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Whilst the primary function of the active grille shutters is to reduce the aerodynamic drag of the car, there are some secondary benefits like improving the warm up time of engine and also retaining engine heat when parked. In turbocharged IC engines the air is compressed (heated) in the turbo and then cooled by a low temperature cooling system before going into the engine. When the air intake temperature exceeds a threshold value, the engine efficiency falls - this drives the need for the cooling airflow across the radiator in normal operation. Airflow is also required to manage the convective heat transfer across various components in the engine bay for its lifetime thermal durability. Grill shutters can also influence the aerodynamic lift balance thus impacting the vehicle dynamics at high speed. The vehicle HVAC system also relies on the condenser in the front heat exchanger pack disposing the waste heat off in the most efficient way.

A number of market factors such as customer demand for improved connectivity and infotainment systems, automated driver assist systems and electrification of powertrain have driven an increase in the number of electrical systems within the cabin of automotive vehicles. These systems have limited operating temperature windows, therefore markets with high ambient temperatures and solar loading represent a significant challenge due to high cabin temperatures. Traditionally climatic facilities have been used replicate the conditions seen in these markets in order to understand the performance of the electrical systems. However such facilities have a number of limitations such as fixed solar arrays, secondary radiation from the walls and substantial operating costs limiting testing to envelope tests. Therefore the requirement for CAE based approach to more accurately represent the conditions seen in the real world is clear.