CE 321 – Fall 2017 P a g e |1

CE 321
Highway Engineering
Problem Set 1
Due Date: Wednesday, September 6

1. A 2650-lb car is traveling at sea level at a constant speed. Its engine is running at 4500
rev/min and is producing 175 ft-lb of torque. It has a drivetrain efficiency of 90%, a drive
axle slippage of 2%, 15-inch-radius wheels, and an overall gear reduction ratio of 3 to 1. If
the car’s frontal area is 21.5 ft2, what is its drag coefficient?
2. A 3400-lb car is traveling with a gear reduction ratio of 2.5 to 1 at its top speed of 130 mi/hr
on a level road. The air density is 0.00206 slug/ft3. The car has a frontal area of 19.8 ft2, a
drag coefficient of 0.28, a wheel radius of 12.6 inches, a drive axle slippage of 3%, and a
drivetrain efficiency of 88%. At this vehicle speed, what torque is the engine producing and
what is the engine speed (in revolutions per minute)?
3. A 3200-lb car (𝐶𝐶𝐷𝐷 = 0.35, 𝐴𝐴𝑓𝑓 = 25 ft2, and 𝜌𝜌 = 0.002378 slugs/ft3) has 14-inch-radius
wheels, a drivetrain efficiency of 93%, an overall gear reduction ratio of 3.2 to 1, and drive
axle slippage of 3.5%. The engine develops a maximum torque of 210 ft-lb at an engine
speed of 3600 rev/min. What is the maximum grade this vehicle could ascend on a paved
surface while the engine is developing maximum torque? (Assume that the available tractive
effort is the engine-generated tractive effort.)
4. An engineer is designing a rear-wheel-drive car. The car (without its engine) weighs 2000
lb and has a 100-inch wheelbase, drivetrain efficiency of 80%, 14-inch-radius wheels, an
overall gear reduction ratio of 10 to 1, and a center of gravity (again, without the engine)
that is 22 inches above the roadway surface and 55 inches behind the front axle. Engines
considered weigh 3 lb for each ft-lb of torque that they produce and would be placed in the
front portion of the car. Calculations show that the car’s center of gravity moves 1 inch
closer towards the front axle for every 20 lb of engine weight added (but it stays the same
height above the roadway surface). If the car is starting from rest on a level paved roadway
surface with coefficient of adhesion equal to 0.8, what engine size (weight and associated
torque) will provide the highest possible tractive effort?
5. A newly designed car has a 9.0-ft wheelbase, is rear-wheel drive, and has a center of gravity
18 inches above the road and 4.3 ft behind the front axle. The car weighs 2450 lb, the
mechanical efficiency of the drivetrain is 90%, and the wheel radius is 14 inches. Two
engines are being considered: a base engine that develops 200 ft-lb of torque and a modified
engine that develops 240 ft-lb of torque. If the overall gear reduction ratio of 8 to 1, what is
the maximum acceleration of the car from rest for both engines on a good, dry and level
pavement?