A Real 100mpg Car You Can't Buy Here!

VW ^

[Rocksalt]

My friend had an Opel Kadett we used to drive around in high school.The transmission was about the size of a breadbox. Real basic gutter level transportation,but it got us around.

[Jeff Chandler]

WOW. Wish I could get that out of my '86 Grand Marquis... must be doing something wrong, lol.

The 88 Crown Vic has electronic fuel injection, electronic ignition, and overdrive, and almost all my driving is done on clear freeways.

[Jeff Chandler]

Hmm, why is it then that the SUV crowd loves to make cracks like "skateboard," "coffin," and "deathtraps," about city cars?

The skateboard crack is just putting them down, but the coffin and deathtrap cracks are merely descriptive. I have owned compact cars. Heck, I used to tool around on a motorcycle. I used to smoke cigarettes, too. It's just that now, with all my responsibilities, and with so many people depending on me, I include safety in my calculations. For the average heterosexual non-smoker, driving or riding in an automobile is by far the most dangerous activity he will engage in. I'm just playing the odds

I don't begrudge anyone else his decision-small cars make sense from an economical standpoint. I don't disparage SUV owners either. It's a personal decision, and it shouldn't become a political one.

[Jeff Chandler]

How about this equation:

Lincoln Navigator MSRP = $55,050.

Toyota Prius MSRP = $19,995.
Jeep Wrangler Rubicon MSRP = $24,050.

Cross (out) the Rubicon and you have $35055. to use to RENT cars for weekends and vacations.

[Old Professer]

It applies on locomotive engines, surely that was what you proposed in a scaled-down version, was it not?

[John Jamieson]

I didn't propose it. I understand the problems and cost.

"Power factor" was my question. How is the term used on locomotives?

[Old Professer]

Locomotive engines that are rated at 2900KVA are rated at 2400 KW on average; my understanding is that, even with added capacitance, motor loads always result in a loss of real power and this loss at cruising speeds on a vehicle at steady highway speeds exceeds the power loss due to friction in a conventional overdriven transmission due to internal friction; therefor, an engine that would drive a generator to drive a motor(s) would be measurably less efficient than current transmission designs.

While the PF is a greater concern in utility-fed installations due to power companies compensating for added capacitance in their billing, the needed addition of designed capacitance on vehicles would add to the total cost and maintenance as well; a good site for basic info (plus a sales pitch) for PF can be found here, http://www.oit.doe.gov/bestpractices/motors/factsheets/mc60405.pdf