Wind turbine on the front of a car.

[ConnClark]

Under the hood might show some promise. To some degree it will act like a like a grill block.

If you want to seriously look at this its being done you are looking at the wrong end of the vehicle.

C-pillar vortices are the scourge of car aero dynamics. Not only could you recover energy from them but in doing so you could reduce drag as well. Nasa did a study on generating power from wing tip vortices and showed they could also reduce drag.

Also of note I remember reading of a study done on adding a horizontal rotating drum like structure behind a car to generate power and improve aerodynamics.

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by aerohead

Combined,for every 746-Watts of power extracted,you'd have to overcome 964-Watts of drag for the turbine alone...

Not so - see the link I posted. Under the right conditions, you can extract more energy from the wind that it takes to propel the vehicle. Of course that's actual wind, not relative, so it doesn't work in calm conditions. Otherwise, how's it logically different than powering a car hooked to a stationary wind turbine?

[secaturbo]

Put it in the exhaust, its called a turbo.
New F1 cars use their turbos not just for power but they also generate electric power that is stored for later use.
These F1 cars are amazing hyper-hybirds.

[freebeard]

Originally Posted by Cd

Around 2000, Popular Science / Mechanics had a small write up on an electric van with a fan on the roof. ( It was mounted horizontally. )
The blades were designed in such a way that they would fold flat as they turned, thereby reducing drag.
They claimed that even in a parking garage, the wind would turn the blades.

Vertical axis FTW.


Flow – Wind Solar Energy System | Tuvie

Variable pitch blades made from compound curved photo-voltaic panels. If this isn't happening, it should.

[markweatherill]

A wind turbine on its own is a silly idea, certainly.

But if you connected it via a propshaft to a propellor at the rear of the vehicle, then I think you'd be on to something.
You could put a gearbox in between and drive the rear propellor at a suitable speed for conditions. You could put it in reverse and get a braking effect!

[Xist]

One time I was researching Prius battery replacement and I found some comment that regenerative braking was only the beginning, they needed solar panels, wind turbines, and some other bit of perpetual motion. As I recall, Toyota said "Solar panels are not cost-effective on a car."

"Shut up and take my money!"

"Toyota is pleased to announce rooftop solar panels!"

Someone told me that solar cars were as feasible as wind-powered ones, although didn't the A Team make one of those?

[oldtamiyaphile]

As always, it seems the pick up truck is always the best starting point t for wholesale improvements.

One idea would be a pop up turbine that charges the battery overnight (ie when solar won't work), and folds flat in transit.

Another idea is to harness the swirling air motion behind the trucks cab- the separation bubble- to power a water wheel like device. Might even improve drag.

[Ryland]

Sky Stream used to sell a 30 tall tower, they said "it spins" but it wasn't high enough to produce a usable amount of energy.
A tilt up tower on the vehicle is going to be heavy and near useless as most vehicles are not heavy enough to keep a useful sized tower from tipping over.

[elhigh]

There are several models of motor glider whose engines for takeoff tuck away very neatly into the fuselage. You could potentially hide away the turbine very neatly.

One problem with the idea is liability. It only takes one fool with incautious fingers to hit you with a lawsuit for getting their hands all blenderized in the parking lot.

[kach22i]

Originally Posted by freebeard

Variable pitch blades made from compound curved photo-voltaic panels. If this isn't happening, it should.

I looked up the inventors name and got additional images.

Flow intends to flood your dens with alternative energies | Designbuzz : Design ideas and concepts

About the Designer:
Wang Yigang has won honors for his projects at National Exhibition of Arts (group design) and the “DAAD-Prize”. His works have also been selected in “Design Yearbook of China”.

This is not the low profile top of a van style generator I first thought it to be, in fact the workhorse of the design is what's underneath once projected up into an air-stream.