I should have known that if anybody could make the Stirling engine work, it would be inventor extraordinair Dean Kamen. Yes, the inventor of the Segway, personal medical pumps, and home dialysis systems has built a practical Stirling-electric hybrid. Right in my home town. The engine provides heat and electricity to run the car's systems independent of the propulsion battery, then it recharges the battery as needed.
Brillaint!
Of course, Dean isn't content with this small application and sees the Stirling as a means of producing electricity in far-flung parts of the globe currently without electricity.
http://www.unionleader.com/article.a...2-913c8568fb36
