AutoblogGreen interviews Miguel Celades, sales manager for the Air Car
Sister site AutoblogGreen recently had a sitdown with Miguel Celades, the sales manager for Moteur Developpement International (MDI). In case those names aren't immediately recognizable, MDI is the Luxembourg-based company that is developing the Air Car in Southern France. The Air Car, as its name implies, is a car that is powered by compressed air. It was developed by Guy Nègre, a former Formula 1 engineer and designer of the "W" engine configuration made popular at Volkswagen. It was while working with the Renault F1 team that Nègre saw how the race cars were started using compressed air, and that sparked his imagination. He started to design a vehicle that could RUN on compressed air. More than a dozen years later, the firm has teamed with Tata Motors of India to produce the CAT (Compressed Air Technology) and its variants.
Read the whole AB Green interview to learn how automotive noob, Mr. Celades, got involved in the project and what his vision for MDI is throughout the world. He also gives some insight into how the technology works.
[Source: AutoblogGreen]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
why not the LS2/LS7? 6:03PM (6/11/2007)
F1 cars aren't started using compressed air. They use electricity from a car battery on a hand truck.
F1 cars use compressed air for the valve return (closing) instead of springs.
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? 6:29PM (6/11/2007)
is it because springs wouldnt be able to hold up at 19,000 rpm?
why not the LS2/LS7? 12:03AM (6/12/2007)
Springs wouldn't break at any given speed, but they couldn't do the job fast enough to make 19,000rpm.
jamesc 7:16PM (6/11/2007)
Too bad they are not giving any clues about the performance of the prototypes they have.
I'd love to see Honda pick this up and try to kick the Prius' ass with some Fit running on compressed air. I'd buy it.
Seriously though, it's nice to see that some people are getting somewhere with real, working alternative to petrol.
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Reality Check 7:57PM (6/11/2007)
This blows me over, I just hope its not just a bunch of hot air being blowing my way..........
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SYN 8:07PM (6/11/2007)
this isn't a solution, simply a different take on the problem.
where does this compressed air come from? is there some sort of compressed air fairy that fills your tanks every night? didn't think so.
you would need a compressor, run by electricity, created by coal. compressed air would simply be an inefficient, heavy battery. i have seen how long a large 60 gallon air tank can run simple tools, i have a pretty good idea how long it can run a car.
the only real way to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels is with nuclear power and electric cars with efficient batteries. now i know a lot will say "but teh hydrogen", all i have to say to that is: "hydrogen fairies"?
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B-NOIT 9:57PM (6/11/2007)
...And the use of nuclear power wouldn't create an even bigger problem, right?
...Because our planet's main problem is its insufficient supply of fossil fuels and not human waste and emissions, right?
...Because climate change isn't real, right?
Lee Roy Brandon III 11:54PM (6/11/2007)
I agree, this simply replaces the air that would be expanded via combustion inside the cylinders with air already compressed from outside of them. While it is an interesting design, does it really reduce the amount of energy required? Well, at least it doesn't spew water vapor all over as a by-product like hydrogen fuel cells. Water vapor is a worse greenhouse gas than CO2, nevermind the ecological implications of all the extra water sloshing around (I thought we were worried about sea-levels rising as the worst by-product of global warming).
ruggels 1:08AM (6/12/2007)
You forgot the big question... does it still sound like my neighbor attempting to inflate a blow up pool in the back yard like it did a decade ago on beyond 2000?
HotRodzNKustoms 10:17PM (6/11/2007)
It's like a big version of those pump up cars I had as a kid!
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SYN 11:10PM (6/11/2007)
@b-noit: no, no, and yes but not as much is caused by human waste as you suspect.
people need to move, people need light. nuclear power is a relatively low impact alternative. it is simply demonized by those who don't understand and/or fear it.
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Dustin 12:58AM (6/12/2007)
This car is a hybrid: air/foot, when the air tank runs out, get our and push (probably faster anyhow)
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JJ Joseph 2:46AM (6/12/2007)
What a great idea for having fun! If this thing could travel 30 miles on an air charge, it would do the job for me. It would be too much fun. And I'm not even one of those global warming wackos!
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Jared. 8:49AM (6/12/2007)
I think it's a cool idea. From the video i watched on Discovery channel it is a little loud. Sounds like a 2 cylinder air cooled gas engine. It would need a lot of sound absorbing material around the engine. The problem I see is the range. If you can get a hundred miles out of air alone, then it might be useful on a larger scale. As it stands it will just be for small city trips, Someone that drives 5000 miles in a year, mostly 5 or 10 miles at a time would be able to use this. It wouldnt work for someone that drives most of their miles on the express way doing 80 mph.
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mr friggles 1:32PM (6/12/2007)
This is a very positive looking solution to the gas crisis we've been facing. Especially in people living in bigger cities, if this can match top city speed then there's no reason why it shouldn't be here.
Even where I'm from you can switch to green energy sources (wind, hydro, etc) so depending where you're at this could be 100% green. The big thing here is **no gas** which is the major issue right now. So what if it takes a energy boost to get the thing kicking, nobody expects the the first non-gas car to be 100% flawless in every way. baby steps, right?
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