NEW! Compressed air cars. Drive 125 miles for $2 - Page 4 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

herring · #46 08-01-2008, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bgkast

I've always heard the government will find a way to tax air...

Seriously, they could just charge tax at the compressor station. It's not like you can just fill this thing up with a bicycle pump, or even a standard air compressor.

No, but you could get a 3,000 PSI air compressor. Ability to evade tax, plus the convenience of filling up at home, would probably make it a worthwhile investment.

#47 08-01-2008, 05:16 PM

Just like anyone can get a field and grow corn or soy.

Matt L · #48 08-01-2008, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herring

No, but you could get a 3,000 PSI air compressor. Ability to evade tax, plus the convenience of filling up at home, would probably make it a worthwhile investment.

I read about this last year, before Tata got involved. The car incorporates an electric motor to turn the engine, using the engine as an air compressor to refill the tanks.

Cervan · #49 08-01-2008, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bgkast

I've always heard the government will find a way to tax air...

Seriously, they could just charge tax at the compressor station. It's not like you can just fill this thing up with a bicycle pump, or even a standard air compressor.

i would find a way...

herring · #50 08-01-2008, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ForcedInduction

Just like anyone can get a field and grow corn or soy.

Except that it takes a lot more work to buy a field, plant crops, harvest crops, grind grain, extract oils, and process oils than it does to buy a compressor, put it in your garage and plug it in.

WD8CDH · #51 08-07-2008, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bustedbenz

I'm not a physics person, so I'm asking curiously instead of stating positively:

Isn't there a "conservation of energy" difficulty with that? Seems to me that in order for the belt-driven compressor to produce a significant amount of air, it would therefore produce an extra load on the drive system of the car?

In other words... wouldn't the car spend as much energy running the compressor as the compressor would replenish? If such a thing were possible, I'd be describing a perpetual motion machine - an air pump refilling the tank at the exact same rate at which the drive system propelling the car used air OUT of the tank... but since we know such a thing isn't possible, wouldn't the efficiency loss make such a system useless?

That is the main problem with an air car, very poor efficiency. At least a battery charge/discharge efficiency is usually over 80% efficiency. Compressing air and expanding air thru an air motor is not nearly as efficient.

The range estimation is substantially untrue. The actual prototype only had a tested range of 7.22KM. They ESTIMATED the range of 125 miles from mostly invalid assumptions.

Scientific analysis of their data showed that it was so flawed that the developers removed the test report from the Air Car site. (but here is an archive of the test: http://web.archive.org/web/20070321053002/http://www.theaircar.com/tests.html )

Unless we can violate several Laws of Physics, the air car is not a very practical sollution to our transportation problems except in a few limited cases.

R Leo · #52 08-07-2008, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ForcedInduction

Ever see the test where they break the valve off and the tank launches through a concrete wall like a rocket? Imagine an air car with 2-10 of those tanks getting in an accident.

Their range had a typo...it's actually 125 miles through the air...in a ballistic arc!