Is the thule fairing that suppose to reduce wind noise effective? Does cause more drag on the car? worth it?

Question

I am trying to buy one for $60 is it worth it?

Answer 1

You don't see these very often in the United States, but in other countries e.g. Australia and South Africa they are still quite popular. It wasn't until the 1990's that car designers began to use aerodynamics as a primary element of their designs.

If you have a pre-1990's car without air conditioning the Thule fairing is a good way of providing ventilation with less wind moise than an open window, they do incur significant drag but it does not change the drag coefficient much on older cars.

In newer vehicles, it is more economical and fuel efficient to use the air conditioning rather than open a window, as the open window will create more drag and therefore less fuel economy than running the A/C.