Installing charge system cutout switch?

[tinkerbill]

So this post is for all but particularly "RedYaris". Have you (or anyone else) tried installing a switch to manually stop alternator from charging. I would think that would add a little mpg. A person would have to test to see how long their battery would hold up. I know the newer motorcycles also run the lights all the time. That might have to be interrupted as well or battery would run down much sooner. Here I don't know if it is mandatory that the lights be on or not. Probably per state. If a person can get a pretty good handle on how far they can go without charging, it should not be a problem. If it is a problem, perhaps a bigger battery or supplemental battery could be installed. This, in affect, is making your rig somewhat of a hybrid. You could carry a small charger on board to plug in at work as well as home. This could also be done with cars! Also, Redyaris, how come your car weighs 2300#? I would have thought it would be closer to 2000# but what do I know. My 98 Ford Escort weighs 2600 which I thought was kind of high as well.
tinkerbill

[alvaro84]

It's mandatory to have your lights on in Hungary, but someone told me it's not in the UK. I don't know about the US, though. But I don't recommend to turn it off. When it went out and I was on the road (a busy 2x1 main road at that) for like an hour before realizing and replacing it, several drivers started overtaking facing me not noticing that I'm in that lane - so I'd say it can get really dangerous.

Anyway, I don't know how long could the battery hold. I often FAS Teresa on steeper downhills and before stopping (at red lights, for example) and it has never run out of juice, but the time when the engine is on is usually much longer than the FASed time (I'm much more on open road than in cities).

In theory, just the normal lights and electric components (fuel pump, for example) could drain the battery in definitely less than two hours, ignition draws power too (don't know how much though). (We have a 12Ah battery in Teresa and a 7Ah one in Ciliegia). All in all, I don't think they could run for more than an hour without charging (probably less).

[redyaris]

tinkerbill; I have not made any effort to reduce fuel consumption by any other means than aerodynamics, moderate hypermiling, and gearing, although others have had success doing this I have no interest in doing such things until I reach the end of the road with aerodynamics. In high school, when I was kicked out of class I would go to the library and read anything I could find on aerodynamic, unlike the others who would go to the pool hall. When you look at the fuel savings available from no alternator and compare that with what is available from aerodynamics it is clear that aerodynamics has more to offer. My car weighs 2300lbs or more, because I carry a tool box a sleeping bag and other cold weather servival stuff and have made no effort to remove weight although I have thought about it. I live in a very small town/village, and the majority of my driving is on highways without stop and go driving. I have been told that removing the back seat would save 100lbs and that a carbon fiber rear hatch would save another 15lbs and the carbon fiber hood would save 5lbs. all in all I think your estimate of under 2000lbs is right on the money, if weight loss was somethig I wanted to pursue. The only electrical thing that interests me at this time is solar power, if I could find some conveniant way to add solar power to any of my vehicles I would do it. I have tried charging my battery with a 20 watt panel but have ended up with dead batteries because at night the battery drains back through the solar panel, the solution is to use diods or some other form of disconect when the sun is off. When I do think about solar power I imagen it on a minivan that has been elongated with a boat tail covered with solar panels on the top and maybe on the sides, over the full length. I suspect that good aerodynamics and solar power will work well together, because aerodynamic vehicles tend to be longer and thus have more surface area for solar panels. an other hairbrained Idea is to use the heat from solar radiation to warm the air going into the wake, thus raising the pressure in the wake and reducing drag. Or use solar powered fans to inject air into the wake or maybe do both...