quest for, 100 mpg Options

[Divergent Realit...]

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/03/09/cars.10...psci/index.html

Steve Fambro may have tinkered his way into the solution. His Aptera, which he designed in his garage in Carlsbad, California, is a three-wheeled, bullet-shaped two-seater that minimizes drag and weighs only 850 pounds (the Toyota Prius weighs 2,890 pounds). He cut bulk by using a carbon composite frame, a race-inspired solution that should help with crash absorption.

mighty effin light compared to the toyota tic tac

[impala454]

right but how's the thing geared? what's its 0-60? not that i'm saying acceleration is important, but if all the guy did was build a tricycle that's got a motorcycle engine and geared low, it doesnt seem that revolutionary. i give the guy props though, because he'll essentially be selling motorcycles to treehuggers for $20,000. in that the man's a genius.

now this (from the same pop sci article) is innovative to me:

One radical solution under development at the Environmental Protection Agency’s Advanced Technology Division is to get rid of the heavy batteries altogether. The EPA has built a modified hybrid that uses a hydraulic system, not a battery, to store braking energy. When you press the brakes, the wheels drive a pump that compresses nitrogen gas, which is inexpensive and inert. When you accelerate again, that compressed gas runs the pump in reverse to help power the vehicle

The hydraulic-hybrid system, scheduled to begin testing in two UPS trucks this month, with another to follow next year, promises to return at least 70 percent of the braking energy back to the wheels, which would lead to a 60 to 70 percent jump in fuel economy and a 40 percent reduction in emissions.