Engineering Explained:Why Tesla's Are Bad at Towing

[ldjessee00]

I think just making the car lighter, more resilient, and more aerodynamic would help more than the small improvements they can make to engines. Is there a new technology that will give a 10% increase in efficiency made to an ICE engine? Was it in a car that was not also a Hybrid? Even in the lab? Lean burning engines have been around for a while now...

Make the body panels out of easily to replace plastic panels, including bumper covers. Make the frame stronger and stiffer (lots of known ways to do this) and also safer. Decrease drag and weight of the vehicle. It would be easier to repair, safer, and more efficient. People, like Amory Lovins from Rocky Mountain Institute, has been talking about this for a while. Then you could decrease the size of the engine if the car is lighter and save even more fuel.

Just a thought.

[redpoint5]

I've been saying plug-in hybrids are going to increasingly bridge the ICE > EV divide, and data seems to suggest as much.

The #2 highest selling "electric" car in the US was the Prius Prime plug-in. Obviously the Model 3 was #1.

Of all the vehicles that are offered in both a plug-in, and 100% EV, the plug-in version has higher sales. The plug-in versions sell anywhere from 2x to 10x more than their battery only counterpart.

The near future is plug-in hybrid, and ICE engines have a part to play in this.

Regarding improving ICE efficiency; EVs represent 2% of vehicle sales, not the 10% given in his example. Probably better to improve 98% of your sales even if it's a tiny improvement than spend those resources on the 2% of sales that also isn't profitable.

[ldjessee00]

If they can roll out technology improvements to ICE engines faster than they have traditionally... Fuel injection was used in aircraft since 1902... but Mercedes started to experiment in the early 50s and made it into a production car in 1955. The 1990 Subaru Justy was the last carburetor auto sold in the US.

I am trying to decide if EVs are like horse vs automobile or radio and TV... or the slower roll out of fuel injection.

Now we are in the midst of the transition period.

Automobiles were experimented with and limited production (as most things were), but when Ford's Model T assembly line got up and going, the transition was much faster.
(TV happened in the early 50s, by the end of 1952, 20 million homes had a TV, which the population was 157 million).

With the Model 3 up to high volume production, will we see a mass adoption like TV and the automobile? Or will it be more like fuel injection and have a longer roll out?

I am hoping for the shorter transition, that more and more 'traditional' auto makers will come out with EV models (beyond just compliance).

But given how long they take to make changes, to roll out technology unless mandated by government (usually fighting with lobbyists the entire way)... or if their competitors do so and they stop being able to sell cars...

So, if they take 10 to 40 years to roll out improvements of ICE engines, then not so much.

[redpoint5]

Well predicting rollout time means predicting technological improvements, which is impossible.

Something miraculous could be discovered tomorrow that would cause a rapid (10 years) EV adoption.

However, if past trends remain the same, we're looking at ~30 years. Past trends aren't even guaranteed. Maybe we've discovered the low lying fruit of chemistry and future advancements will slow, as we see in the computer/processor industry.

[deluxx]

Originally Posted by Xist

Woah, Slowmover was banned? Was it for his comments about Florida?

I hope he isnt banned, I really enjoy reading his messages.

[Xist]

Jason talked about the energy density in a gallon of gas (represented by the gallon of water) and said that he wanted to use La Croix to show how much space would be needed for the same volume of energy using the best battery technology that 2018 had to offer. "Not because I'm sponsored, this isn't sponsored, I'm just basic."

He says that you would need the equivalent of 139 cans of La Croix (13.03125 gallons worth). "This is more than an elaborate plan to make my groceries tax deductible."

Sure, it was informative, but I enjoyed those lines.

[freebeard]

How to Be Unpersuasive - Scott Adams' Blog
https://www.scottadamssays.com/2016/...e-unpersuasive
How to Be Unpersuasive. Posted December 21, 2016. I've been teaching you how to be persuasive for the past year. But I should also tell you what doesn't work for changing people's minds.. Analogies: Analogies are good tools for explaining a concept to someone for the first time. But because analogies are imperfect they are the worst way to persuade.

Any comparison is obfuscated by the [expensive brand name] repackaging. Thirteen gallon jugs would be more appropriate. ....and cheaper.

edit: Still no word on whether slowmover's ban is temporary?

[redpoint5]

My first PM on this forum was from SM. He wrote

"Hope you'll accept my apology for the way I wrote that response to your post. I should not have done it in the manner I did, as I lost sight of what is important about this place."

[aerohead]

I added some 'test' data for a streamlined Model-X/Bowlus Road Chief,at the bottom of original thread on page-1.

[freebeard]

................... Tesla Model-X/Bowlus Road Chief NASA/MIT 'testing'.............
I modified the 1934,Bowlus-Teller Road Chief, with the 1980 NASA roof deflector,gap-filler,and added the 1987 GM Sunraycer/1990's Goro Tamai, MIT,solar racer's full wheel fairings.

For reals? CAD simulation? Thought experiment?

*I doubt that you could flip one on it's side in a crosswind.The whole rig would hug close to the ground,as there's no need of ground clearance on the open road.
I'll post more as I complete it.

Needs NASCAR roof fences?

I'm looking forward to this.