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Old 05-01-2010, 11:52 AM   #25 (permalink)
ShadeTreeMech
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Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Arkansas
Posts: 870

The Van - '97 Mercury Villager gs
90 day: 19.8 mpg (US)

Lyle the Kindly Viking - '99 Volvo V70
90 day: 25.82 mpg (US)
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Why don't people put solar panels on the roofs of their cars to capture free elcetric? That would seem to be a great thing in an electric or hybrid car, yet no one hardly does it. The only thing i can think of is the low amount of power available from solar panels.

Making a car able to survive a crash can be a bit of a catch 22. If the car is lighter, it can move with the crash or bounce out of the way instead of crushing itself, as a heavier car has to do. So it is a bit of a dilemma until carbon fiber gets cheaper.

As far as that goes, what's so wrong with using ABS for body panels? Saturn did it and the cars looked great; the panels apparently were easy to replace. GM used plastic a bit for body panels on their vans for a slight weight savings. But why did people stop using it and go for steel?
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jamesqf View Post
I think you missed the point I was trying to make, which is that it's not rational to do either speed or fuel economy mods for economic reasons. You do it as a form of recreation, for the fun and for the challenge.
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