Magna active air dams boost aerodynamics on Ram 1500

Detroit — Mike Manley, head of FCA US LLC's Ram brand, described the automaker's newest pickup truck design as "a no-compromise approach to the full-size truck segment" when it made its Jan. 15 debut at the North American International Auto Show.

With help from automotive supplier Magna International Inc., the 2019 Ram 1500 is also one of its most aerodynamic designs.

Magna's active air dam, a device positioned underneath the front end that deploys automatically at a vehicle speed starting at 35 miles per hour, is being used for the first time on the Ram 1500. The system redirects air around the vehicle, reducing turbulent airflow underneath and ultimately providing emissions and fuel economy improvements, the company said.

Combined with Magna's active grille shutter, it enables a nearly 7 percent reduction in drag and 1-mile-per-gallon fuel savings on the highway, Anthony Povinelli, global product line director for active aerodynamics, said in a Jan. 17 interview at Magna's AutoMobili-D booth.

"The main driver is to reduce drag on the vehicle to help meet CAFE regulations and standards," Povinelli said of the system. "The technology is most beneficial on what we call high-ride vehicles, so your pickup trucks, your larger SUVs. It definitely has the most impact there."

Magna is looking at other technologies for lower-riding vehicles, such as small SUVs and passenger cars, that would offer a similar effect but in a different design, Povinelli said. Magna is also exploring ways to integrate its active aero systems in the heavy-truck market.

Both the active air dam and active grille shutter — also shown on the Ram 1500 — are mostly made of plastic, further enabling the 225-pound weight reduction Ram touted at its debut.

The louvers on the active grille shutter are made of 30 percent glass-filled nylon, while the frame that encases the louvers and actuator is made from 30 percent glass-filled polypropylene, Povinelli said. The structural part of the active air dam, including the linkages, is made of 30 percent glass-filled nylon. The more flexible deflector or air dam blade is made from thermoplastic vulcanizate.

"[The active air dam] is produced in a two-shot [injection molding] process," Joseph Laux, global director of material science at Magna Exteriors, said in a Jan. 17 interview just outside the Ram booth. "You inject one of the materials and then you open up another gate and injection the softer material, so it's made in one mold with different shots."

The flexibility of the air dam blade also improves overall durability. The blade can flex if it is hit or scraped by smaller road debris, such as stones, and the entire system will automatically react during a larger impact.