Quote:
Originally Posted by Peter B
Why would having something like that be better than the alternator that is already on the car? You're still going to have drag on the crankshaft. And you're going to have to do a bunch of fabricating and wiring, and put together a circuit with a voltage regulator. AND assuming something like that could work as well to charge to your battery as the factory-supplied alternator, that type of set-up would have little protection from water, mud, grease etc. collecting on its vital parts.
But any, there is a website that I know of (otherpower.com)
that has a bunch of info about home-made wind turbines (giant alternators) that may have useful info for you.
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i've been watching otherpower for years and its actually one of the only reasons i would even attempt to maybe try building my own alternator. the only problem is it doesnt give may details about the whys of their designs
There are actually a few reasons I think my design would be superior.
1. One of the main reasons that taking the alternator off of the engine gives such a boost is because you are getting rid of the belt and pulley load that is there even when the alternator isn’t charging.
2. an automotive alternator doesn’t have any magnets of its own it has to generate its own magnetic field which might draw 20 or 30 amps just for that, creating additional load.
3. adding batteries to the trunk adds way to much weight and kills range.
Those reasons on top of being able to run an electric water pump (another belt driven accessory off of the engine) seem like it could give a fairly significant boost.