Category Archives: green cars

Littlest Greenest Car – But it is way too much money

Posted on by
Reply

I love things like the Smart Car, the Coopers and all the little electric cars I have reported on over the years so of course I like this one too. The thing that amazes me is how much money they cost. I mean you can argue that you are front loading your costs…yada yada blah. But noway I am paying that kinda money for a car period.

http://jalopnik.com/5910190/the-worlds-smallest-cars-are-back-on-sale-for-insane-money

The World’s Smallest Cars Are Back On Sale, For Insane Money

Contact Jason Torchinsky: jason@jalopnik.com

May 17, 2012 4:00 PM

Like an adorable, tiny zombie popping out of its tiny, adorable window-box grave, the Peel P50 and Peel Trident are back from the dead. Neither of the tiny, tiny cars has been built since 1966, but a new company, with funding from the BBC’s show Dragon’s Den, is starting production up once again, as announced earlier this year. They’re street legal in the UK and US, and you can buy them for an absurd price £10,000 ($16,000).

The Peel P50 is the World’s Smallest Car, most famously enjoyed (indoors and outdoors) by Jeremy Clarkson. The Trident is a sort of sportier-looking model, with the same mechanicals (original: 49cc, 4.2 HP) but swaps the cyclopian porta-potty look for a very 50s-modern bubble-topped futuristic fiberglass body. The Trident also can hold two, instead of the solitary seat of the P50.

The modernized P50 and Trident swap the old (reverseless) three-cog transmission for a CVT unit, and use a 3.35 HP motor (one of the few times the hundredths decimal place is important), which is enough to push the 198 lb Trident or 240 lb P50 to 28 mph (electronically limited— maybe you could go a bit faster?). There’s electric versions as well, with roughly the same specs, except instead of an amazing 118 mpg, you have a meager 15 miles between charges. Dead dinosaurs sure hold a lot of energy.

At 118 MPG, Peel advertises…

:}

Go there and read. More tomorrow.

:}

Savings In Your Car – I consider your car as part of your residence

Posted on by
Reply

People traditionally do not think of their car or other forms of personal transportation as part of their residential energy package but I think it only makes sense. In between gas and insurance along or electricity now, they can be some of the most expensive things in your life. And it is a big part of of your carbon footprint. This would sure make a differenced.

http://digg.com/newsbar/topnews/fold_up_car_of_the_future_unveiled_at_eu

Fold-up car of the future unveiled at EU

January 24, 2012

A tiny revolutionary fold-up car designed in Spain’s Basque country as the answer to urban stress and pollution was unveiled Tuesday before hitting European cities in 2013.

A tiny revolutionary fold-up car designed in Spain’s Basque country as the answer to urban stress and pollution was unveiled Tuesday before hitting European cities in 2013.

The “Hiriko”, the Basque word for “urban”, is an electric two-seater with no doors whose motor is located in the wheels and which folds up like a child’s collapsible buggy, or stroller, for easy parking.

Dreamt up by Boston’s MIT-Media lab, the concept was developed by a consortium of seven small Basque firms under the name Hiriko Driving Mobility, with a prototype unveiled by European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso.

Demonstrating for journalists, Barroso clambered in through the fold-up front windscreen of the 1.5-metre-long car.

“European ideas usually are developed in the United States. This time an American idea is being made in Europe,” consortium spokesman Gorka Espiau told AFP.

:}

Go there and read. More tomorrow.

:}

Creating Green Transportation Options Take Money, Cash and Moola – Suspended regulations do not hurt either

Posted on by
Reply

 

While Solyndra made headlines, Aptera’s crash and burn is deeply frustrating because solar panels are made all over the world so the loss of one company is no big deal. The press of course had a field day with it as well they should. But not everyone tries to make green cars. So this is a sad piece as well.

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1070490_aptera-collapse-how-why-it-happened-a-complete-chronology

Aptera Collapse: How & Why It Happened, A Complete Chronology

December 12, 2011
t’s not the best photo, but it means a lot to the 19 people in it.Posed in front of a mirrored glass office building under a colorful logo, they are the final employees of the now-defunct Aptera Motors on the last day of its existence: Friday, December 2.

Now we can bring you the inside chronology of the events that led to the end of Aptera.

Costly, risky, and very, very hard

Over the last week, we’ve interviewed former CEO Paul Wilbur and former marketing VP Marques McCammon, who were there to the very end.

We also spoke at length with company founder Steve Fambro, who resigned his seat on the Aptera board of directors early this year. He had been replaced by Wilbur as CEO in September 2008.

If there’s one lesson to be learned from Aptera, it may be this: Starting a car company takes a huge amount of money–orders of magnitude more than the software startups Silicon Valley venture capitalists like to fund.

If the cash runs out at any point, the company will die.

Not just a single car

Through several hours of conversations, a few themes emerged from the Aptera story as recounted by Wilbur and McCammon.

The pair speak highly of the entire workforce, all of them now looking for jobs.

And it is clear that the car designed by founders Fambro and Wilbur was not the car Aptera ended up developing. In fact, it created a longer, larger version of the three-wheeler to comply with the 738 separate Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards covering cars that may legally be sold.

Then, after it became clear that funding a three-wheeler wasn’t going to be possible, the company switched gears in January and threw all its design resources into creating a four-seat, four-wheeled car using the same plastic composite body shell construction as the original three-wheelers.

:}

Go there and read. More tomorrow.

:}

Greenest Cars For 2011 – We might as well stay on topic

Posted on by
3

Since Evan got me started on transportation I figure we might as well stick with it for awhile. This from Mother Earth News. The obvious suspects are the Leaf, the Volt and the Prius. You will have to go read the article for their reveiws but here is the lead in.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/2011-best-green-cars-zm0z11zroc.aspx

Best Green Cars, 2011

The hybrid car that changed the world • The electric cars that will change the world • $1,000s in rebates and incentives • 40 mpg for the long haul • All-electric daily driving • 38 mpg with smiles • $2.75 to recharge • No range anxiety • 35 mpg with zip

June/July 2011

By John Rockhold

Back in 2000, Toyota released the Prius, a gasoline-electric hybrid, in the United States. That year, the average price of gas was just $1.49, yet here was a quirky little car that touted 40-plus mpg. A 2004 redesign gave the Prius even better mpg and its iconic shape, and it became so popular Toyota couldn’t keep up with demand. Today, the Prius is the most successful hybrid by far and has basically come to define “green car.” It’s no surprise, then, that the Prius is back among the annual MOTHER EARTH NEWS Best Green Cars.

Have you ever wondered what the heck “Prius” actually means? It’s a Latin word meaning “to go before.” Toyota chose it to signify that the car and its hybrid technology would be a precursor of the energy-efficient cars of the future?—?which has certainly proved true, given the numerous hybrids released by Toyota and others. However, it’s the two all-electric cars on our 2011 list that herald the next revolution in green transportation.

Yes, practical and accessible electric cars from major automakers are finally here. Neither electric car is perfect, but the Prius wasn’t either back in 2000. Of the many features that make the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf compelling, their driving range and cost to own are what may make them most appealing. The Leaf has a range of about 100 miles, depending on driving conditions. The Volt has a shorter all-electric range, but uses a gas engine to power its two electric motors when needed for a total range of about 375 miles.

Sick of paying about $50 to fill the tank of your gas car? How does $2 to $3 sound? Given the national average cost of electricity (11 cents per kilowatt-hour), that’s about what you would pay to “fill up” an electric car by recharging it overnight. And if you’re curious about the environmental costs of gasoline versus fossil fuel electricity, read Why Electric Cars Are Cleaner. In short, while there is regional variability, electric cars are cleaner than gas cars. That said, the ultimate solution is to recharge with renewable energy.

The three other vehicles that make up our 2011 Best Green Cars are revolutionary in their own right: The Ford Fiesta has the best blend of affordability and efficiency; the Honda CR-Z proves that hybrids can be fun to drive; and the Jetta TDI is the best example of clean diesel’s efficiency and workhorse longevity.

Whether you own one of these six cars now, later or never, you’ll benefit from them. They’re making mobility greener, reducing our dependence on oil, and instigating more innovation in the auto industry. In this new era of green car competition, we’re all winners.

Best Green Cars: Keys to the Data and the Experts

Base Price: the manufacturer’s suggested retail price + destination fee

EPA Gas Mileage: official fuel economy estimates (your mileage may vary)

Annual Fuel Cost: assumes $3.75/gallon regular gasoline; $3.95/gallon premium gasoline; $3.97/gallon diesel; $0.11 per kilowatt-hour of electricity; 15,000 miles driven annually at 55% city, 45% highway

Air Pollution Score: from the EPA; zero = most tailpipe emissions, 10 = least

Greenhouse Gas Score: from the EPA; zero = most greenhouse gas emissions, 10 = least

ACEEE Green Score: from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy; the higher the score, the better; best 2011 score is 54; see www.GreenerCars.org

Brad Berman: founder and editor, www.HybridCars.com and www.PluginCars.com

Terry Penney: program manager for advanced vehicle technologies at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Ron Cogan: editor and publisher, Green Car Journal

Todd Kaho: executive editor, Green Car Journal and editor of www.FrugalDriver.com

Chelsea Sexton: founder, Lightning Rod Foundation; electric car advocate

James Kliesch: research director for the clean vehicles program at the Union of Concerned Scientists

Jim Motavalli: author of High Voltage: The Fast Track to Plug in the Auto Industry

:}

More tomorrow.

:}

Flying Car Approved – The future is here

Posted on by
Reply

So what? You can drive yourself to the airport and then take off?

http://www.tgdaily.com/hardware-features/57051-flying-car-cleared-for-use-on-us-roads

Flying car cleared for use on US roads

Posted on Jul 6th 2011 by Emma Woollacott
/
/

The Terrafugia flying car is now legal for use on the roads, following a grant of special exemptions by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

 

One exemption allows the Transition to use tires that are appropriately rated for highway speeds and vehicle weight, but which aren’t normally permitted on for multi-purpose vehicles. It means the vehicle can have the same tires as were used successfully in flight and drive tests in 2009.

The vehicle’s also allowed to have its own type of windscreen, with Terrafugia arguing that traditional laminated automotive safety glass could fracture in such a way as to obscure the vision of the pilot in the event of a bird impact.

Instead, it’s allowed to use polycarbonate materials which are just as protective, it says, but which won’t shatter or craze.

Last summer, the Transition was given initial approval by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and  granted an additional 110 pounds weight allowance.

The company says all it needs to do now is carry out a testing program before the Transition starts shipping. It’s planning extensive analysis and crash testing to make sure it reaches safety standards.

After that, it says, the Transition could be available as early as the end of this year, costing around $200,000. You can reserve one for a deposit of $10,000, here.

:}

http://www.terrafugia.com/

Kind of looks like the batmobile when its wings are folded up.

:}

More tomorrow.

:}

All Electric Vehicles From Cork City Ireland – Guest post

Posted on by
1

I get requests for guest posts and links all the time. Some are just pretend commercial sites. If they are on topic and interesting sometimes I give them a link or even a post but the legitimate ones I always put up. This one came in while I was posting about nuclear power and I couldn’t figure out a way to work it in. So here is an interesting guy, Evan Collins take on all electric vehicles.
www.all-electric-vehicles.com
www.facebook.com/allelectricvehicles

All Electric Vehicles: My Search for the Perfect Electric Car (or hybrid, scooter, bicycle, or motorcycle!!)

Have you ever thought about Switching your Transport to an Electric Vehicle?

If you’re like me or the people I know, probably not! … at least not up to recently.

electric vehicles You may have noticed that, as of today, electric vehicles account for a TINY percentage of all the cars, motorbikes, scooters and bicycles on sale.

The thing is, it seems to be becoming more widely believed that electric vehicles will be the main type of transport around the world within 10 years.

electric vehicles
Hi there, my name is Evan Collins. I’m a Mechanical engineering student and live just outside Cork City in Ireland.

Like most guys (and students) my age, I don’t have much of my own money … but I do need to get around!

I got my car licence a couple of years back and that’s what led to me to talking to you here today.

electric vehicles You see, my parents have insured me on their little Peugeot 207 diesel – and while that’s great – I have some ideas of my own for the future when it comes to car ownership.

While I’m not exactly a dedicated environmentalist, I have come to realise that if I want to get my own set of four-wheels – one that I can actually afford in the next couple of years, then I’m going to take a different approach.

Here’s what I’m going to do:

  • Research all of the pros and cons of electric vehicles – what’s on the market now, what will be in a couple of years time?
  • Test-drive what is around now (now I like the idea of that!)
  • Come up with the best recommendations
  • AND share this information with all of you guys through this website

electric vehicles
I reckon the journey will be worthwhile, with lots of chances to test-drive some cool wheels – and maybe even get a chance to buy one (a Tesla would be nice)!

Of course, with electric vehicles, the theory is that they will save loads on fuel and running costs, as well as lowering environmental impact – and I suppose they will, but I aim to have the coolest set of wheels in town!

electric vehicles So, is it possible to find a lively, good-looking, fuel-miserly set of electric wheels at this moment in time? If not, when? One year from now? Two years? By the time of my pension?

Stay with me here – have a look around – see what happened next. And then make your own mind up!

 

 

:}

Traipsing, Ambulation, Or Walk About – It is the way humans travel for 100s of thousands of years

Posted on by
Reply

People today do not understand walking as transportation at all. When anthropoligists say that humans “spread” from South Africa to Asian and Europe what they really mean is walked. I love Abraham Lincoln stories. The legends have it that Abe used to walk to Springfield to borrow law books from his friend and mentor Tod Stuart whose office in Springfield he walked to. As the crow flies or as humans walk this was a 20 mile trip but he probably did not make this trip in one day, though he probably could have if he took off at first light or before. He likely walked in one day, partied the night away and walked back the next day. There were several since abandoned communities along the way that he probably stopped at as well including the twice revived Clayville stage coach stop.  People would have thought nothing of it. He would not been alone on the trail. There would have been fresh fruit to eat on the way in season. At noon he may have swam in the Sangamon. Abe was no stranger to walking. The year before he moved to New Salem he rode a river boat barge loaded with goods from Decatur Il. to New Orleans and walked back.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walking

Walking

 This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia’s quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. The talk page may contain suggestions. (February 2009)
 

Simple Walk-Cycle

Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of locomotion among legged animals, and is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ‘inverted pendulum’ gait in which the body vaults over the stiff limb or limbs with each step. This applies regardless of the number of limbs – even arthropods with six, eight or more limbs.

In humans and other bipeds, walking is generally distinguished from running in that only one foot at a time leaves contact with the ground and there is a period of double-support. In contrast, running begins when both feet are off the ground with each step. This distinction has the status of a formal requirement in competitive walking events. For quadrupedal species, there are numerous gaits which may be termed walking or running, and distinctions based upon the presence or absence of a suspended phase or the number of feet in contact any time do not yield mechanically correct classification[1]. The most effective method to distinguish walking from running is measurement via a force plate, but definitions based on the percent of the stride in which a foot is in contact with the ground (averaged across all feet) of greater than 50% contact corresponds well with identification of ‘inverted pendulum’ mechanics via force plate measurements for animals with any number of limbs[1].

An average human child achieves independent walking ability around 11 months old.[2] The word walk is descended from the Old English wealcan “to roll”.

Although walking speeds can vary greatly depending on factors such as height, weight, age, terrain, surface, load, culture, effort, and fitness, the average human walking speed is about 5 kilometres per hour (km/h), or about 3.1 miles per hour (mph). Specific studies have found pedestrian walking speeds ranging from 4.51 km/h to 4.75 km/h for older individuals to 5.32 km/h to 5.43 km/h for younger individuals.[3][4] A pedestrian is a person who is walking on a road, pavement or path.

:}

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/09/050916074420.htm

The Mechanics Of Foot Travel: With So Many Silly Gaits To Choose From, Why Have We Adopted So Few?

ScienceDaily (Sep. 16, 2005) — Despite having the bones and muscles to perform a variety of gaits, human beings have developed an overwhelming preference for just two: walking and running. Now, computer analysis that allows simulation of infinite two-legged locomotions has shown our favored modes of bi-pedal travel use the least amount of energy.

Indeed, in an article published in the current online edition of the British journal Nature, Cornell engineers Andy Ruina and Manoj Srinivasan compare the mechanics of walking and running with “many other strange and unpractised gaits.” They used a set of computer models that simulated physical measurements such as leg length, force, body velocity and trajectory, forward speed and work.

“We wish to find how a person can get from one place to another with the least muscle work,” they report. “Why do people not walk or even run with a smooth level gait, like a waiter holding two cups brim-full of boiling coffee?”

The engineers’ computer simulations conclude that walking is simply most energy efficient for travel at low speeds, and running is best at higher speeds. And, they report, a third walk-run gait is optimal for intermediate speeds, even though humans do not appear to take advantage of it.

The findings help to explain why the possible–but preposterous–gaits in the Monty Python sketch, “Ministry of the Silly Walks,” have never caught on in human locomotion. The researchers add that extensions of this work might improve the design of prosthetic devices and energy-efficient bipedal robots.

 

:}

More horsing around tomorrow.

:}

Idling Vehicles Are Costing Billions – Cops, firemen and farmers alike

Posted on by
Reply

Everyone has an excuse. For Cops it is they, “gotta be ready to roll”. For small town folks who leave their cars running at the curb, “it’ll just take a minute”. For bus drivers it is the mistaken notion that, “turning it off and on is harder on it then idling”. But it is all fuelish and wasteful.

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/vehicles/idle_reduction.html

Idle Reduction

Idling vehicles use billions of gallons of fuel each year and emit large quantities of air pollution and greenhouse gases. Idle reduction technologies and practices are an important way to cut petroleum consumption and emissions.

Idle Reduction Basics

Photo of fleet trucks

Idling Facts

  • Medium-duty trucks use about 2.5 billion gallons of fuel to idle each year, or 6.7% of the total fuel they consume.
  • More than 650,000 long-haul heavy-duty trucks idle overnight for required rest stops at least some fraction of the time, using more than 685 million gallons of fuel per year.

Idle reduction describes technologies and practices that reduce the amount of time drivers idle their engines. Reducing idling time has many benefits, including reductions in fuel costs, emissions, and noise.

Drivers idle for a variety of reasons, such as keeping vehicles warm, operating radios, or powering equipment. Each year, U.S. passenger cars, light trucks, medium-duty trucks, and heavy-duty vehicles consume more than 6 billion gallons of diesel fuel and gasoline—without even moving. Roughly half of that fuel is wasted by passenger vehicles.

Idling can be reduced without compromising driver comfort or vehicle equipment operations. Learn about:

:}

More tomorrow.

:}

New Way To Be Fuel Efficient – Computer program from U of I

Posted on by
Reply

Flash! This just in from Website mavin Carol Kneedler who owns and operates www.o3internet.com. As a plug please call her if you have any website work you need done.

http://csl.illinois.edu/news/green-gps-calculates-most-fuel-efficient-route

Green GPS calculates most fuel-efficient route

by Kim Gudeman, CSL Green GPS technology May 3, 2011 – 3:14pm

A new software interface reduces energy consumption in transportation systems.

Green GPS, developed by computer scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, works like general GPS navigation, except that in addition to calculating the shortest and fastest routes, it also projects the most fuel-efficient route.

“Currently at least 30 percent of total energy in the United States is spent on cars,” said Principal Investigator Tarek Abdelzaher, associate professor of computer science and researcher in the Coordinated Science Laboratory. “By saving even 5 percent of that cost, we can save the same amount of total energy spent on the nation’s entire information technology infrastructure.”

The technology runs on cell phones, which links to a car’s computer using an inexpensive, off-the-shelf wireless adapter that works in all cars manufactured since 1996. The car’s onboard diagnostics system uploads information about engine performance and fuel efficiency to the phone, which uses the data to compute the greenest route.

A grant through the National Science Foundation to Abdelzaher and Robin Kravets, also a member of Illinois’ computer science faculty, is funding a large-scale deployment of the service via the University of Illinois’ car fleet. The Office of Naval Research is funding research related to the technology’s networking component. Researchers — including Dr. Omid Fatemieh, graduate student Hossein Ahmadi and research associate Hongyan Wang — also are collaborating with IBM through its “Smarter Planet” initiative.

Pete Varney, who oversees some of the approximately 500 vehicles used by the Urbana-Champaign campus, hopes research will help maximize fuel efficiency for the fleet. The units will be installed on up to 200 vehicles, including full-size vans that could be carrying 1,000 pounds or more in tools and equipment.

“The less money we can spend on fuel, the more money we can direct toward maintaining other things on campus,” said Varney, director of Transportation & Automotive Services.

In addition, researchers are developing a social network of drivers who can share information about their cars. In the future,

:}

For more see the rest of the article. More Tomorrow.

:}

Electric Cars Are Here To Stay – Finally after 100 years

Posted on by
Reply

But will they do any good? I am not sure if I agree with this analysis but it is pretty detailed. Please go see the rest here:

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_17767977?nclick_check=1

Will buying an electric car make an environmental difference?

Sure, you might get a carpool sticker and a tax break. But if you buy an electric car, will it make much environmental difference?

Experts say that depends on three factors: What were you driving before? How is your electricity generated? And how many other electric cars are going to be sold?

In many cases, people who trade gasoline-powered cars for electric ones won’t be dramatically lessening the smog they emit. But when it comes to global warming, even when emissions from generating the electricity are taken into account, electric vehicles have a much smaller carbon footprint than gas-powered vehicles because they are much more efficient. However, it will take a decade or more until enough electric vehicles are on the road to make a significant impact.

“If you have a person who is driving a nice, newer car, having them switch to an electric car, there isn’t going to be much benefit in reducing smog,” said Tom Cahill, a professor emeritus of physics at UC Davis. “But there could be a whole lot of gain in climate change.”

Because all-electric vehicles like the Nissan Leaf burn no fossil fuels, and plug-in hybrids like the Chevy Volt burn only small amounts of gasoline, tailpipe emissions from electric cars are basically zero. In smoggy cities like Los Angeles, driving one on summer days may actually clean the air because the tailpipe emissions contain less pollution than the air.

Yet most people currently buying electric cars weren’t driving old, smog-belching vehicles. They are often affluent motorists who drove newer-model gasoline cars. And because California has for 50 years had the toughest tailpipe standards in the nation, a 2010 gasoline-burning car puts out only 2 percent or less of the pollution spewed by a 1980s model.

Along with the national-security benefits of reducing America’s use of foreign oil, the main societal benefit of electric cars might be their dramatically smaller global warming footprint.

A 2008 study by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University found that life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions, which include emissions from both manufacturing and operating a vehicle, are 32 percent less from plug-in hybrids than from gasoline-powered cars.

That finding was based on America’s electricity mix: 45 percent of U.S. electricity is generated from coal, 23 percent from natural gas, 20 percent from nuclear, and 12 percent from dams, solar, wind and other sources.

The global warming footprint of electric cars varies by region. Some states get nearly all their electricity from coal, the most polluting fuel. But only 15 percent of California’s electricity comes from coal, nearly all imported from other states, with 46 percent from natural gas, 15 percent from nuclear power, and 24 percent from dams, solar, wind and other sources.

:}

More tomorrow.

:}