Recent Comments:
Safety concerns cause NHRA to limit races to 1,000 feet {Autoblog}
Jul 3rd 2008 10:24AM Additionally, racers in the NHRA can earn championship points for running record passes. How are they planning to compensate for comparing a 1000' pass to a 1/4 mile record pass? Last year Tony Schumacher won the championship on the last pass of the season by breaking the record, so this is NOT a rare or trivial situation.
Simply an absurd knee-jerk reaction by the NHRA in response to the national media attention of the Scott Kalitta incident. I doubt Scott or any of the current or past racers agree with this decision. They all know the danger involved and they all choose to continue to pursue their dreams despite the potential harm.
Lutz declares that first Volt mule is running 40 miles on battery power {Autoblog}
May 15th 2008 11:12AM Good for Toyota.
The Volt concept looks 100000 times better than a Prius. So even if the concept gets watered down by a factor of 100 in the transition to production form, it'll still be 1000x cooler looking than the Prius. I'll pay extra to GM for an attractive car engineered in America instead of a Toyota, even if the performance is "only" on par with the Prius (which should still be impressive anyway).
In fact, I've actually started a separate bank account to deposit a portion of my wages SPECIFICALLY for the purchase of a Volt when they come out. GM, you have a customer ready for the Volt.
Ford holds Taurus SHO focus group in Chicago... what does it mean??? {Autoblog}
May 7th 2008 1:55PM I think utilizing the Fusion as a base for an SHO version would be wiser than the Taurus. The new Taurus is just an absolutely massive car and it would just make way more sense to use the smaller and lighter Fusion for a performance car.
An AWD/RWD Fusion with direct injected V8 rumble and requisite suspension tweaks and a few subtle body tweaks (a la Audi S4) would be killer.
Carrozzeria Touring unveils Maserati A8 GCS at Villa d'Este {Autoblog}
Apr 28th 2008 10:24AM Really? I think it is stunning.... EXCEPT for the wire wheels. Surely they could've designed a one-piece forged wheel that evoked the wire wheel, but for some real wire wheels to me don't look good in large diameter, with low profile tires.
Still, the wires aren't enough to turn me off of this beauty.
Spy VIDEO: Lexus LF-A sounds as mean as it looks {Autoblog}
Apr 22nd 2008 4:22PM Wow.... is that really a Lexus?!?! I feel kinda weird lusting after a Lexus.
Scuderi split-cycle engine almost ready for sale to automakers {Autoblog}
Apr 19th 2008 4:25PM You're ignoring the massive amount of work required to compress a gas, which is the main focus of this engine and is magnitudes higher than frictional losses of an added cylinder. In general the additional complexity of a split-cycle engine would be tough to justify as a way to simply achieve better combustion efficiency, but with the added benefit of being able to transfer kinetic energy into compressive work, and to store that energy for future conversion to kinetic energy... that is where this split cycle technology is truly impressive.
So every time you slow down with this Scuderi engine, you are increasing the efficiency with which you develop kinetic energy in the future. Think about it this way: when you use your disc brakes now, you are turning your kinetic energy into heat energy which is wasted into the atmosphere. The split cycle technology would "recycle" that kinetic energy into compressing an intake charge so that the engine doesn't have to do that part of the 4-stroke cycle when it is called upon to combust again. Whether by simple air-hybrid locomotion or by using the already compressed gas for combustion, you eliminate the need to compress the intake charge each stroke which is a big gain in efficiency.
Additionally, since it seems that the intake charge is compressed prior to fuel being injected, the compression cylinder ratio could likely be much higher than what we normally see in today's ICE engines since one wouldn't have to worry about pre-detonation.
Sure the entire system is complex, but not more so than any other electric-hybrid currently in use-- probably less complex, actually.
Maybach prices 62 Landaulet for America at $1.35 million {Autoblog}
Apr 7th 2008 11:15AM I think you answered your own question, kinda... this vehicle is targeted towards those rich people who generally aren't rich due to their business acumen but rather thanks to some fortunate circumstances. Whatever the case, Maybach has the right to offer such a product, and God bless them if they can sell a handful.
One thing is for sure, unless you live in Dubai, chances are slim the owners will ever someone else driving - sorry, being driven - in the same car.
Charge! GM gives update on Volt development, describes interior {Autoblog}
Apr 4th 2008 10:29AM The other thing to consider with all this PR is that they want consumers to be aware of their product so that potential buyers don't purchase competing products and then not have the resources to buy a Volt.... ie if someone in the market for a PHEV buys the new Honda hybrid in 2009 because he was not informed that Chevy has a PHEV coming, that is a lost potential customer. Obviously GM is taking a risk in that if the Volt fails to deliver, they'll look like fools, but this is a calculated risk that they've decided is the best route.
And I hate to bring reality down on you people, but $48k really isn't absurd or out of the question anymore. Obviously an MSRP around $30k would be optimal, but rising commodities and energy costs and a weaker USD will drive ALL new car MSRP up. Besides which, a fully optioned Toyota Highlander Hybrid already runs north of $50k and contains no new technology or extraordinary capabilities.
How to keep your land barge and still drive green(ish) {Autoblog}
Apr 1st 2008 5:12PM @ Goober: the ironic part is that I'm actually one of those "science dorks".... a physicist by education and trade.
And montoym pretty much covered my perspective. Sure, humans emit CO2 in their everyday activities. Sure, CO2 is a greenhouse gas. But I think it is EGOTISTICAL to assert that humans are the primary cause for EVERY SINGLE D*MNED WEATHER EVENT IN THIS WORLD. The climatologists and meteorologists told me it was going to rain on Friday and we didn't get a single drop... so why should I believe that their computer models of the Earth's incredibly complex eco-system have any validity with regard to "global climate change"?
Beyond that, the Earth is largely self-regulating. At the most we'll just accelerate the change between peaks and valleys, and being the intelligent organisms that we are, we'll find ways to deal with it... without needing taxes, regulations, and governments to inevitably screw things up (as they already have).
How to keep your land barge and still drive green(ish) {Autoblog}
Mar 31st 2008 7:00PM If anyone thinks 53 lbs is going to make a noticeable difference is kidding themselves. Ambient air temperature will have a larger effect than a half-tank of gas.
Besides, it's also more "green" to buy a used car over a new car as the used car already has sunk "eco"-costs of manufacturing and transportation.
Not that any of it really matters because the "man-made global climate change" movement is a farce.
