they have already done that on lots o machinery and tractors ever hear of hydro stat drive. I ran a REX pulvimixer way dack in 1970 you could be going wide open in forward about 20 mph and shifr to reverse and it would slowly stop and then back up with no damage. OldWolf
To turn grass clippings corn apples or any organic plant or fruit into alcohol .you put them into a container with water and let it ferment when it stops bubbling it is ready to distill. take your wifes pressure cooker and remove the rubber plug and use a dough seal to attach a long copper tubing coil heat the liquid under a low flame as long as you keep the temp below 212 degrees you will have about 185 proof strain through a charcoal filter before drinking. At least this is the way my family has done it for many generations!
For road trips what about a small onboard gas or diesel generator to recharge the batts. If you know you are going on say, a 600 mile trip, you enter that into the computer and it figures out when to kick on to keep them charged. Just an idea.
Well you do have a point on the "Hot Rod" thing, but think of it more as a protoype car, like combine several different body tricks from 50's and 60's prototype cars to make one individual looking body, and put a different motor in it that may not be ran on gasoline, but on something else that could either cost less or not cost anything at all. Do you see what im sayin' or am I still not making sense? And why is my posts been moveds in here instead of being in the topic i posted them under??
i am pretty sure all wrecked priuses get the batteries and drive train removed by toyota the elctric motors and what have you something about toxicity also the voltage of the system isn't just 12 and the rolling amperage through the wires as the thing runs- yeah its cook time it'd be better to build your own electric car than mess with this. the car can't be serviced by any one either...and not all toyota places can work on them.
Your conclusion is not based on a solid foundation, as in the logic does not follow: recharging electric cars takes power plants => "liberals" look up to France which uses nuclear power = proof clean power isn't their (liberals) agenda I don't think so. There are all kinds of "environmentalists" with all kinds of views. I think it's more about finding better alternatives. Thanks, Kurt
Wood burning cars have been around for a long time (it's called gasification), but they are still internal combustion. They were even optional from Volvo in 1938. (http://www.ukcar.com/carspecs/basicmodels.asp?maker=Volvo) <I> "In 1938 the more streamlined PV53/56 appeared, a development of the earlier model. It was produced in small numbers during the war, often sold with a wood-burning gas-producer unit on a small trailer".</I> Mother Earth News built one in 1981: http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/1981-05-01/Mothers-Woodburning-Truck.aspx (CAUTION - tree hugger content. Anti-tree huggers BEWARE! IRONY! - yes, tree huggers burning wood!) Wood-burners in Sweden: http://www.vedbil.se/indexe.shtml I picked up a Buick engine from a recycler in San Francisco and he has a pickup running on wood. The problem with these is the carbon footprint. Check out the current Wired magazine (bright red cover) regarding carbon emissions/global warming and energy use, you'll be surprised. gary
Hey- do what you'd like. It's your car, think outside the box. I've always thought of getting big power out of big displacement using whatever you have on hand. Getting big power out of small displacement using whatever you have on hand sounds like what you do to a Civic, but different times necessitate different measures. Instead of going with all that fancy hybrid crap, why not take a small 4 cylinder and soup it up? Old Quad 4? Ford Zetec? Hell, even a Festiva 1.3 liter- there are parts available for that engine.
Why not do hybrids like locomotives do? Run a diesel engine at a constant RPM power generators which charge batteries which power electric motors. Electric does make sense because of their high torque.
I'm all about this, I think this is kool. Why not? Speed isn't the only factor in hot rodding. There are plenty of traditional T's and A's out there with 4-bangers that may have been considered fast in their day but couldn't hold a candle to an average car nowadays. So what? It's about the build, the style, the sound, the whole experience, and yes, even the attention. That being said, I was pretty impressed with the Prius, but that was a couple years ago when they still were a new thing. Now, the problems have surfaced. All kinds of electrical problems, most of them unfixable by your average mechanic, many of them unfixable PERIOD. The MPG turned out to be inflated greatly, and they just simply aren't what they were cracked up to be. If you want a neat alternative powerplant, and don't mind working with front-wheel drive, may I suggest an older Honda CRX or a Ford Festiva or Aspire? They get comfortably in the 40mpg range with highway driving. If you're intent on rear-wheel drive it may take a bit more to work with these engines. Maybe a 4-cylinder econo-box that was originally RWD would work best, like a Datsun 310 or old 70s Toyota Corolla. How about a rusted BMW 2002 or a Volvo? The possibilities are there. By the way, when I have my resources together, I have a great-running 81 Mercedes 240D with the 4-cylinder diesel and 4-speed in a rusted body that I'll be combining with something-or-other to make a high MPG rod. I figure it gets 35mpg in a 3800lb car, should be close to 50 in a 1500lb roadster. I'm right with ya, keep thinkin!
Hell yes, now this guy gets what the hell im talking about! Im not necessarily set on rear wheel drive. It can be front wheel drive, I got an idea for a totaly one off custom/prototype show car thing that is economicaly friendly, I could get one of those engines and a good chassis to put it in, and build my custom around it. Im drafting basic sketches for one right now, I don't quite have all the kinks and design worked out the exact way I want it but im working on it. I want to know how that project of yours turns out this IS definately something im gonna do, and allllllll of you are gonna know about it to when I do it! It;s gonna be to damn good lol
The other one I was thinking on doing was a Ford Aspire. There was one my neighbor had, and his daughter cracked it up one night. Still ran and drove fine, just totally sideswiped. I was thinking on cutting the body down and adding on some rounded fenders and panels, like maybe off a VW Type 3 fastback, chopping the shit outta it, and making a mini leadsled that got 40mpg. Of course, they sold it off to the scrapyard the day I thought up this idea and was gonna knock on their door.
I had 3 different Ford Tempo's in my first 5 or 6 years of driving. Two stickshift, one auto. They were all 2.3 litre, iron block, iron head, cam in block 4 cylinder. All told I put a total of about 250,000 miles on those cars. Had no major problems and NEVER a problem with the engines. I swear they all got at least 35 mpg on the highway. You could not kill them. May be some of the best cars I ever owned. I recently learned that the 2.3 Tempo engine and the 3.0 V6 Vulcan (12 valve) engine have the same bellhousing pattern. A Ranger 3.0 transmission should bolt right up. They all had about 90-100 hp and 125-130 ft-lbs of torque. The intake and exhaust are on what would be the passenger side if switched to North/South RWD setup.
I like the electric motor idea-- in a 60's Turbine Dream Car. I could see a '61 Thunderbird- all whispery quiet and smooth like that. Sweet. Cruise-O-Matic
Here's the next big thing: The Scuderi split cycle air hybrid..................... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jNVmjdYw7Q&NR=1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCB_2jpHhI0<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
If I remember correctly, the Prius has two 150V Lithium Ion Battery packs which are run in series giving 300V. (If I remember correctly that is). John
who cares if your hot rod gets 60mpg, if you don't drive it every day the money is better spent tuning up your daily to get one or two more mpg out of it. it's the same as the 70's. My dad was paying 40 cents a gallon and making three bucks an hour, I'm paying 3.60 a gallon and making 14 an hour....
Can't say if it's been mentioned on this thread but the Turbonique drag car Tobacco King sold recently at auction and the story has been covered by Iowahawk, the best political satirist in the business, and a stealth HAMBer. This isn't about the turbo axle but rather about a guy he met at the auction that actually built the car. This fellow, a weird mechanical genius referred to as HW, drives a clapped-out pickup that uses an old experimental air-cooled diesel for power. An air-cooled diesel is nutty enough but with the aid of a huge 300plus gallon tank in the bed the pickup is fueled by---crude oil. Yep the straight stuff right out of the ground that the guy tanks up on at actual oil wells when some go-juice is necessary. Probably stinks to high heaven but the energy content per gallon would be tough to beat. It doesn't get any more alternative, not to mention ultra-agro, than that sports fans.
Well, that's the thing. If I could get 60mpg out of a hotrod, I'd be way more inclined to drive that every day, wouldn't anyone?
concidering this thread started over two and a half years ago is the car built? I do not know anything about elec. and am still learning about EVERYTHING ELSE here,but if I were building a gas saver it prob.be something like a turbo wrx or something could still be tradional looking,save some gas money and have plenty of power when you wanted it.I believe these motors are vw based but you get the piont and I'm sure these have been posted here before.
Holey Horseshit Batman! That blowerized VW's induction must weigh as much as the rest of the engine. (okay maybe not, but it's just about as big)
mazda turbo rotary engine and rear wheel drive plenty of power and economy i built a little dragster with these once sick fast
Mazda rotary are known for their power...not their economy. While they are more frugal than a big V8, you're not going to knock down prius-like MPG with one....
You might to RETHINK YOUR IDEA ...... Been on the drawing board for 3 years http://www.barris.com/gallery_cars/Hybrid/hybrid.html
The Jalopy Journal
