Hi Eeeeeeeeekomodders! I'm an ecomodder, too. I've been a high mileage fanatic for many years. I'm a little tech-oriented because I took some Mechanical Engineering back in the '80s and have made my living as a mechanic, truck driver or equipment operator since the 1970s. It's great to discover this site with so many folks pursuing similar goals. I'm interested in combining the best of complementary technologies into one platform - but mostly in theory because you get into BIG BUCKS on the cutting edge.
Still, there are big gains to be collected with practical modest compromises to effeciency perfection, and you can save a lot of dough if you are a fabricator like me, with welding skills and equipment capable of handling aluminum and stainless steel. I'm pretty green with fiberglass, though. I've got an Invader and a Trimagnum, both fiberglass, stored away for future modification. I'm more interested in plastic sandwich foam, particularly using aerogel. Bit I also lean towards accident survivability so I see the Smart as an ideal experimental platform for now.
Lately I've been designing an electric assist for the Smart 4/2 Pure to be used as a niche PHEV range extender over 200 miles, adding 10-20% increase in torque and shooting for 80-100 mpg at 55-60 mph. Cost of the mod is over eleven grand, though, which is almost what I paid for the car, and these estimates tend to bloat upwards when the tools start flying, so it may not actually happen without a deep-pockets partner.
I have a lot of fun with the stock Smart, averaging 50+ on the open road and got up to 65+ tank with tailwinds on the California, Arizona and Wyoming triangle. The auto-shift manual transmission on the Smart is one of the most amazing gizmos in extreme mpg, yet totally unrecognized by the boneheaded US press. I am very interested in aero mods, but well aware that they only have meaning after the nut behind the wheel gets in synch with his ride. My other plans for the car involve addition of a survivable air dam, full wheel skirts, max turbo psi at 60 mph, solar roof and programmed mild hydrogen injection with predetonation sensors.
I've long been fascinated by hydrogen as a fuel. I attended the first hydrogen conference in Miami in 1976 and I've been hooked ever since. I don't view hydrogen as having much potential unless it's made from renewable sources. If the price drops to the point where that happens, it could be like the PC was to IBM.
Right now, I view fuel cells as battery chargers for electric vehicles. Some of these are being manufactured today and they are actually becoming affordable when compared to battery replacement schedules. But solar and wind production is key and this is moving more slowly in the oil-dominated US. I am keeping a close eye on new developments in fuel cells and home production for integration into my on-order Aptera PHEV, serial 200-something, scheduled for late 2009 or early 2010 delivery. Good thing Google bought in to Aptera, the way things are going with the economy.
My interest in electrics and hybrids requires paying close attention to developments in solar, wind, renewable hydrogen and even politics, because the oil companies and their Republican proxies in congress are actively at war with renewable energy development in the US and devoted to, and very successful at, driving alternative tech offshore. Still, we can buy these products at a premium from Europe, which is more enlightened. I discuss this extensively on
Hydrogen Commerce - LATEST ADVANCES - Why Renewable Hydrogen will replace Oil, Coal & Nuclear