement as a smooth sedan with rounded edges. This is because the dimples create eddies which mix separated flow with the free stream keeping the flow attached for longer behind a body, reducing the size of the wake and therefore the pressure drag on the car. An SUV would have a very steep slope to the rear of the vehicle meaning the flow would detach no matter what. Whereas with the sedan, the smooth body has gentle slopes and the flow is likely to be a prime candidate for the dimple eddies mixing the flow and keeping it attached.

[@mageyeah7763]

Micro vortex generators is what they call these in current practice, and despite what that car company told Adam, they have been on a bunch of cars. But they only help in certain situations. When a surface curves away from airflow too abruptly the airflow will detach and create drag. Dimples, or more commonly tiny rounded fins, increase the threshold for airflow separation. But on a boxy van, they can’t help, a box is way too abrupt. So this is a thing that only helps when the base shape is almost but not quite right. Which is to say something that looks aerodynamic but isn’t designed well like that 90s suppository car. Modern efficient cars maintain airflow by not having a steep angle on the rear glass. Look at a Prius, there’s minimal drop from the roof to the end of the car.

[@peterjamesfoote3964]

See, now I would have thought that your most surprising finding was “Bull in a China shop”.

[@moerukaze5464]

That was the build-team's myth.

[@havcola6983]

Well, the dimpled car was something nobody had ever seen. We have a lot of history with larger animals , and they're are generally not particularly careless or clumsy in reality and will walk around thickets and trees they could easily shove aside if they are given the option. Though I will say that their simulated 'china shop' was spaced out more like a museum exhibit. I think it implies something like a cramped corner store, and that would probably have been a different story.

[@RCAvhstape]

Okay, that's great that the car company tested this as well, so when will we find who was right and who was wrong, and why? That's like a huge tease!

[@agentblueuk]

Yeah, what result did they get?

[@edwardbarton1680]

The effect likely depends a lot on the size and arrangement of the dimples, as well as the overall aerodynamics of the car. It's quite possible that they're both correct.

[@TrueNomadSkies]

I'd also imagine that the 90's car they used had more room for friction improvement based on being less aerodymanic shape wise (not to mention surface wise) and was less consistent mechanically, and thus had a greater potential for the golf ball design to make an improvement. Also, they were testing a vehicle that was likely more negatively impacted by the extra weight, thus operating in less favourable power bands. Another factor is how "real world" the automaker's test was. If it was just in a tunnel oppose to being driven outside, they could potentially have gotten different results based on the arena of sorts too.

[@jasonlast7091]

Or marketing decided that golf ball cars are ugly and hard to clean, so they told some fibs.

[@FolksWhite]

Imagine if the car company had the same result, we might all be driving golfball cars now

[@gustavofigueiredo1798]

Maybe, the oil industry would throw a tanturm.

[@KP3droflxp]

Modern cars are already quite optimised and dimples are not a universal solution. Just look at alt he weird surface shapes modern cars have, it does the same but more efficiently

[@koharumi1]

Imagine if the car company discovered they were right instead. Golf ball dimple cars coming to you soon.

[@alecbrown66]

Formula 1 race cars use this effect to enable airflow to stick and make their aerodynamics work on the bodywork, which is why they are going faster, and that the paint effect on many is a flat look. They only differ as they mimic sharkskin instead of golf balls.

[@SeanBlader]

And this one is Season 7, episode 14 "Clean Car vs. Dirty Car" which first aired on October 21st, 2009.

[@refluxcatalyst7190]

The early 2000's Taurus and Sable will forever now be known as "suppository sedans."

[@carbonsx3]

The Ford Tylenol™ and the Mercury Suppository™

[@guringai]

Recent Mercedes have the look of suppositories too

[@Dimondminer11]

yeeeeep

[@Crazy_Borg]

"70% of power used up by air resistance alone." Still more an more SUVs are around. Drive more sports cars, people! They're better for the environment.

[@AJtheRatty]

Even better for the environment (when we're not in a global pandemic) taking mass transit when possible :D

[@denisemcdougal6445]

Agreed

[@ericprzybyl9227]

I mean if you look at mpg stats suvs are way more fuel efficient

[@roguishpaladin]

I'm on Duck Tales, Larry.

[@FarmCraft101]

For measuring fuel usage, use a removable fuel tank, weigh it before and after. Why wouldn't that work?

[@diedie111590]

because putting in a gallon of gas and measuring distance is easier

[@shamrockisland]

I'm interested in more transparency on the findings of the automobile company tests. Surely they are more likely to be right ? Maybe a video of that event with more details ?