enough with the air car already, lets talk electric vehicle
enough with the air car already, lets talk electric vehicle
Hi everyone. I'm now convinced that the air powered car is a wait and see, maybe some new technology will make it happen. I just cant figure why electric cars haven't made a comeback. I drive about 30 miles or less a day and my truck just sits in the sun all day. I've seen electric vehicles such as the ford ranger EV on Ebay, but the newest one is a 1995 model! Sure their are conversion kits and roll your own EV's, but why hasn't a manufacturer stepped up to the plate and produced a properly engineered vehicle that the average joe could go down to the dealer and buy. (and I don't want any weird looking three wheeler or modified golf cart) If I could, I'd put solar panels on my office roof and plug in my vehicle all day at work. And then the mid east terrorists could eat and drink their oil for all I'd care! I'd like to hear any real reasons why this can't be and hasn't been done!
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positronicle
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Chris Smith
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With better storage devices popping up every day, and even with greed and cost included, they are by far the best way to go.
Super caps are in the works making storage quite cheap compared to some of the exotic materials, but road gluttony is still a big issue.
According to the transportation department we still waste almost half of all of Exported oil, sitting in traffic.
This is where the electric car shines even if it costs more.
No waste of power when idling, energy is proportional to the milage compared to any gas Guzzler, charges are fairly quick and the power grid already exists,..... and the technology has been with us for more than two decades and proven.
Even with dedicated TRAFFIC cars [smaller] the need for large and expensive batteries is moot, since they only crawl and travel short distances.
End some of the commute problem and things only get better.
CO Emissions out the tail pipe are moot, and instead of throwing away 60% to 85% of the energy you make into creating and transporting hot air, you generate electricity any where there is a grid [not more semis on the road full of hot air] and the loss is greatly different. We do it every day already and its cost effective because we have a infrastructure that works.
Now all we need to do is lower the greed factor and make more of what we already have.
Unfortunately, solar is still just a pipe dream thanks to big time greed, we cant afford $4,000.00 a hp / per hour and at 4 bucks a watt, we have a long way to go.
ANY extra loss such as air powered is simply unacceptable and physics says in plain English, that cant change no matter how smart you are.
The best you can do is trim a few percent of some of the losses due to heat and friction, leaving you with that proverbial albatross any way.
Electric cars can come down with mass production, weigh savings, etc., ... and still have plenty of power at a moments notice.
But the problem of where to get extra power with out CO emissions for any new device still exists.
The change over will come and its most likely to do what it can do best for storage, transportation and usage,..ELECTRICITY.
There is no need to further convert it to any thing that will add to the loses that already exist.
Yes, we will have to make a change, smaller and less commuting, less power,... but the electric motor gives us all of this.
Power when you want to piss in a bucket and pay through the nose, infrastructure, speed, or traffic at no energy loss when idling at zero.
Air can do all of the above, but it cost more and doesn’t exist today in any real shape other than the drawing boards, minds of a few, and a few work shops of the hopeful.
Electricity has had its test run and it works, even in its infancy.
And you don’t have to pretend, become a barker, or sell ice cubes to the Eskimos like other wanna bee forms of energy.
Super caps are in the works making storage quite cheap compared to some of the exotic materials, but road gluttony is still a big issue.
According to the transportation department we still waste almost half of all of Exported oil, sitting in traffic.
This is where the electric car shines even if it costs more.
No waste of power when idling, energy is proportional to the milage compared to any gas Guzzler, charges are fairly quick and the power grid already exists,..... and the technology has been with us for more than two decades and proven.
Even with dedicated TRAFFIC cars [smaller] the need for large and expensive batteries is moot, since they only crawl and travel short distances.
End some of the commute problem and things only get better.
CO Emissions out the tail pipe are moot, and instead of throwing away 60% to 85% of the energy you make into creating and transporting hot air, you generate electricity any where there is a grid [not more semis on the road full of hot air] and the loss is greatly different. We do it every day already and its cost effective because we have a infrastructure that works.
Now all we need to do is lower the greed factor and make more of what we already have.
Unfortunately, solar is still just a pipe dream thanks to big time greed, we cant afford $4,000.00 a hp / per hour and at 4 bucks a watt, we have a long way to go.
ANY extra loss such as air powered is simply unacceptable and physics says in plain English, that cant change no matter how smart you are.
The best you can do is trim a few percent of some of the losses due to heat and friction, leaving you with that proverbial albatross any way.
Electric cars can come down with mass production, weigh savings, etc., ... and still have plenty of power at a moments notice.
But the problem of where to get extra power with out CO emissions for any new device still exists.
The change over will come and its most likely to do what it can do best for storage, transportation and usage,..ELECTRICITY.
There is no need to further convert it to any thing that will add to the loses that already exist.
Yes, we will have to make a change, smaller and less commuting, less power,... but the electric motor gives us all of this.
Power when you want to piss in a bucket and pay through the nose, infrastructure, speed, or traffic at no energy loss when idling at zero.
Air can do all of the above, but it cost more and doesn’t exist today in any real shape other than the drawing boards, minds of a few, and a few work shops of the hopeful.
Electricity has had its test run and it works, even in its infancy.
And you don’t have to pretend, become a barker, or sell ice cubes to the Eskimos like other wanna bee forms of energy.
Storage Batteries = Not There Yet
{RANT MODE ON}
The problem with electric cars is the battery technology is not ready yet. An electric car MIGHT get 50 miles to a charge; maybe 100 miles if you are lucky. It takes three to five hours to charge this battery system.
Now let's say I have a SUV that gets 13 MPG and I have a 40 gallon tank. I have a 520 mile range (totally empty) or let's say a "safe" zone of 500 miles between fill ups. I go to a gas station. The pump runs at 7 gallons per minute. That is what the pumps claim at least. And it is about right. It will take me five minutes to swipe, pull out the nozzle, pump tank full, put back nozzle. I can go 500 miles in a gas SUV and take a five or ten minute break to fill up and answer nature's call. With an electric car I drive a MUCH SMALLER vehicle, get 100 miles between fill ups, and must take a three to five hour break to refill. Which one are you going to take on a long trip?
Another problem is WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO GET THE ELECTRICITY? On hot days my electric company asks (begs almost) for people to turn off lights, AC, and anything they can so the electric company can meet demand. They have had to result to rolling blackouts. This is with VERY FEW electric cars! Can you imagine fleets of electric cars all charging during one of these hot days?
Back in one of my engineering classes we worked this all out. We figured out that if HALF of the short drive daily drive cars were to convert to electric in the US we would need to provide the entire capacity of our existing electrical grid just to support them! Think about it. We would need to double the existing electric grid to support charging just HALF of the "short range" cars. This does not include the long range cars, trucks, or any thing like that. Only half the cars that might see 30 miles a day MAX.
Electric is NOT the answer. You can't even get a decent breeze from one of those "solar window fans" used on cars on a bright summer day! Don't expect to get a solar car; at least not a solar electric car.
I have been saying that Ethanol is the way to go. Now that this is showing up as a "flex fuel" the farmers are getting even more greedy than the arab sheiks. The "food" corn and the "ethanol" corn NEED NOT BE THE SAME! You can use the waste products to make ethanol and save the corn part for cattle and humans. Yet corn is getting expensive.
But there MAY still exist a solution. Plant some hybrid corn or hemp in Mexico. This will give the boarder crossers a reason to stay at home; they can work in their own country. Labor would be cheap. Land would be cheap, shipping costs VERY cheap as it only would require a pipeline over land. No more large oil tankers, no more invaders.
I honestly do not fear running out of oil. I was in grade school during the oil crunch of the 1970's. Teachers told me I would not be able to drive a car as we would be out of oil by the time I was old enough to drive. Right. Oil is still widely available but expensive.
This past Sunday as I was driving into work I was listening to Art Bell. He had some kook on claiming that oil was on the brink of becoming unavailable. His solution was to ride bikes. Okay, here I am at 4:00AM driving 15 miles to work on a Sunday morning. I'm supposed to ride a bike this distance on a regular basis to and from work in the dark? Families are supposed to ride bikes to drop their kids off at school and pick them up? Get real.
The alternatives to oil are ethanol, natural gas, and nuclear power. Nuclear power has a limit and is way more dangerous than oil polution. Natural gas will run out. Don't claim hydrogen as most hydrogen is cracked from a hydrocarbon. (The energy gained from water electrolysis is way less than what you need to put into water to crack it.)
The problem with electric cars is the battery technology is not ready yet. An electric car MIGHT get 50 miles to a charge; maybe 100 miles if you are lucky. It takes three to five hours to charge this battery system.
Now let's say I have a SUV that gets 13 MPG and I have a 40 gallon tank. I have a 520 mile range (totally empty) or let's say a "safe" zone of 500 miles between fill ups. I go to a gas station. The pump runs at 7 gallons per minute. That is what the pumps claim at least. And it is about right. It will take me five minutes to swipe, pull out the nozzle, pump tank full, put back nozzle. I can go 500 miles in a gas SUV and take a five or ten minute break to fill up and answer nature's call. With an electric car I drive a MUCH SMALLER vehicle, get 100 miles between fill ups, and must take a three to five hour break to refill. Which one are you going to take on a long trip?
Another problem is WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO GET THE ELECTRICITY? On hot days my electric company asks (begs almost) for people to turn off lights, AC, and anything they can so the electric company can meet demand. They have had to result to rolling blackouts. This is with VERY FEW electric cars! Can you imagine fleets of electric cars all charging during one of these hot days?
Back in one of my engineering classes we worked this all out. We figured out that if HALF of the short drive daily drive cars were to convert to electric in the US we would need to provide the entire capacity of our existing electrical grid just to support them! Think about it. We would need to double the existing electric grid to support charging just HALF of the "short range" cars. This does not include the long range cars, trucks, or any thing like that. Only half the cars that might see 30 miles a day MAX.
Electric is NOT the answer. You can't even get a decent breeze from one of those "solar window fans" used on cars on a bright summer day! Don't expect to get a solar car; at least not a solar electric car.
I have been saying that Ethanol is the way to go. Now that this is showing up as a "flex fuel" the farmers are getting even more greedy than the arab sheiks. The "food" corn and the "ethanol" corn NEED NOT BE THE SAME! You can use the waste products to make ethanol and save the corn part for cattle and humans. Yet corn is getting expensive.
But there MAY still exist a solution. Plant some hybrid corn or hemp in Mexico. This will give the boarder crossers a reason to stay at home; they can work in their own country. Labor would be cheap. Land would be cheap, shipping costs VERY cheap as it only would require a pipeline over land. No more large oil tankers, no more invaders.
I honestly do not fear running out of oil. I was in grade school during the oil crunch of the 1970's. Teachers told me I would not be able to drive a car as we would be out of oil by the time I was old enough to drive. Right. Oil is still widely available but expensive.
This past Sunday as I was driving into work I was listening to Art Bell. He had some kook on claiming that oil was on the brink of becoming unavailable. His solution was to ride bikes. Okay, here I am at 4:00AM driving 15 miles to work on a Sunday morning. I'm supposed to ride a bike this distance on a regular basis to and from work in the dark? Families are supposed to ride bikes to drop their kids off at school and pick them up? Get real.
The alternatives to oil are ethanol, natural gas, and nuclear power. Nuclear power has a limit and is way more dangerous than oil polution. Natural gas will run out. Don't claim hydrogen as most hydrogen is cracked from a hydrocarbon. (The energy gained from water electrolysis is way less than what you need to put into water to crack it.)
No trees were harmed in the creation of this message. But billions of electrons, photons, and electromagnetic waves were terribly inconvenienced!
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Chris Smith
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- Location: Bieber Ca.
The main problems here is SUVs, low milage, high CO emissions, and the concept that if we aren’t pleased with this, its all not competitive or accecptable.
WRONG on all counts.
First we have to get used to less, smaller, and longer.
If you don’t like standing in a line, Try India.
Last time I was there a three hour stunt in line was normal just to get a ticket to travel 100 miles.
So get used to less, slower, and more money.
Next, electricity is the way, but only after we make a increase and effort, otherwise its stupid.
WE have to do better then double it, tripple might be a start.
So yes, right now its terrible, even absurd.
As to getting gas fast, lasting for ever, .......that was your dads dream, and its over.
NEXT comes the new world.
With Tokyo expecting 32 million by the year 2020, I think it time to put selfish and stupid ways to rest. We enjoyed our decadence, now its time for reality.
So, as electric cars are improving every day, and MOST of us already don’t need to be glutenous, small cars and small batteries for work are just fine.
What better way to waste your life if not in a traffic jam, using a hell of a lot less?
Those who think you have to store it all up at all cost, are dying, and hopefully before the lights go out.
Nothing of yesteryear energy is important any more, so lets move on to the only things we have and improve on them and worry about the others later.
Hydrogen production is a probability, flocked with personal problems and one’s we refuse to deal with.
IT may offer longer distances but that is not even an issue we need to care about for now.
If you cant drive to the grand canyon in the year 2020, so what. That will be life.
WRONG on all counts.
First we have to get used to less, smaller, and longer.
If you don’t like standing in a line, Try India.
Last time I was there a three hour stunt in line was normal just to get a ticket to travel 100 miles.
So get used to less, slower, and more money.
Next, electricity is the way, but only after we make a increase and effort, otherwise its stupid.
WE have to do better then double it, tripple might be a start.
So yes, right now its terrible, even absurd.
As to getting gas fast, lasting for ever, .......that was your dads dream, and its over.
NEXT comes the new world.
With Tokyo expecting 32 million by the year 2020, I think it time to put selfish and stupid ways to rest. We enjoyed our decadence, now its time for reality.
So, as electric cars are improving every day, and MOST of us already don’t need to be glutenous, small cars and small batteries for work are just fine.
What better way to waste your life if not in a traffic jam, using a hell of a lot less?
Those who think you have to store it all up at all cost, are dying, and hopefully before the lights go out.
Nothing of yesteryear energy is important any more, so lets move on to the only things we have and improve on them and worry about the others later.
Hydrogen production is a probability, flocked with personal problems and one’s we refuse to deal with.
IT may offer longer distances but that is not even an issue we need to care about for now.
If you cant drive to the grand canyon in the year 2020, so what. That will be life.
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Robert Reed
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Chris Smith
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- Location: Bieber Ca.
Robert
Do you know that this planet is SOLAR... 100%
Even the wind and partially the tidal is a solar issue.
Do you know the energy imparted per square meter by the sun?
Did you know that if [at the present time and knowledge] we solarize this country, we have 85 times the needed used energy,... that we currently use.
That is one hell of a "solution".
No more need to worry about some discontents, and their energy barrel, contortions over that barrel, or any of the other false B.S. the state department comes up with. [Fingers up a rectum with out grease]
Wait too long and we will have an empty cup to make anything appear, like DC is trying sooo hard to happen,... thanks to short term greed.
Do you know that this planet is SOLAR... 100%
Even the wind and partially the tidal is a solar issue.
Do you know the energy imparted per square meter by the sun?
Did you know that if [at the present time and knowledge] we solarize this country, we have 85 times the needed used energy,... that we currently use.
That is one hell of a "solution".
No more need to worry about some discontents, and their energy barrel, contortions over that barrel, or any of the other false B.S. the state department comes up with. [Fingers up a rectum with out grease]
Wait too long and we will have an empty cup to make anything appear, like DC is trying sooo hard to happen,... thanks to short term greed.
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Smoke_Maker
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jollyrgr, makes some good points but lets do some what ifs.
-It takes three to five hours to charge this battery system. -
I have charged a EV battery pack (192 volts) to 80% SOC in less than five minutes at 800 amps. A lot of EVers have found out that you can charge a lead acid battery as fast as you can discharge it (up to 80%)
-I can go 500 miles in a gas SUV and take a five or ten minute break to fill up and answer nature's call.-
A huge amount of fuel is being used on us short distant drivers < 50 miles a day, us short distant drivers are responsible for a lot of the pollution in the city. You are correct about long trips, EV's aren't for long trips.
-With an electric car I drive a MUCH SMALLER vehicle-
WHY? SUV's make good EV's, They aren't the most efficient for batteries but then they aren't that efficient on *gas*
-WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO GET THE ELECTRICITY-
The same place you get the electric to run the air conditioner during peak demand hours, ALL EV's should be charged during off peak demand (after midnight)
-I have been saying that Ethanol is the way to go.-
Ethanol has it's problem also, we will be trading top soil nutrients for a trip to the grocery store.
-I honestly do not fear running out of oil-
I hear ya, they have been saying the same thing about social security and it's still around. If no *new* oil is being made then the supply will run dry, it won't happen on our watch but our grand kids might find it hard to get oil.
-Hydrogen (The energy gained from water electrolysis is way less than what you need to put into water to crack it.)-
At the place I work we have 2 hydrogen vehicles in operation and the third being added to the fleet by the end of this year. These three vehicles run on a self sustaining hydrogen fueling station, (minus initial cost and maintenance)
-It takes three to five hours to charge this battery system. -
I have charged a EV battery pack (192 volts) to 80% SOC in less than five minutes at 800 amps. A lot of EVers have found out that you can charge a lead acid battery as fast as you can discharge it (up to 80%)
-I can go 500 miles in a gas SUV and take a five or ten minute break to fill up and answer nature's call.-
A huge amount of fuel is being used on us short distant drivers < 50 miles a day, us short distant drivers are responsible for a lot of the pollution in the city. You are correct about long trips, EV's aren't for long trips.
-With an electric car I drive a MUCH SMALLER vehicle-
WHY? SUV's make good EV's, They aren't the most efficient for batteries but then they aren't that efficient on *gas*
-WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO GET THE ELECTRICITY-
The same place you get the electric to run the air conditioner during peak demand hours, ALL EV's should be charged during off peak demand (after midnight)
-I have been saying that Ethanol is the way to go.-
Ethanol has it's problem also, we will be trading top soil nutrients for a trip to the grocery store.
-I honestly do not fear running out of oil-
I hear ya, they have been saying the same thing about social security and it's still around. If no *new* oil is being made then the supply will run dry, it won't happen on our watch but our grand kids might find it hard to get oil.
-Hydrogen (The energy gained from water electrolysis is way less than what you need to put into water to crack it.)-
At the place I work we have 2 hydrogen vehicles in operation and the third being added to the fleet by the end of this year. These three vehicles run on a self sustaining hydrogen fueling station, (minus initial cost and maintenance)
Richard Furniss
is it suppose to smoke like that ?
is it suppose to smoke like that ?
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Chris Smith
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Smoke_Maker
Thank you for a real start.
We do have a up hill battle to go.
There are no simple answers, just simple cures to what we already know and deny for greeds sake.
DC wont be along for the real ride, they do just sniff butt parts and call it life.
Toss them in the trash like evolution say...
Thank you for a real start.
We do have a up hill battle to go.
There are no simple answers, just simple cures to what we already know and deny for greeds sake.
DC wont be along for the real ride, they do just sniff butt parts and call it life.
Toss them in the trash like evolution say...
Good points by everyone, I agree EVs arent for long trips, but if we would spend the money on solar chargers (not a solar car) most of the commuters could charge their cars all day and possibly not need much "on grid" time. I think the costs of solar panels will come down once they are truly mass produced for a huge market, but it is going to take government action to get this off the ground. It will be more expensive now, but it will save in the long run.
I am not saying it cannot be done quickly, just not easily. My home breaker is rated at 200 Amps 220VAC. Is it worth the added expense to quadruple my electrical service for five minutes of 800A surge? Now multiply this times everyone that drives a car. This is the first problem. So we decide that a "FAST CHARGE" will be done at a "CHARGE STATION" similar to a gas station. This won't be done with an induction coupler (the secondary transformer in the car would be huge) and would be a physical electrical connection. Do you want high school kids hooking up 800A 220V service to an electric car? Can you imagine the road salt and grime, water, etc. getting into a car's connector and then trying to dump 800A through this. I know what the electricians went through for the conversion we just did at work for a UPS wrap around. Arc flash suits, rubber and leather gloves, lock outs, and so on. Working with those types of voltages and currents is not what you expect the average high school kid (those likely to be working at a charge station) or soccer mom (those pumping their own gas) to deal with.Smoke_Maker wrote:jollyrgr, makes some good points but lets do some what ifs.
-It takes three to five hours to charge this battery system. -
I have charged a EV battery pack (192 volts) to 80% SOC in less than five minutes at 800 amps. A lot of EVers have found out that you can charge a lead acid battery as fast as you can discharge it (up to 80%)
Most EV I've seen are small. The one I saw a few years ago at the Chicago Auto show was pathetic. From the driver's seat I could stick my hand out the passenger side window. There was no back seat. I'm not talking hybrid, I'm talking pure electric. While I do not think a hybrid is the final answer, I would not be opposed to driving one of them. If there is a purely electric SUV I would be interested in seeing it.
-I can go 500 miles in a gas SUV and take a five or ten minute break to fill up and answer nature's call.-
A huge amount of fuel is being used on us short distant drivers < 50 miles a day, us short distant drivers are responsible for a lot of the pollution in the city. You are correct about long trips, EV's aren't for long trips.
-With an electric car I drive a MUCH SMALLER vehicle-
WHY? SUV's make good EV's, They aren't the most efficient for batteries but then they aren't that efficient on *gas*
You missed my point. I understand that the EV would be charged off peak. But ALL of them would be charged off peak. Thus you have only time shifted when the EVs would be charged. And the amount of power needed to just charge EVs replacing HALF the <50 mile cars will require the equivalent of the existing grid just to charge the cars; not run everything else.
-WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO GET THE ELECTRICITY-
The same place you get the electric to run the air conditioner during peak demand hours, ALL EV's should be charged during off peak demand (after midnight)
-I have been saying that Ethanol is the way to go.-
Ethanol has it's problem also, we will be trading top soil nutrients for a trip to the grocery store.
The beuty of this is that we do not need to use "grocery farm land" as long as we are willing to change attitudes. Using "hemp" that will grow in the worst lands (dry desert areas) we do not use up farm land. And top soil is renewable or life would have ended a long time ago.
This COULD happen. Just like I was told in grade school I would not be able to drive a car when I grew up; there would not be any oil to make gasoline.
-I honestly do not fear running out of oil-
I hear ya, they have been saying the same thing about social security and it's still around. If no *new* oil is being made then the supply will run dry, it won't happen on our watch but our grand kids might find it hard to get oil.
How does this system work?
-Hydrogen (The energy gained from water electrolysis is way less than what you need to put into water to crack it.)-
At the place I work we have 2 hydrogen vehicles in operation and the third being added to the fleet by the end of this year. These three vehicles run on a self sustaining hydrogen fueling station, (minus initial cost and maintenance)
The only type of electric car I can see making it is one that uses fuel cell technolgoy. I do not know the efficiency of these devices but it has to be better than that of an IC engine. Most of their energy is waste heat. Power is produced in only 1/4 the cycle of the engine.
No trees were harmed in the creation of this message. But billions of electrons, photons, and electromagnetic waves were terribly inconvenienced!
Use some real numbers here. I just swapped an 18 hp gas tractor for a 33 year old electric tractor. The gas tractor had to have a new engine. It was two years old.
The electric tractor uses 6 lead acid batteries. It runs longer than I can
tolerate mowing. Instead of 18 hp it uses less than 1 hp. (360 watts)
While mowing. It runs faster than the gas tractor and has lots more torque.
The cost of running it every day is less than a dollar a month. Charging it is like running a 360 watt bulb for 5 hours.
The gas tractor used a gallon of gas everytime I mowed. It was noisy.
The electric tractor is quiet enough so I can mow at night.
If I could find an electric car as good as my Prius, I would buy it.
The electric tractor uses 6 lead acid batteries. It runs longer than I can
tolerate mowing. Instead of 18 hp it uses less than 1 hp. (360 watts)
While mowing. It runs faster than the gas tractor and has lots more torque.
The cost of running it every day is less than a dollar a month. Charging it is like running a 360 watt bulb for 5 hours.
The gas tractor used a gallon of gas everytime I mowed. It was noisy.
The electric tractor is quiet enough so I can mow at night.
If I could find an electric car as good as my Prius, I would buy it.
Harold L. Reed
Microbes got brains
Microbes got brains
hlreed wrote:Use some real numbers here. I just swapped an 18 hp gas tractor for a 33 year old electric tractor. The gas tractor had to have a new engine. It was two years old.
The electric tractor uses 6 lead acid batteries. It runs longer than I can
tolerate mowing. Instead of 18 hp it uses less than 1 hp. (360 watts)
While mowing. It runs faster than the gas tractor and has lots more torque.
The cost of running it every day is less than a dollar a month. Charging it is like running a 360 watt bulb for 5 hours.
The gas tractor used a gallon of gas everytime I mowed. It was noisy.
The electric tractor is quiet enough so I can mow at night.
If I could find an electric car as good as my Prius, I would buy it.
HLREED:
I have to ask a few questions. Did you maintain the gasoline engine properly? Two years on an engine sounds like maybe there was a lack of oil changes if the engine was truly destoryed. If you did everything right, what kind of tractor was this? I think it would be a service to everyone on this board to know what kind of lawn tractor NOT to buy.
In all honesty I think something went wrong with your engine that should not have and that your unfortunate experience is more the exception then the rule. Did the engine have a horrible mechancial death or does it simply not start? With my tractor I need to replace the battery about once every four or five years. Then again I periodically charge and discharge the battery a bit during the winter. Most people buy a new battery every couple years because they kill the battery by misuse. Oil is changed every late fall before it is put away. (This is so the dirty oil does not sit all winter.) I have the same engine as when I got the tractor new in 1999. Tires and most other compoents are the same. I replace the blades every couple years. (The instruction manual warns not to sharpen blades as it will unbalance them.) The spark plug, oil filter, oil, etc. is replaced every fall before storage. Battery gets a workout every so often; usually during a snow storm while I'm out snow blowing. Basically all I replace is the consumables as expected.
A neighbor down the street from my parents broke his lawn tractor. (He blamed his son but oh well.) In any case he bought a new one. I picked up his used one for my parents for $100. I'm guessing the oil was never changed from the look of it, the battery was shot (two years old), the grease fittings had never been used, the fuel filter was dirty, the deck was clogged, spark plug fouled, and packed with dry grass everywhere. It took me about 15 minutes from when I got it to my parents before I had it running. About another hour of work (changed oil, oil filter, fuel filter, spark plug, battery) and it was running correctly. The battery was $30. Oil other goodies about that much again. I or my dad mows the lawn with it about once a week or more during heavy grass season.
Possibly you have something simple wrong with you mower that can be fixed and get you riding it again.
Now you note that the electric lawn tractor you have runs on six batteries. I have never seen an electric lawn tractor. I have seen electric lawn mowers and have even used one. (The plug in type.) What size battery does the lawn tractor take? My guess is that is NOT the starting type I have on my gas mower but something like a 12V 7Ah or possibly a 12V 12Ah Gel Cell like those found in UPS units and motorized ride on toys. These run about $33 to $44 respectively (prices from www.batteriesplus.com). Let's say these are the cheaper 7Ah size. Batteries run you $200 to replace; or somewhere close. A replacement engine (unfortunately) cost almost as much as a discount lawn tractor ($1200). Rebuilt or salvaged engines a lot less. My numbers on the batteries are pure guesses as to the size. If you could post back what they are, I would be curious. I think an electric riding mower is an interesting item. Can you post some pictures, please? In any case I can agree with you, the battery powered tractor is a cheaper investment. Especially since it has been around for 33 years!
I think an electric lawn mower with remote control would be a great project. I know that some people have done this with gas mowers and wheel chair motors. This is one of those SOME DAY projects I hope to tackle.
No trees were harmed in the creation of this message. But billions of electrons, photons, and electromagnetic waves were terribly inconvenienced!
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Smoke_Maker
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I also have a 200 amp service, to fast charge my car I use a dump pack. I slow charge (<20 amps) a stationary pack of batteries (the dump pack) then I connect a Anderson blue plug connector to the vehicles battery pack and flip the switch to close the contacts on a sealed contractor for a few minutes and a bunch of electrons find a home.My home breaker is rated at 200 Amps 220VAC. Is it worth the added expense to quadruple my electrical service for five minutes of 800A surge?
I'm with you, I need a real car not no wantabe.Most EV I've seen are small.
I would like to run some numbers on this. My car uses about 400Wh per mile (this is high for a normal EV but my car is fun to drive, nothing is for free) lets say my round trip is 20 miles per day times five days, My A/C is thirstier than my car.And the amount of power needed to just charge EVs replacing HALF the <50 mile cars will require the equivalent of the existing grid just to charge the cars; not run everything else.
I like this idea.The beuty of this is that we do not need to use "grocery farm land" as long as we are willing to change attitudes. Using "hemp" that will grow in the worst lands (dry desert areas) we do not use up farm land. And top soil is renewable or life would have ended a long time ago.
We have one fuel cell NEV and a ATV that was converted from gasoline to burn hydrogen and our Ford F-150 pick-up should be ready by years end. See the link below, google turns up a bunch of stuff when you enter UNLV and hydrogen.How does this system work?
The only type of electric car I can see making it is one that uses fuel cell technolgoy. I do not know the efficiency of these devices but it has to be better than that of an IC engine. Most of their energy is waste heat. Power is produced in only 1/4 the cycle of the engine.
http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/lvvwd/27686/
Richard Furniss
is it suppose to smoke like that ?
is it suppose to smoke like that ?
One way of alleviating the energy problem posed by automobiles might be to design cars for the purpose that they are actually used for.
Most city trips are people commuting to work over relatively short distances. A one or two passenger car with a range of around 100 miles would be adequate for this. This type of car can probably be designed and built today for a reasonable cost using presently available battery technologies.
Longer range cars can be built as gasoline-electric hybrids. The key point here is reduce the electric motor power to that needed to cruise, use a relative small battery for accelleration, and use a small gasoline engine operating at maximum efficiency.
I don't expect any great breakthroughs in batteries. The electrochemistry of the elements are fairly well known. Some form of Lithium cell may be as good as it gets. Lithium is light, which give it an advantage in ampere-hours per pound. It is also at the high end of the electromotive serive, which raises the battery voltage. The maximum voltage would be gained by pairing Lithium with something on the other end of the electromotive series. The obvious candidate is Flourine, but this is not likely for safety reasons.
In a few years, ther are billions of prople in India and China that are probably going to want to purchase cars. The known reserves of petroleum and the problems with greenhouse gasses will not permit this market to be satisfied with 300 horsepower SUVs. If most of the driving can be transferred to small electric cars on small trips it may be possible to manage the situation. The energy source for these cars may have to be nuclear power plants, since these can be located near areas of heavy load. This will minimize the expenditures required to upgrade the power grid to handle the increased load. Remember that it took about 100 years to build the present power grid, and doubling or tripling its capacity may take another few decades.
One possible scenario is to own a small car for everyday driving and to rent a car for special trips requiring more capacity or longer range.
Most city trips are people commuting to work over relatively short distances. A one or two passenger car with a range of around 100 miles would be adequate for this. This type of car can probably be designed and built today for a reasonable cost using presently available battery technologies.
Longer range cars can be built as gasoline-electric hybrids. The key point here is reduce the electric motor power to that needed to cruise, use a relative small battery for accelleration, and use a small gasoline engine operating at maximum efficiency.
I don't expect any great breakthroughs in batteries. The electrochemistry of the elements are fairly well known. Some form of Lithium cell may be as good as it gets. Lithium is light, which give it an advantage in ampere-hours per pound. It is also at the high end of the electromotive serive, which raises the battery voltage. The maximum voltage would be gained by pairing Lithium with something on the other end of the electromotive series. The obvious candidate is Flourine, but this is not likely for safety reasons.
In a few years, ther are billions of prople in India and China that are probably going to want to purchase cars. The known reserves of petroleum and the problems with greenhouse gasses will not permit this market to be satisfied with 300 horsepower SUVs. If most of the driving can be transferred to small electric cars on small trips it may be possible to manage the situation. The energy source for these cars may have to be nuclear power plants, since these can be located near areas of heavy load. This will minimize the expenditures required to upgrade the power grid to handle the increased load. Remember that it took about 100 years to build the present power grid, and doubling or tripling its capacity may take another few decades.
One possible scenario is to own a small car for everyday driving and to rent a car for special trips requiring more capacity or longer range.
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