Posted on 07/17/2008 4:54:18 PM PDT by Reaganesque
July 17, 2008 Britain's Axon claims that its newly patented mass-production techniques will make carbon composite car frames and bodywork even cheaper than their metal counterparts - and only 40% as heavy. What a revolutionary technology this could be - the power to weight ratio of any vehicle on the planet could be dramatically increased for no extra cost! The company plans to release a highly affordable 500cc Review-of-Three-Wheeled-Vehicles Mar-08 
passenger car making at least 100mpg from a basic petrol http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasoline engine in 2010, and Axon is confident its simple, lightweight solution to the fuel economy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_efficiency challenge will be highly competitive against the big competition in the Progressive Automotive X-Prize contest.
It's been common knowledge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_knowledge for decades the carbon-fiber composites offer the strength of steel with only a fraction of the weight - but they're still viewed as exotic materials because of the high cost of traditional manufacturing techniques. And since it's been cheaper and more marketable to boost engine power Multiple-Personality-Cars than to look at making lighter cars, most manufacturers have stuck with steel and aluminum.
But carbon fiber specialists at Axon believe their new mass-manufacturing process can make carbon fiber frames and bodywork even cheaper than their metal counterparts. To back up their claims, they company plans to release this 2-seater, 500cc passenger car in 2010 at "an affordable price" - and they're aiming for more than 100 mpg from a simple, small 500cc engine, simply because it will be so light.
If Axon, which presented displayed its platform as part of the FoS-Tech pavilion at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed, can prove that carbon composites can be as cheap and reliable as steel or aluminum, the same technology could generate massive efficiency increases in cars from other manufacturers around the world - although the cost of switching over from metal could prove a killer for established automakers. Still, while the average buyer is still more likely to pay extra for a more powerful car than a more efficient one, a technological advance of this kind could mean a huge increase in performance for no extra price - and that's the sort of thing car buyers will respond to.
More from our friends at Transport 2.0.
The switch from gasoline to something else will come. It may even happen during the next 10 years like Al Gore wants. But it will only happen as a result of free market forces and not through government mandates. Long live the free market!
I wonder where the carbon in the carbon fiber comes from?
My suspicion is that safety regs will keep yt from becoming a four wheeler. Hence, you will not see a Chevy Suburban , etc with this approach. I wish them well, though.
The carbon fiber fairy? ;-)
Sounds like BS to me. Another small company making claims about supposed breakthroughs in order to fleece investors.
A plastic thread is passed through a special atmosphere carbonizing furnace at just the right temperature. Not cheap in 1980. Maybe cheaper now.
It would not matter to me, having seen carbon composite bicycle frames collapse in races at 1 Peak HP, if that, at a total gross weight of the rider + a few pounds.
There are videos of these events on the Web.
Metal can crumple, and as it does so, it absorbs energy. When composites fail it is catastrophic. One may as well hit the pavement nude. And was there not an issue of some aircraft's composite control surfaces deciding to suddenly leave a while ago?
No thanks. Plywood might be safer.
Looks like four wheels to me.
I think 100mpg from a 500cc engine is an unrealistic claim; 60-70mpg would be more likely. My bike has a 125cc four-stroke and it gets 100mpg because it only weighs 240lb.
Carbon fibre banana, is gonna be a sudden craze...
Don’t drive it across a bridge in high winds.
I was going to say that. My 2300 pound Yaris is buffeted by 20 mph wind. I haven’t driven it when we’ve had 40 to 45 mph winds yet.
You can make a car composed of turkey feathers that I’m sure would be nice and light, but who would be fool enough to entrust their family’s safety to such a contraption? Why not just bring back the Corvair or Pinto?
Buick Century...My second one...The 13 year old one was looking shabby!!
I had three corvairs and I loved all three ... well .. the last two anyway.
The monza’s were fun to dirve and both ofthem had a unique heating sustem .. a gasoline fired space heater. 35 beliw zero .. walk out turn the key and turn the heater on .. toasty almost immediately.
And quite frankly .. I wish I had them back .. anything to get that goofy ralphie nader’s panties in a wad .. is alright with me. nader and gore .. neither are safe at any speed.
My suspicion is that safety regs will keep yt from becoming a four wheeler.
*******************************************
That was my first thought ,,, a 3 wheeler is a motorcycle and doesn’t have to pass a crash test...
Yeah. Uh-huh. Just like industry was going to produce new Light Sport Aircraft for $ 20,000 - $ 30,000 using composites, alloys, and new technology. Only, these aircraft finally arrived at a cost of $90,000 - $ 160,000 a copy. And still burn 5-8 gallons per hour at $ 6.10/gallon LL100.
There’s an opening out there for somebody to become the Andrew Carnegie of carbon fibre.
And yet Formula 1 and Indy Cars are made out of carbon fiber and allow the driver to survive a 200 mph crash into a concrete wall.
I think it's all in the design. My worry is that a carbon fiber car won't be repairable. One crash and your car is totaled.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.