Quote:
Originally Posted by Zerohour
One of those options requires a complete engine replacement, turbo installation, and complete fuel management and ecu alterations, and when tuned for economy will still require more costly premium grade fuel and will only result in a power up which most likely will yield identical FE but faster drive times. One of those options requires the relocation of parts already provide with the vehicle and utilizes an unused engine by-product. Tell me which one costs less, frees up rotational mass, and could maybe eek a tiny bit of FE back out of an engine? :-)
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It'd be interesting to see an alternator driven by exhaust gases. Assuming the mechanism is in place and operational, how would you account for increased loading on the alternator? For instance, how would you account for turning on the exterior lighting when driving at night? That is a load of several amps, and represents a fairly substantial load transient when the lights are turned on.
Another thought - have you considered installing an electrohydraulic power steering pump? Preferably, one that is able to sense steering demand and turn on as required? That might relate to the thought about about load transients, but it would also be another parasitic load removed from your engine.
And another thought - When you remove this parasitic load from the engine, you realize that for a given throttle setting, more engine power will be available to push the car forward than if the parasitic load was there. Assuming that your turbine captures the work available in the exhaust to drive this otherwise parasitic load, and assuming a small amount of backpressure that effectively loads your engine to a fraction of what the parasitic load did before, it is likely that your throttle plate will be shut more than it was previously, in order to maintain the same cruising speed as before. This will also have the effect of raising your engine vacuum higher than before. Won't that increased throttle plate closure and higher vacuum hurt your fuel economy?