Making EVs BETTER than traditional cars

[Christ]

I like that wireless power thing, but people tend to get a little pissy about being bombarded with microwaves from space...

(Like it's not already happening... tinfoil beanie, anyone?)

[dcb]

Originally Posted by MPaulHolmes

Hey, since it's electrical energy, maybe the roads could transmit energy that to the car while you drive.

tricky to do without rails to keep things lined up, and with rails I think they call it a rail gun

[chuckm]

This could be done with non-electric cars as well, but I think this would be VERY cool and good for saving power or gas:
Basically, equip cars with a GPS with an up-link to a city traffic grid. You put in your destination and the GPS uploads your route to the traffic computers, which then communicates back to you the optimum route and speed. In turn, it times the lights on your path. Equip enough cars with the system (and compliant drivers!) and you can reach a critical mass, essentially forcing most people to drive more efficiently.

[Ryland]

I'm always a bit baffled when people comment about how listening to the radio in your EV will reduce your range... maybe by 200 feet on a charge! but really, with a gas car you have to crank the radio up so you can hear it over the roar and vibration of the engine, in an EV you can hear the sound of the tires on the pavement!
I have a spare charge plug on the EV, I was thinking of using it for a heater, but I also think at times about the inverter idea, have a power in and a power out plug on the car.
A friend of mine has the welder for the elec-track tractor, along with the hand held electric rototiller.
I like the idea of Heated seats to heat your body instead of the car, much faster then waiting for a gas engine to warm up and more direct, really any battery powered heat like that should be direct, self warming steering wheel? you can already get 15 watt heating pads for motorcycle grips.
MiMod EV is a Battery Monitoring System for EV has an interesting product as well, high priced compared to my PakTrakr gauge (gives you full range of battery monitoring options), but the MiMod can give you your GPS, digital radio and a hand full of other options, all in a battery monitoring system.

[NiHaoMike]

Originally Posted by vpoppv

I've thought about this a lot in the past as well, and one thing I think that an EV has an advantage over gas cars is the stored electrical energy. One hobby I used to have was car audio. There are a few disadvantages to building the ultimate car stereo based on the fact that it has to run on 12 volts.

You could, in theory, disconnect the motor from the inverter, then connect some subwoofers. Not sure how 3 phase would work with audio, however...

Hey, since it's electrical energy, maybe the roads could transmit energy that to the car while you drive. Try that with gas...
For example, at MIT again (dang, they do a lot) they lit a 60w light bulb from a power source that was 7 feet away.

If you have superconductors, you could just use existing radio stations for power. No additional infrastructure needed.
Nikola Tesla Page, Tesla's power receiver
So just make a superconductor practical for that application and then EVs will have essentially unlimited range...

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by Ryland

I'm always a bit baffled when people comment about how listening to the radio in your EV will reduce your range... maybe by 200 feet on a charge!

You must have missed the point of my post entirely, unless using 64,000 watts of power somehow won't affect range. I'm no EE, that's for sure, but I think it might have more than a 200 foot impact on range. Here's closer to what I mean (warning, the language used is offensive!):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pthHmI5e7eU

Oftentimes, such vehicles are ONLY used for SPL competitions, and it seems that an EV would be better suited for these vehicles, given the energy storage required....

[MPaulHolmes]

I think you would die if you were inside the car while those things were on. 64kW of sound energy sounds dangerous. hahahaha. That was awesome. Metal shouldn't distort like that. I wonder what it does to the inside of your brain?

[Ryland]

exactly, 64kw sound system is only the kind of system that one out of every 10,000 or more people would even think about installing, not something that I could see a production car being sold with, my point was if you read comments about vehicles like the Nissan Leaf there are people who are saying "you might not make it home if you turn on the radio, a/c, heat, or anything else" if you have a 64kw sound system in your car then that might be true! but there is no reason why your electric car can't have heated seats, a nice stereo, 120v ac outlets inside and out.

[Christ]

Originally Posted by MPaulHolmes

I think you would die if you were inside the car while those things were on. 64kW of sound energy sounds dangerous. hahahaha. That was awesome. Metal shouldn't distort like that. I wonder what it does to the inside of your brain?

About 5 seconds in, mush.

About 5 minutes, gray pudding.

180dB for any real length of time, I've been told, will actually bruise your intestines from the vibration. It can cause serious health issues above and beyond that, as well.

[RobertSmalls]

The kid with the '93 Chrysler woody and the second place trophy had 134 dB, which is enough to induce pain in some people, but probably not enough to vibrate your tissue apart.

There was also a gentleman running 19V through his car's 12V grid.

Both of these folks need a hybrid or EV. A Ford Escape can deliver 70kW at 300V. Just build an amplifier that runs directly off the traction battery, like the Prius' air conditioning does, and you're positioned to spend more of your budget on speakers and none on batteries and alternators, allowing you to blow the doors off of those 19V poseurs and steal their women.