Before Chrysler's 1934 Airflow, car aerodynamics were literally backward—our wind-tunnel tests prove it

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? Driving.ca decided to find out firsthand, testing the revolutionary 1934 Chrysler Airflow, as well as a conventional 1932 DeSoto sedan, using some of the most advanced equipment available today. Here’s what we learned.1934 Chrysler Airflow and 1932 DeSoto outside of the Ontario Tech University ACE wind tunnelWhen it comes to influential pre-war cars, Ford’s Model T always hogs the spotlight.

What those tests showed was that the profile of the typical car design of the ’20s induced huge amounts of drag and air resistance. The sound-bite revelation the engineers uncovered was that scale sedan models were actually more aerodynamic positionedthan forwards, sometimes by as much as 20 or 30 per cent. The most streamlined models tested were, it turned out, teardrop-shaped, with wider, round noses and a taper toward the rear.

But what really got the public going was the Airflow’s styling—nearly everybody had a fervent opinion on it, sometimes good, sometimes bad. When an independent firm called the Market Research Corp. of America asked the showgoers in New York to name the best-looking car there, the Airflow took the title. But when it asked them to name the worst-looking car, the Airflow sat top of list, too.

The 1932 DeSoto that pulled up to the ACE Climatic Wind Tunnel late July 2022 was driving forward, not backward, its instrument panel, gears, and badges all in the right place. In fact, the handsome dark blue sedan – owned and loaned to us by local enthusiast David Wilson – appeared remarkably original, a near-twin to Hartz’s ’33 Custom before its modifications.

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