If You Were Going To Build A 200mpg Car..

[korax123]

My Ninja 250cc does about 70-80mpg with my 55mph cruise to and from work. I think with a lot better aero dynamics the Ninja 250 would easily get 150mpg. And the stock tires on a Ninja 20 last about 6000 miles there a pretty hard compound for a bike.

[Philip1]

200mpg hmmmm I think a metro could see that if coaxed properly.
here's how I think it can be done:
raise the compression to 10-10.5:1
full belly pan
bullet shaped nose
Extreme chop top
boat tail
LRR tires
extreme diet (both car and driver)
if the drag can be reduced to say .28 or less instead of the .32 and the engine made more efficient I can see 200 as possible.

[skewbe]

do I hear 600?

[GasSavers_axle]

Just a note I was in a otc comp. class and the teacher said if we invested as much money in mpg as we did in the comp. controlling air pollution we would all be getting 200 mpg and going as fast as we want an wouldent that cut down on air pollution ? allso cuts down on OIL useage wouldent want that now would we 200 mpg sollar power wind user battery user thats a million dollar ? Big oil companys dont want anyone to come up with but who knows they said man couldnt ever fly or go into space

[samandw]

I'd build a frame and running gear/suspension based on the calleja trike:
http://www.moebius.es/ccalleja/index2.htm

With a fairing that looked something like this:
http://www.adventuresofgreg.com/24/index.html

I'd use a small 3.5 hp diesel engine like this:
http://www.enginesdiesel.com/diesele...wc_3.5to16.htm
running a polychain drive to a high-speed generator.

Probably turbocharge the diesel with one of these:
http://www.btinternet.com/~goosegog/turbodax.htm

Use a small watercooled battery pack powering a watercooled high-RPM planetary geared electric motor (30kw) like that used in the Nissan Hypermini EV.
http://www.evworld.com/archives/test...hypermini.html

With the turbo, the diesel should be able put out 7 hp continous, just enough to maintain 60 mph up a 7% grade including estimated losses.
(based on a 550lb weight with 1 person)

Acceleration should be phenomonal, think 1/4 mile in the high 13's, 0-60 in around 4seconds.

Fuel economy could be estimated as follows:
Turbocharged diesel BSFC: .38
Hp required at 60 mph: 1.5
Total efficiency: .4 (counting for significant loss of motor eff @ part-load)
Required engine hp: 3.75
Fuel Consumption: 1.43 lbs/hr = .204 gal/hr
Fuel Economy: 294 mpg.

Edit: Oh, to provide 30kW of power for 100 seconds would require an aprox 10kg altairnano battery pack

Edit 2: After seeing this: http://texasiof.ces.utexas.edu/texas.../rschiferl.pdf
I think my total efficiency of .40 might be very low.

[8307c4]

I would suggest checking with the Insurance companies first, find out who is going to provide liability for the vehicle and how much it's going to cost, then find out what regulations the vehicle needs to meet before tags can be put on it.

There's always the catalysation / pollution and safety laws, there's no way that little briggs and stratton competition cigar would ever hit a real US highway, the safety regulations alone would kill it.

Not trying to burst any bubbles, but the legalities need to be at least meetable before one starts building or we'll end up with several Off-road vehicles.

[samandw]

Depends on the number of wheels really. A three-wheeler is classified as a motorcycle, thus no crash safety regulations, and I believe that domestic motorcycles do not have to pass emissions (aka Harley), but I could be wrong on that. . .

[GasSavers_Ryland]

In wisconsin at least, if it has pedals, and at least two wheels that are 16" or larger then it is a bicycle (no limit on the number, as long as you have atleast 2) if you put a motor or engine on it it is still a bicycle, but you are not alowed to travle over 30mph while being powered by the motor or engine, our city asks that you regestar your bicycle for $3 a year, no insurance needed, if it has a motor you must be 15 years old with a learners permit, or be 16 with a regular license or a motorcycle license.

If you start out with a motorcycle that is over 20 years old, and modify it so it is no longer stock then you are suposed to get hobiest plates, with those you can make modifications to it as long as you keep it weighing less then 1,500 pounds, and has 2-3 wheels, there are of course a few other details, but those are the big ones.

[baddog671]

Originally Posted by philip1

200mpg hmmmm I think a metro could see that if coaxed properly.
here's how I think it can be done:
raise the compression to 10-10.5:1
full belly pan
bullet shaped nose
Extreme chop top
boat tail
LRR tires
extreme diet (both car and driver)
if the drag can be reduced to say .28 or less instead of the .32 and the engine made more efficient I can see 200 as possible.

Actually, I think getting a Metro to 200mpg wouldnt be hard at all, if you had the money and technology at hand. My best trip so far was 298miles on 3.98 gallons, that is apprx. 78.01mpg and I consider my car practically stock. I attribute 95% of my results to technique, since the only "modding" thats been done is a decent diet to the car and someone tore my pass. mirror off.

I'd love to see a 1L, 6speed, hybrid/diesel conversion, lowerd 3", extreme aerodynamics redesign, aluminum everything....

[GasSavers_Loopie]

What a great thread! Very interesting indeed.

So has anyone ever grafted one of those smaller Diesels or a motorcycle engine to a currently road legal car like a Metro for example?...like connect the crankshaft to the cars manual tranny?

I really like the idea of turbo charging a smaller motor btw.