Hi,
Quote:
Originally Posted by brucey
. . . my gas usage has barely gone down any. 33~35 mpg is about the best I can do city. So with that in mind, I'll be removing it from the car and going back to the drawing board.
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What control do you have over the motor power?
The video suggests ON/OFF versus the ability to add fractional power. ON/OFF suggests it is an acceleration aid versus something that could help in a steady state. Was this just a manually controlled motor versus one integrated into the car?
A suggestion, you might keep the configuration, perhaps remove the heavy batteries if the car has normal commuting duties, and look at instrumentation and data recording. With quantitative numbers, you may be able to excel model the energy flow.
It may be that the unit can offset the inertial loss from acceleration. Too bad it has no regenerative capability to try and recover some of the kinetic energy when stopping.
What you've built looks like a home-made, belt assisted hybrid similar to the GM 'micro hybrids.' My studies of such cars from
Fuel Economy as well as lay reports suggests their actual mileage has always been modest.
Quote:
Originally Posted by brucey
. . . I really like the idea of a powered trailer since I already have a 4x8 and I'd have plenty of room for major battery power. All I'd really need is an old axle.
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The assumption is this architecture scales better than the previous GM micro-hybrids and BAS systems. I would be interested in seeing a model that shows this to be the case before beginning a big build.
Another approach is to build an electric car with a range extender motor-generator. Even lead-acid battery, electric cars have about a 20-30 mile range. So adding the range extender, especially a diesel driven generator, might be more successful.
Regardless, I admire your effort and energy. It is too easy to pontificate without 'turning a wrench' or doing the experiment.
GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson