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Remember the 500 HP is more like an electric motor (compared to an IC engine) and the torque would tear most vehicles to pieces. Its more of an example of how compact the power can actually be.
I have been around body shops most of my life and in spite of that have seen very few hydraulic leaks, even when you focus enough energy on a vehicle to twist an F350 frame up like a pretzel
All done with an air compressor which should answer your issue of how big an engine do you need. A pressure washer 5 HP at 3k PSI can charge an accumulator (it would take some time) and the energy concentrated in the accumulator could provide acceleration of sufficient g force to make you black out in a 2k pound vehicle. With a 5 HP pressure washer pump and engine. The real question is how much is your average power requirement and how steep are the grades your vehicle must climb.
All of that is not really relevant if the engine is of a larger size it just runs for a lower percentage of time when the vehicle is in motion. Smaller engine higher percentage. Overall the same amount of fuel consumed as long as the engines are in the same bsfc range.
I was reading today about the Nissan Leaf that made the Pikes Peak hill climb in 14 minutes and some seconds. I wonder how much of the battery capacity it took, probably close to all that was available.
Think of the accumulator as an energy shock absorber with a capacity of 600 horsepower seconds, available instantly. The same energy as you see being absorbed in a 60 MPH into a solid barrier collision that destroys a car completely. You will never be able to put that kind of energy back into a chemical battery in that short a time period, unless you add a very expensive capacitor to your already very expensive battery. Even then the conversion stages and individual losses will stop you from ever coming close to 80% recovery AND reapplication, not even close.
regards
Mech
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