Abstract
Pitching stability characteristics of land vehicle were assessed by conducting large eddy simulation of flow past the simplified vehicle models. Forced-sinusoidal-pitching oscillation was imposed on the vehicle models for the probing of their dynamic responses. Predominant flow structures around the real land vehicles, and the trend associated with pitching stability characteristics were successfully captured by the simplified vehicle models. The configuration of curved front pillar coupled with sharp-edged rear pillar produced a trend for unsteady aerodynamic force to restrain the pitching motion, while the presence of front pillar vortices, which is associated with sharp-edge front pillar configuration, resulted in a tendency for enhancing the pitching motion.
