Factory Grill Engineering

[michail71]

I'd love to change out the grill, mainly for a badgeless look up front. However, I've been concerned about a few things that would be lost in the factory design. I'm sure the engineers had reasons.

1. The intake portion of the factory grill only has a few of the honeycombs open and two of them are half open. What is the purpose of this? There must only be a couple square inches of airflow at the grill to the intake.
2. The radiator portion of the grill has the active shutters and is blocked off as well outside of the shutters.

I'm thinking the design choices are to keep turbulence down and increase fuel efficiency? I live in a hot climate so I don't think I'm in big need of keeping the engine warm/hot. Also, most of the driving I do is around town with some mixed highway. So I'm not doing long stretches at speed.

At some point I may also want to add a Roush or Steeda closed airbox.

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[Idaho2018GTPremium]

You're on point. A Ford engineer has stated they block off the ones that aren't needed to help improve aerodynamics compared to if they were all open. If they were all open, there would be more air going into the engine bay, causing lift and increased drag.

 

[Blue Horse]

You're on point. A Ford engineer has stated they block off the ones that aren't needed to help improve aerodynamics compared to if they were all open. If they were all open, there would be more air going into the engine bay, causing lift and increased drag.

Just make sure your ground speed indicator on the instrument panel is working,that way when you go airborne you will know you have the right amount of airflow and not to much lift,that was one great feature on the S550 that Ford came up with. LOL.

 

[Cardude99]

You're on point. A Ford engineer has stated they block off the ones that aren't needed to help improve aerodynamics compared to if they were all open. If they were all open, there would be more air going into the engine bay, causing lift and increased drag.

Would an aftermarket vented hood resolve the issue of increased drag?

I'm looking for better cooling as my car heat soaks bad when the temps are over 90.

 

[Idaho2018GTPremium]

Would an aftermarket vented hood resolve the issue of increased drag?

I'm looking for better cooling as my car heat soaks bad when the temps are over 90.

Regarding the aerodynamics - I'm not certain. It would seem so, by allowing the air going in somewhere else to escape besides down and under the car after swirling around everything in the engine bay. At most typical speeds it's probably negligible, however. The vented hood may help your heat soak more than the concern about the aerodynamics/drag. It seems a good sized vent would give the hot air a natural place to escape. The hot air will naturally rise so even without airflow I would argue that it's better than an un-vented hood in the heat soak department. I'm not an automotive engineer so this isn't gospel (I am a mechanical engineer, though, for what it's worth).

 

[Stangnut]

You have an '18. Just get a Bullitt grille.

 

[michail71]

You have an '18. Just get a Bullitt grille.

I may, I'm just thinking it all through. I like the look and cooling improvements but am contemplating the aerodynamic trade off.

 

[Zelek]

Get a Velossatech big mouth and you'll be convinced to open up the honeycomb fully.

 

[Stangnut]

The problem started with the '05 body. The grille was so open that the hood would flutter/shake a lot at high speeds. That's one of the reasons the grille is so closed off now.

 

[michail71]

I was wondering if aftermarket grills were the reason I've seen posts of some people having hood issues.

 

[michail71]

Get a Velossatech big mouth and you'll be convinced to open up the honeycomb fully.

Been eyeing that for about a year. Thinking of combining it with a JLT or closed Roush.

 

[jacknifetoaswan]

I was wondering if aftermarket grills were the reason I've seen posts of some people having hood issues.

What types of hood issues? The only ones I've heard of are flutter of the metal, which happens because it's super thin aluminum, and leading edge hood corrosion.

As for the grille opening, yes, done for fuel efficiency issues, as well as to optimize cooling for the majority of users (remember, the same grille has to work for the person in Ontario, Canada, and Miami, FL). I gutted my stock PP grilles on my 2016 and installed a mesh grille insert from customcargrills.com. Living in Orlando at the time, I saw an immediate decrease in IATs of about 3-5 degrees F. It's not a lot, but it's enough. I did notice a slight decrease in fuel economy around town, but given that Orlando is a clusterfuck of traffic, that's unexpected.

JR

 

[908ssp]

Would an aftermarket vented hood resolve the issue of increased drag?

I'm looking for better cooling as my car heat soaks bad when the temps are over 90.

Yes venting through the hood relieves pressure under the hood and increases the air flowing through the radiator and heat exchanger if you have one.

 

[BmacIL]

Blocking off large portions of the grille are both for aerodynamic performance at speed (lift/drag) and drag itself (fuel economy). The intake is partially blocked to prevent significant snow and water ingestion during the winter and car washes.

 

[MasterCylinder]

Stock wise if you look where the wipers are the hood is actually more open than you'd think. In fact it is so open I thought someone had left a piece out last time it was at the dealership.

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