New posts from Gas 2.0! |
- 700 hp “Reptile” Hybrid is an Electric Dream Machine
- Chip Yates Set to Tackle Pike’s Peak on 240 hp Electric Bike
- GM Patent Filing Reveals New 7 Spd. Gearbox from China
- Car Feature: Warp Factor II, the ’81 Chevy Camaro EV Dragster
- Americans *Still* Not Buying Fuel Efficient Cars
| 700 hp “Reptile” Hybrid is an Electric Dream Machine Posted: 05 Apr 2011 04:00 PM PDT
Car design has always been a serious business, with billions at stake and huge windfalls of fame and fortune going to anyone who can convince a major automaker that the doodles in their notebooks will “play in Peoria”, and thereby qualify them to be the next Sergio Farina, Tom Gale, or Chris Bangle (for better or for worse). Still, car design can be fun, too – especially when it comes to pie-in-the-sky concepts that have no hope of getting built, setting the designer free to In Arino’s world, the Joker-esque roadster combines the best aspects of sportscars and motorcycles, while using a Wankel rotary range-extender to power the electric batteries, a la Volt. Make no mistake: the Reptile is pure vaporware … but we can dream, can’t we?     Source: Auto Evolution.
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| Chip Yates Set to Tackle Pike’s Peak on 240 hp Electric Bike Posted: 05 Apr 2011 02:30 PM PDT
Not content to take on (and spank) the gas-powered Superbikes on sissified paved racetracks, electric-bike hero Chip Yates has decided to take on the Pike’s Peak Hill Climb this June. Yates won’t be the first to ride an electric bike up the mountain, but he might be the first electric contended to win against stiff ICE competition. The Pike’s Peak course is almost completely paved, but it is a rally-type of event. Yates explains that he will “be calling on my previous SCCA Pro Rally driving experience to get safely through the lower grip sections. Our engineers are busy developing new traction control software and mapping that will automatically adapt based on my position on the mountain.” Aside: I love the idea of GPS-based traction control! Yates and his team of engineers already have outfitted the bike – itself based on a conventional Suzuki GSXR750 – with a 240 hp electric motor reportedly capable of delivering 365 lb-ft of torque to the (hopefully) grippy rear tire. PPIHC motorcycle steward Sonny Anderson is thrilled to have the bike in attendance, explaining that the “exhibition powersport division is designed for new technology, and what (Yates) brings is exactly that. Our fans are in for something special.” EV fans are in for a treat as well. Good luck, Chip! Source: Wired (Autopia).
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| GM Patent Filing Reveals New 7 Spd. Gearbox from China Posted: 05 Apr 2011 10:00 AM PDT GM is developing a new 7-speed dry clutch transmission similar in concept to what’s found in cars like the Porsche 997 PDK and Volkswagen’s GTi hot hatch – but the patent filings that came to light last week show that GM’s Chinese partners SAIC are listed right alongside GM. SAIC’s high-level involvement has caused some (well, me) to speculate that GM may follow in Honda‘s footsteps by building major components (if not complete cars) in China for export to Western markets. GM and SAIC have been tight-lipped about the, project, but perhaps the biggest “tell” is that this is a seven-speed unit was revealed at the same time as a new turbocharged and direct-injected ICE displacing up to 1.5 liters, suggesting that the two will be designed to work together – which is potentially big news for fans of the cars like the Chevy Cruze and Sonic. Why? More gears means more torque multiplication off the line and around-town, so that 1.5L engine might feel more like a 2.0L in traffic, but (since there are more gears up top as well) sip gas like a 1.0L on the highway without resorting to heavier, more expensive technology like electric motors and battery packs. You can check out filing for the transmission itself, below.
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| Car Feature: Warp Factor II, the ’81 Chevy Camaro EV Dragster Posted: 05 Apr 2011 08:26 AM PDT  Looks unfinished, but its closer to completion than you might realize In Middletown, CT, just off of Route 9 and a few blocks from downtown, a beast is being built. Even with over 1,500 ft-lbs of torque on tap though, you'll never hear this 9-second, 1981 Chevy Camaro coming, because its 100% electric. *"This is it," he says, opening the door and guiding me through big block and small block Chevy engines, thousands of tools and snippets of automotive memorabilia that clutter/decorate the inside of the garage. It’s impossible to miss the ’81 Camaro, sitting unfinished atop the shops only lift.  The Camaro will use Zilla 2k Controllers for now, but Ron hopes to upgrade to East Coast-built controllers soon The Camaro, formerly of Lithumaniacs but now of Team Haiyin EV Racing, is as much a custom project as any drag car. A custom tunnel and floor house two Net Gain electric DC motors paired together, and the engine bay has been converted to hold two used Zilla 2k controllers. A lighting bolt is etched on the passenger's floor of the sheet metal, done by Sean Liddy, and a lonely race seat hints at the plans Ron has for this car (as though the huge motors weren’t clue enough.)  Ron holds one of the many battery cells that make up the Camaro's lithium-polymer battery pack "It's going to be fast. We want to be the fastest there is," he says with enough enthusiasm to spare. Ron drag raced for 15 years, and is a veteran of the biofuel business before he "saw the light" and jumped on the electric vehicle bandwagon. "I saw what guys like Dennis Berube, owner of the ‘Current Eliminator’, were doing and I wanted in," says Ron," says Ron. So he formed his own drag racing league, ECEDRA, and after being rebuffed by the mostly-west coast National Electric Drag Racing Association, or NEDRA, decided to go it alone. His flagship dragster is this Camaro, which will make its racing debut this Saturday. "I am aiming for 9 seconds (in the quarter-mile) but we'll see how it does. Additional batteries should be here before the race," he says, patting the huge black 70 amp hour lithium-polymer battery pack that takes up the entire trunk as well as where the rear passengers' compartment. It is actually made up of 80 individual batteries in series that come from a Chinese company, Haiyin, who are Ron's primary sponsor. "These batteries have a C-Rating of between 45 and 90, which means they can dump all their power very quickly," he explains. "I have over 4,000 amps to play with, and those electric motors should be good for between 1,500 and 2,000 ft-lbs of torque," he says with a smirk. "But like I said, we'll see how we do on Saturday." Since this is a direct-drive setup, there is no transmission, so Ron and Bill have it geared fairly high for a drag car, with 3:23 gears in the Ford 9-inch rear end. "This is so I don't top out my max speed before the end of the track. If we find that there's still some top end speed left, we might drop the gearing down." If Ron is to make his goal of a 9-second quarter mile run, he’ll have to hit at least 120 mph in just 1,320 feet. A tall order, but with this setup, it should be easily attainable. So why a Camaro? It's actually a brilliant move, as it takes a lot of the difficult out of finding and customizing parts. For one thing, Ron is equipping the Camaro with plenty of VFN fiberglass body bits. So even with the huge battery pack (which should be reduced in size with additional engineering) the Camaro will have a race weight, with Ron in it, of around 2,700 pounds. And those aforementioned control arms come straight out of a performance catalog. Another factor is that since this is a Camaro, one of the best known muscle cars in Americana, and legendary for its high-horsepower gasoline-powered applications it’s bound to get attention (both positive and negative) from the extensive Camaro community.  Dual Net Gain Motors provide up to 2,000 ft-lbs of torque. That's a lotta power! I've never hidden the fact that I love muscle cars, and I've been waiting for someone to take older American muscle, and turn it into a drag racer. Ron is that man, and he's got Bill Scrivener's 30+ years of race car building experience at his back. And since it's an '81 Camaro, the last year of the draw-out 2nd generation , emissions choked Camaro, and not some 60's high-price classic, even old school gearheads will have to nod their head in begrudging approval (though I’m sure more than a few will find something to whine about.) Though the car looks imcomplete currently, consider that all the major components, such as the motors, battery pack, wiring, and rear end are already done. All its missing is a steering wheel, some huge tires (look at those tubs!) and the rest of the body bits fitted, which is all about a day or two’s worth of work (gotta love the simplicity of old cars.) What's more, this is the opening chapter of what is sure to be an interesting battle between two competing EV leagues. It was only a matter of time before some upstart stepped up to the plate and challenged NEDRA’s dominance of EV drag racing. Without choosing sides, I have to say that I’m excited to see this kind of competition building up. Reminds me of the days when the NHRA and AHRA were fighting to be the foremost drag racing league in America. Team Warp Factor II's EV Camaro is scheduled to make its maiden ride down the drag strip this Saturday, with Ron behind the wheel, and this could usher in a whole new era of electric racing vehicles. Or it could be just another blip on the radar of EV's. I'll find out first hand this Saturday. For now, make sure you check out the pictures of the Warp Factor II Camaro, and stay tuned for an update from the track next Saturday!              Chris DeMorro is a writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to HEMIs. You can read about his slow descent into madness at Sublime Burnout or follow his non-nonsensical ramblings on Twitter @harshcougar.
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| Americans *Still* Not Buying Fuel Efficient Cars Posted: 05 Apr 2011 04:00 AM PDT
Not surprisingly, American government is facing a similar problem. Actually, despite rising gas costs, Ward's Automotive Reports say that the average fuel economy for the newest cars on America's roads –call it the Class of 2010—actually slipped a touch from 22.3 miles per gallon (mpg) to 22.2 mpg. That's a far cry from the 35.5 mpg fleet average a 2016 government law is targeting for 2016. To get that kind of efficiency will almost certainly require a percentage of the cars on the road being hybrids; right now only 2.4% of new cars sold in 2010 were hybrids, a drop of .05% from 2.9% in 2009. With such a huge disparity in numbers , the prognosis for automakers meeting the 2016 ultimatum and avoiding government fines does not look good. Says Rebecca Lindland of IHS Automotive: “The change in consumer buying behavior toward better fuel economy is not aggressive enough to meet the 35.5 m.p.g. standard.” What gives? Do Americans have short memories? Do we always expect high gas prices to recede? According to Vice president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers Gloria Bergquist, “For consumers to really change their buying habits, they must believe higher gas prices are a long-term change, and by long-term, they mean five years or more.” Clearly Americans do not think prices will remain where they are now for that long. Historically, they've been right. So it should come as no surprise that a staggering 51% of vehicles sold last year were pickups, SUVs, crossovers, and minivans. Yes, it seems the phrase "bigger is better" is about as ingrained in the American psyche as guns or football. And as with guns (the NRA) and football (the NFL), the auto industry has a powerful lobby (oil companies) which want Americans to continue driving the slowest, clumsiest dinosaurs money can buy. It may appear that Big Oil is winning yet again – for now. But it's certainly encouraging to see automakers, especially U.S. automakers, taking this 35.5 benchmark seriously. Because, you know, it's not like they have a choice. Ford, for example, is advertising its "Four over Forty" (mpg) which include the Fiesta, Focus, and the Fusion and Lincoln MKZ hybrid versions. Hey, it's a start. And automakers are certainly going to need all the help they can get reaching that 35.5 mpg benchmark. After that it only gets tougher, as Obama is consider a perhaps unrealistic goal of of 60 mpg fleet average by 2025, meaning automakers will have to nearly double the fuel efficiency of their vehicles in the nine short years following 2016 to meet that standard. Er, good luck with that one. I'm not sure fuel efficiency works like computer chips, which apparently double in power every 18 months according to Moore's Law. I'm not sure fuel efficiency advances at a rate even close to that, especially since we've just seen it can actually go backwards. Then again, nine years in 21st century time is an eon, certainly long enough for some blockbuster advancement in automotive engineering to blow old fuel efficiency standards out of the water. Source: Detroit Free Press
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