What crazy car project would you like to do?

[P-hack]

for braking purposes, imagine the only energy you could use to wind the spring was the weight of the toy car and its forward speed. Without all the springs, you could give it a little flick to get it up to speed, but instead you have to push down on it with a heavy hand and rub it back and fourth to wind it up. Compared to the flick that represents the end state of releasing all the spring energy, the wind-up is horribly inefficient.

[user removed]

My "crazy project" began without me even knowing it 44 years ago when I read about an Opel station wagon getting 125 MPG while averaging 26 MPH using P&G (engine off).

The only modifications to an otherwise stock car were radial tires and a throttle limiter and disabled secondaries (vacuum operated).

Pulse to 45 in 3rd gear, shut off the engine, rinse and repeat, and you have 125 MPG. The year is 1970 and gas is 32 cents a gallon.

Fast forward to 1999. I'm playing an online game called Red Baron 3D. A bunch of gamers meet at Old Rheinbeck Aerodrome in New York. Looking at a rotary aircraft engine from WW1 a spark of inspiration comes to me. Using the rotary engine as a power source, knowing the crankshaft is fixed, if you could adjust the displacement by changing the position of the connecting rod journal, while the engine is running, you could make the stroke nothing and the engine would become a fairly large flywheel, capable of storing energy and reapplying it for future acceleration events.

I finally had a solution to the 1970 question of, How can you operate the car in normal traffic conditions while obtaining the mileage of that Opel wagon at 125 MPG, or at least very close to it?

I'll post further shortly.

regards
Mech

[user removed]

It's 2004, a decade ago. My original configuration was based on an IC engine that had the capability to destroke itself, while running, and transform itself into a fairly massive (250 pounds) flywheel that could absorb braking energy and reapply it for acceleration after a forced stop. It became a capacitive storage system that allowed a 60-0 stop to increase the RPM of the engine-flywheel by 1600 RPM. The original configuration utilized a CVT, similar to the Nissan Murano for propulsion and regeneration.

I filed my first provisional patent application in 2004. In my mind I thought that the idea would soon become a reality. I was wrong.

The patent office screwed up just about everything you can imagine, including notifying me of my patent being "abandoned" because no drawings were submitted with the application.

The only problem with their position was my patent attorney had submitted the application AND THE DRAWINGS, in person, AND HE HAD A RECIEPT FOR THE DRAWINGS.

The next communication I recieved was from the legal department of the patent office. All I needed was another taxpayer funded gov't institution to handle my concept in the most incompetent way imaginable and I have to fight them to get them to do their job, which cost $1000s of dollars to get it back on track.

In the meantime I am going to Detroit to try to sell my concept, contacting my US Senator fro Virginia at the time to assist me in getting in touch with the "right" people at the Department of Energy to try to get this thing going. I soon realized that any new "from scratch" engine was a billion dollar commitment in the eyes of any manufacturer and my odds of success were minimal at best, or they would just wait me out to avoid paying me a dime for my considerable time and monies spent.

In the meantime I had built a model of the mechanism. I carried it around with me and after a while it came on me to just make it a drive system instead of an engine. The basic simplicity of the drive, compared to conventional drivetrains is a very compelling argument for a vehicle that simply does a better job with a lot fewer parts. Win, win, in the classic sense, cheaper to build and a whole lot more efficient.

When the concept was published in the journal of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and Virgina Tech decided to make it a senior engineering student project. My hopes rose again. Even though I got a "thumbs up" from Tech, independent confirmation of the validity of the concept, from a respected institution without any incentive to falsely confirm my belief that this was something special.

Today I'm working on the vehicle while the drive is tempoorarily on hold. The patent will expire in another 13 years and then anyone can build it. In fact anyone anywhere but the United States can build it already.

More a little later, don't want to time out and loose anything.

regards
Mech

[Superfuelgero]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Fast forward to 1999. I'm playing an online game called Red Baron 3D. A bunch of gamers meet at Old Rheinbeck Aerodrome in New York. Looking at a rotary aircraft engine from WW1 a spark of inspiration comes to me. Using the rotary engine as a power source, knowing the crankshaft is fixed, if you could adjust the displacement by changing the position of the connecting rod journal, while the engine is running, you could make the stroke nothing and the engine would become a fairly large flywheel, capable of storing energy and reapplying it for future acceleration events.

Or you let the crankshaft float around a secondary axis like a variable hydraulic pump

(better non-hydraulic picture)

And let the expansion stroke be a multiple of the intake and compression to reduce pumping loses (Gnome style). This is much simpler and less friction than the honda etc designs.

[larrybuck]

I saw that Opel wagon in person in Portland, Or. about 3 years ago. Very cool!

My (one of!!!) wild hair ideas comes from my love of 55 Chevies. I've owned 3.

But sort of expensive, and too big...not very aero.

Take a 71-72 Honda sedan, keep just enough material for the vin plate, keep that
wheelbase using an aluminum frame, building a mini 55 with a mid engine '83 Honda
Silverwing 673cc V twin which almost sounds like a little V8 at idle. Build a 'glas body,
keeping the weight down to 800#?... not too aero, but light weight enough to still get great mpg. A tribute to a great car, start of the infamous small block Chev., the time neighborhood also of when I was born.

I picture it in a medium to dark blue with about 14 inch Cragar SS's!!!!!!!

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by larrybuck

Take a 71-72 Honda sedan, keep just enough material for the vin plate, keep that
wheelbase using an aluminum frame, building a mini 55 with a mid engine '83 Honda
Silverwing 673cc V twin which almost sounds like a little V8 at idle. Build a 'glas body,
keeping the weight down to 800#?... not too aero, but light weight enough to still get great mpg. A tribute to a great car, start of the infamous small block Chev., the time neighborhood also of when I was born.

I picture it in a medium to dark blue with about 14 inch Cragar SS's!!!!!!!

That would be a nice project. I also like the "Tri-Five" Chevy, but if I would do a replica I'd probably do the Nomad.

[larrybuck]

of those 3 years which is your Nomad favorite? In order of my opinion:
#1 '57
#2 '56
#3 '55

[pgfpro]

My crAzY car desire is the one I own now, but at my phase four and final modification.

Phase one, standalone tuning. (done)
Phase two, lean burn engine mods. (done)
Phase three, compound turbo system. (Almost done)
Phase four, Hybrid with rear axles driving by electric motor. (hopefully finish in 2015)

Nothing to powerful just a home built, non-freeway setup. Enough to get me to work and back (10 mile trip) on electric power only.

[freebeard]

of those 3 years which is your Nomad favorite? In order of my opinion:
#1 '57
#2 '56
#3 '55

The 1954 Nomad show car. The tri-year "Chevies" could be 8/10ths scale, i.e., 120" wheelbase becomes 96".

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

I have been lurking about fitting a random small agricultural Diesel engine with no more than 3 cylinders into a Brazilian Volkswagen Gol (that one which was available in Mexico and Russia rebadged as Pointer) to run on vegetable oils.

Originally Posted by freebeard

The 1954 Nomad show car.

I assume you're talking about that Corvette-based Nomad. That would be perfect...