What are your thoughts on the new Air Car (1) (2) ? The question I always have about these inventions is if they're so great and so cheap, why haven't they taken off yet? Is there a catch? Will major automobile manufacturers lobby for legislation to keep them off the roads?
The . . . product is a light weigh vehicle that can reach speeds up to 220 km/h (even though the legal limit is 120.) A product that does not pollute like twentieth century vehicles and does not take a lifetime to pay off. Essentially, MDI has developed a modern, clean, and cheap car that meets most peoples needs. That is to say that 60% of drivers drive less than 50km a day, and 80% of those 60%, never leave urban areas.
In the single energy mode MDI cars consume less than one euro every 100Km. (around 0.75 Euros) that is to say, 10 time less than gasoline powered cars.
When there is no combustion, there is no pollution. The vehicle's driving range is close to twice that of the most advanced electric cars (from 200 to 300 km or 8 hours of circulation) This is exactly what the urban market needs where, as previously mentioned, 80% of the drivers move less than 60Km. a day.
4 comments:
I love this idea, and your links are the first I'd heard of it (which is kind of your point). This makes huge sense to me, and it's exciting to see that such well-working prototypes exist already.
Essentially, the problem is one of storing energy so that it can be released in a controlled way for our transportation. The car doesn't pollute, but of course there will be some pollution--however limited--generated in compressing the air it uses (just as electricity for a plug-in hybrid must come from somewhere).
Still, this seems a huge idea, especially if an onboard small engine can help you out in a pinch. The perfect urban car.
I thought the tanks would be dangerous but they've apparently even solved that. Where do I get mine?
After our summer trip to Paris, we fell in love with the (ubiquitous,there) Smart Fourtwo. I think it's really more of a solution to parking issues than fuel economy issues--my Honda Civic will nearly match it for mileage, and it's twice the size--but it's just so intriguing.
There was talk of a plug-in hybrid version, and I'd be ALL OVER that. My wife drives almost entirely in town, and could easily survive a day on a charge and plug it in overnight.
I'd buy one right now if they offered a finished, manufacturer-backed one.
People talk about how dangerous the little cars are, but if everyone was forced to buy one and didn't have to drive around in traffic with giant SUVs, they'd probably be pretty safe.
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