The Winds of Change: BMW opens unrivalled Aerodynamic Test Centre

The opening of the new BMW Aerodynamic Test Centre in Dingolfing, Germany marks a new chapter in BMW’s journey towards completely sustainable automotive engineering. The €170 million investment underscores the ongoing enhancement of aerodynamics as an essential cornerstone of BMW Group’s EfficientDynamics strategy and introduces to the world the first wind tunnel capable of testing two vehicles at the same time.
EfficientDynamics is a three-phase product development strategy that includes short, medium and long term objectives to help BMW Group achieve zero carbon emissions. The significant improvement in precision testing available at the new Centre is a key part of that plan and takes automotive analytics to a new level. BMW will now be able to examine aerodynamics during overtaking and determine the effect that the two vehicles have on each other. 
For the BMW Group improved vehicle efficiency should never compromise driving performance. Nowhere is that mission clearer than at the Dingolfing Centre. Optimised aerodynamics in the development of new models has a direct impact on a car’s fuel economy and emission management, with a 10% reduction of air drag equating to a 2.5% reduction in fuel consumption.  It also improves performance, driving dynamics and road handling through a more precise measurement of uplift and downforce.
The wind tunnel will generate precise and realistic measurements, recreating real-life situations without any distortion.  This is made possible through the use of an 8 metre fan for horizontal testing, able to generate winds of 300 km/h or 180 mph, and a fan for vertical testing, positioned directly over the middle of the tunnel. Cutting-edge technology maps the results of the testing, helping BMW experts to refine design developments in future models.
In addition, the Aerodynamics Test Centre houses the Aerolab, a high-tech facility where scale models can be tested and complex calculations run, enabling crucial feedback to be inputted to the development process at an earlier stage than ever before. 
The Centre also brings together in one place BMW’s 500 aerodynamics specialists who were previously housed in disparate plants, as well as the engineers and designers located at the nearby Research and Innovation Centre.
The Aerodynamics Test Centre will enable more precise testing in parallel with computer diagnostics to enhance driving performance and efficiency of every BMW model.