Richard, you regularly drive 250miles plus in a single stint? in the US I think I would just fly if I had to go that far, here its not unusual and our air transport is lacking vs US.
with the double charging option it takes roughly 1.5hrs I think from empty and the supercharger network (free for ever to early adopters, cant see how its sustainable) allows 30mins of charging for free at a time, which will get you nearly 100miles. all seems pretty damn close to usable for just about everything to me. if the charger network is actually viable and happens as planned, you could just stop, have a coffee or something to eat, wake up a bit and continue, just as you would often on a road trip at a gas station
batteries, yep for sure i'm in full agreement; the search has to continue there, but they are much better than they used to be. nano-carbon polymers and lithium is not as bad as NiMH or lead. before these Tesla things I would have agreed with everything you say, but its really getting there and I just hope the interest continues to turn it into something better and more affordable.
with the double charging option it takes roughly 1.5hrs I think from empty and the supercharger network (free for ever to early adopters, cant see how its sustainable) allows 30mins of charging for free at a time, which will get you nearly 100miles. all seems pretty damn close to usable for just about everything to me. if the charger network is actually viable and happens as planned, you could just stop, have a coffee or something to eat, wake up a bit and continue, just as you would often on a road trip at a gas station
batteries, yep for sure i'm in full agreement; the search has to continue there, but they are much better than they used to be. nano-carbon polymers and lithium is not as bad as NiMH or lead. before these Tesla things I would have agreed with everything you say, but its really getting there and I just hope the interest continues to turn it into something better and more affordable.
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Not terribly practical. Let's say I had to go to St. Louis for a couple days (297 miles from Chicago). I can drive it in about 5 hours. Cost in gas and tolls is about $60 each way. Or I can fly. Cost for a ticket is $150 each way, parking at the airport is another $40, and another $140 on a car rental at the far end. But think of the time I save! Oh, wait, there's an hour drive to the airport, 1.5 hours for getting to the gate, check-in, and security. 1 hour flight time. 1 hour to collect my bags, get to the rental terminal, get my car.
So I save (assuming no flight delays!) 1/2 hour and only have to spend 5 times as much.
wow you guys get ripped on flights! I figured you'd have it better than us. actually I was being frugal they can according to some get you up to 300miles on a 'tank' on this first gen. with some notice I can fly 1000km to Sydney for $50. car rental is a fair comment though, I didnt think that through. guess it depends on the nature of the trip if you need rental car.
I travel for business a LOT, so unfortunately I remember all the little things that will sink you on cost and time.I well and truly hate flying, especially in the past several years, so I tend to err on the side of surface transportation.
Amen. I haven't flown since a trip to Florida in 2000. I already hated it then, for the many reasons detailed, and after 9-11 I utterly despise the idea. I like to take a lot of stuff along, depending, when I travel, which has become ridiculously difficult now by air.
My jaunts when required by family emergencies were more frequent to northern California, but there's no more need for those now.
ahh yes of course, see, here domestic flights are a walk in the park, not nearly as many security checks/cavity searches as you guys. I can check in on my phone on the way to the airport, walk up the express line and be on the flight 20-30 mins after arrival. of course its lucky I can fly 1000km for $50, because just about everywhere of note is >1000km away here.
Attached is a picture of the test setup. The chassis are .062" thick and either a mild 30,000 PSI steel or 5052 aluminum.
ES
Attachments
I travel for business a LOT, so unfortunately I remember all the little things that will sink you on cost and time.
My rule is 3 hours drive time, no question drive.
Five hours drive time, unless an emergency or really cheap airfare-nonstop, drive.
Eight hours, fly if a direct flight is available. Drive if a connection is required. Even though the drive may take more time, the chance of a flight problem is the issue.
Now for this year the trips have been Pittsburgh to Seattle. Drive time is 4 days, so fly is better,
Will pass 100,000 flight miles for this year! (With stops over 5,000 miles a trip. Need to attend 8 games, 3 training sessions and actually install and tune the system!
Which will be the first company to build a sound system for performance electric cars, that can emulate the sound and vibration of full blown IC engines
I attended a presentation by a BMW Veep about future sound management. Future luxury cars will be very quiet on the outside, on the inside the sound system generates the muffler sound that fits your driving style.
Its all about offering 'an unforgettable experience'
Of course, at one point a savvy marketing guy will find out that you just need to generate the sporty noise to get the driver to think he's driving a very sporty car. Such are the blessings of understanding perception.
jan
Jan,
I have had the cars with the exhaust system that sounds like a nice Ferrari or other high compression motor and that was fine long ago. Now I think about how I can have the power and kill the exhaust note without creating to much backpressure on the engine. I want stealth exhaust so the cop has to see me before he ever hears me coming. Not sure how I am going to do it exactly but it is something I am seriously working on. I can hear a Ferrari or Corvette or many other fast cars long before they are near me and so can every cop around. Save that for the race track and give me the quietest exhaust possible, that is what I want with my power.
I have had the cars with the exhaust system that sounds like a nice Ferrari or other high compression motor and that was fine long ago. Now I think about how I can have the power and kill the exhaust note without creating to much backpressure on the engine. I want stealth exhaust so the cop has to see me before he ever hears me coming. Not sure how I am going to do it exactly but it is something I am seriously working on. I can hear a Ferrari or Corvette or many other fast cars long before they are near me and so can every cop around. Save that for the race track and give me the quietest exhaust possible, that is what I want with my power.
I was of student age in a small town, next to a lake in Austria walking along the single road leading through it. Then, from further down the lake, in the distance, I heard a strange, banshee screaming, the note rising, falling, blipping constantly. This got louder and louder ... what the hell!! Suddenly, a Porsche Turbo exploded into sight at the visible end of the road, doing ... ooohh, perhaps 160k in the town's 60k limit area ... . At the precise moment he passed me he changed up, a bizarre whooshing sound with an impact that subjectively almost knocked you over, is how it came across.
The memory of that has stayed with me, the impact of the experience, ever since ...
The memory of that has stayed with me, the impact of the experience, ever since ...
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Yes Frank,
People use to tell me they could hear my car from about a mile away when it hit 7,500 rpm and knew the sound of my exhaust, it was very distinctive. Those were the days when I could tell you what kind of car was climbing the hill towards my house. I could identify the exhaust sound of most cars, they all had a distinct signature. Now I just want to drive fast and nobody but me knows I am doing that, unless of course the tires are talking, kind of hard to do a four wheel drift and not make noise but I try not to get in that deep anymore!
Richard, I would love a ride in that Corvette, that sounds like one of the sweetest rides around for a production car. I have been thinking about putting one of those crate engines in my old 1967 Firebird, it would drop right in, and fuel injection and a nice 6 speed would probably give me over 25 miles to the gallon in a light car like mine....... My old Z'28 302 would give me over 16 mpg with 4:11 rear gears at over 100 mph. I have a nice 5 speed with no overdrive sitting waiting and I can use that with about a 3.07 rear gear and it would be equivalent to the old 4:11 rear gear in first gear.
People use to tell me they could hear my car from about a mile away when it hit 7,500 rpm and knew the sound of my exhaust, it was very distinctive. Those were the days when I could tell you what kind of car was climbing the hill towards my house. I could identify the exhaust sound of most cars, they all had a distinct signature. Now I just want to drive fast and nobody but me knows I am doing that, unless of course the tires are talking, kind of hard to do a four wheel drift and not make noise but I try not to get in that deep anymore!
Richard, I would love a ride in that Corvette, that sounds like one of the sweetest rides around for a production car. I have been thinking about putting one of those crate engines in my old 1967 Firebird, it would drop right in, and fuel injection and a nice 6 speed would probably give me over 25 miles to the gallon in a light car like mine....... My old Z'28 302 would give me over 16 mpg with 4:11 rear gears at over 100 mph. I have a nice 5 speed with no overdrive sitting waiting and I can use that with about a 3.07 rear gear and it would be equivalent to the old 4:11 rear gear in first gear.
The internal flights were great, I remember waiting about 10 min and then all the checked bags came out set up in a perfect line on the belt and it stopped instantly after they were all presented.
I live in the hills (east coast people call them mountains).... windy roads, up and down. Got to have a car that handles. And be able to pass a lumber truck or horse trailer in a short space on a 2-lane road.
Put a Z06 427 in the FireBird and add a centrifical supercharger kit to it. (The C.R. is too high for much Nitrous use) Mount the engine as far back as possible. Try 3:45-3:55 gears as the best all-around ratio for a heavi-ish Hi-Po car. Then beef everything up from the radiator to the axles. Dont forget the brakes and suspension! [Plenty of shops which can help you Go Fast in So. Cal.]
That should get the job done.
Then bring it up here for a visit and a ride. -RNM
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Richard,
That engine is probably one of the nicest in the world for a production engine. Yes it will take some tubular control arm and I do have some 4 piston brakes to update from the originals. Wish I had the rear out of the Z but it is gone. Have the nice four core radiator and other parts. I think the car weights in at about 3400 lbs, so not to heavy. When I do the body mods I should be able to run the current Corvette wheel package and that will make a major upgrade from what fits stock. I have been looking at setting the engine back and down, that will be a trick but I have the front frame out so I can mock that up. Unbelievable that the fuel economy is what it is with such a large engine.
That engine is probably one of the nicest in the world for a production engine. Yes it will take some tubular control arm and I do have some 4 piston brakes to update from the originals. Wish I had the rear out of the Z but it is gone. Have the nice four core radiator and other parts. I think the car weights in at about 3400 lbs, so not to heavy. When I do the body mods I should be able to run the current Corvette wheel package and that will make a major upgrade from what fits stock. I have been looking at setting the engine back and down, that will be a trick but I have the front frame out so I can mock that up. Unbelievable that the fuel economy is what it is with such a large engine.
You can get >20mpg no sweat. Just to let folks know I am not a complete bum or stone-age thinker and gas waster when it comes to cars -- i use the PT-Cruiser a lot (non-turbo model) for short haul driving around the area on everyday stuff. Even took out the back seats to lighten the car for even better gas mileage. ;-)
-RNM
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