Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard
* Or better yet:fill tires with foam,so they would never deflate, and minimize rolling resistance.
* Use a composite wheel/tire that has low weight, very low rolling resistance (by being strong enough to stay round), and low aerodynamic drag, no worries about inflation -- and re-tune the suspension to work with said wheel/tire. (see item above) This could gain even more energy, since very little would be damped by the tires.
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I don't think we can see the "end" of pneumatic tires yet, for a very important safety reason: dumbasses. Dumbasses will ignore and neglect worn out parts, not making them a priority until they
really make the car impossible to drive at all. Pneumatic tires simply stop holding air at a certain point, which prevents driving on them when they're extremely worn (though people still try to push the limits, i've seen a lot of visible steel belting on cars in parking lots.. ) . Any replacement for pneumatic tires will need some system of
actually preventing use when they become too worn, or we'll all have to share the road with even more dangerous company.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilBlanchard
* An item that has indirect benefits: instead of thick foam and spring seats, they should be mesh or fabric stretched onto frames that provide the right ergonomic shape and provide good support without weighing so much, and taking up a lot of space. This allows a smaller and lighter vehicle because the size of car can be smaller and/or just have more room. Mesh seats would be much cooler in hot weather, and reduce/eliminate the need for A/C.
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I'd love to see this too, I saw it in the concept version of the Honda Element, looked sweet! But it's not going to happen in a production car ever. If the mesh becomes damaged you could be thrown through it in a rear-end collision and be trapped in the seat frame or worse, and if there is anything/anyone in the seat or cargo area behind you it can injure you in a front end collision. I think big puffy warm (even when you don't want warm) seats are here to stay unfortunately
