Electric Supercharger?! (adaptable for fuel economy?)

[Xist]

I guess the grenade-deflecting SUV would need a shield, too, right?

[t vago]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

You'd always want an SUV or pickup behind you otherwise much of the blast energy will be wasted to the rear and not propel you forward as much as you want.

Heck, Frank, no means of propulsion is 100% efficient. You're always going to have losses.

[Frank Lee]

Originally Posted by Xist

I guess the grenade-deflecting SUV would need a shield, too, right?

No. Blow one away and guaranteed within seconds another will take it's place 14" behind you.

[Frank Lee]

Originally Posted by t vago

Heck, Frank, no means of propulsion is 100% efficient. You're always going to have losses.

This is true, but here at EcoModder we strive to minimize those losses.

[Xist]

Originally Posted by t vago

Heck, Frank, no means of propulsion is 100% efficient. You're always going to have losses.

Oh fine. I will just give up now.

Anyone want a grenade? I pulled the pin and the handle, but they are still good for a little while.

[niky]

Mythbusters tried blast-shockwave propulsion with a dummy strapped to a kite earlier in the season. Doesn't work without something to bounce the blast off of. Then again, the dummy was not sitting on the explosive.

Get close enough to make it work, though, and the shockwave will probably kill the driver.

On-topic, just talked to a guy who actually bought one of those turds on a whim. He said it actually did help his carbureted motor. Smoothed out the idle and improved off-idle response. Did absolutely bupkiss after. Exactly what you'd expect from 1 psi or so of boost.

[t vago]

Originally Posted by niky

Get close enough to make it work, though, and the shockwave will probably kill the driver.

Well... yah. That's why a 2 inch thick blast shield is needed, along with the shock absorbing mechanism.

Here's another vehicle (okay, it's fictional) that was designed to use shock wave propulsion. Only, instead of hand grenades, it used nuclear bombs.

[Xist]

t vago, you are my hero just for referencing Niven! That sounds like a book that I read a long time ago. It was not a battleship, though, this was the first trip to the moon.

They did a better plan than NASA. Oh well. It was fiction.

[t vago]

Yah, I generally like most of Niven's work. ("Yah" comes from there, too, BTW). Strangely enough, though, I only really got into his Known Space work. Well, apart from Footfall, that is. And Fallen Angels. Okay, those two were in collaboration with Pournelle.

[Xist]

It is okay to go off-topic in this forum, right?

Pournelle is another good one.