Re: Fuel Efficient Cars (was Oil Economics)

From: spike66 (spike66@attbi.com)
Date: Thu Feb 06 2003 - 18:17:53 MST

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    Alfio Puglisi wrote:
    > On Wed, 5 Feb 2003, spike66 wrote:
    >>
    >>The Diesel is excellent for *performance as a function
    >>of fuel use*.
    >
    > Every teenager here dreams about the Seat Leon (that's a VW sub-brand).
    > It's powered by a 1.9L turbocharged Diesel engine with 150 hp, and still
    > manages 53 MPG at freeway speeds, and 30-35 in urban streets.
    >
    > Ciao,
    > Alfio

    The turboDiesel has a promising future, but it has
    never been a very practical roadcar option because
    it has a funny shaped torque/RPM curve. Diesels are
    extremely peaky engines. A gasoline motor has a lot
    flatter and broader torque curve. We say a Diesel
    has 150 hp, but only when spinning at exactly 6820 RPM,
    which is faster than one ordinarily spins an engine
    on the street. The Diesel rabbits actually had fairly
    good peak horsepower, but they felt gutless when off
    the cam, which is approximately always.

    If we had about a 700cc 25 kw (~35hp) turboDiesel
    in a true series hybrid, we would have a very practical
    economy car, acceleration almost so-so, capable of
    120 kph indefinitely and would get twice the mileage
    of current subcompacts.

    In 30 years, I expect racer-boy fun cars will burn
    alcohol in a traditional internal-combustion-only
    arrangement, with the other 80% of the proletariat
    driving series hybrids with a boosted Diesel IC. spike



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