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  1. Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Posts
    2,452
    #1
    Australian Dollar Exchange Rate: 31.874
    au$ 1.4 = 44.624 Philippine Peso



    44.624 petot/100 km. . .not bad!


    http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/newshome/5157349

    [SIZE=4]WA students produce emission-free car[/SIZE]


    A fully electric car that costs its owner just $1.40 every 100km will be launched in Perth on Thursday.

    Students and staff at the University of Western Australia have converted a Hyundai Getz to run off a DC battery that lasts up to 100km before requiring recharging.

    The $1.40 cost of power compares with $7.44 over 100km for the same fuel-powered vehicle, based on a price of $1.20 per litre of unleaded fuel.

    UWA professor Thomas Braunl said while electric cars were nothing new, their day in the sun must come.

    "You have it in the headlines every day ... global warming, carbon trading, ... record high fuel prices, air pollution, and cars are to some degree to blame for this," Prof Braunl told AAP.
    "Electric cars have been around for 100 years ... but I think this time they're going to stay because there is the need for sustainable transport and the technology is really there."
    Limitations of electric vehicles, particularly the need to recharge more often than refilling, have prevented their wider use in the marketplace, Prof Braunl said.

    "But I think by today if you look at the typical patterns, people driving to work, many families having two cars ... at least for the second car market this would be ideal," he said.

    The converted Getz has several safety systems built into it, including an impact sensor which shuts off the high power voltage in case of an accident.

    There are additional sensors to stop the motor from "high revving".

    If there is a problem with the controller, the engine will cut out.

    Safety mechanisms will also cut out the motor in the event of brake problems or faults in the hose pressure pump.

    The conversion of the Getz is the start of a broader endeavour for UWA's faculty of engineering, computing and mathematics.

    Next year the students will convert a 2002 Lotus Elise S2, and have longer-term plans to develop
    Last edited by russpogi; November 22nd, 2008 at 10:41 AM. Reason: added quotes...

  2. Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Posts
    7,186
    #2
    Sana the technology is cheap enough para kahit sino ay puwedeng ito na lang.

  3. Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Posts
    2,267
    #3
    emission-free cars, or electric cars for that matter is not always environmental friendly especially if you are going to charge it by plugging instead of regenerative braking etc.

    if majority of the electricity in a country is produced by coal-fired power plants, the reduced tailpipe emissions maybe offset by the increased emissions at the power plant. the key is to tap more of the renewable sources of energy like hydroelectric, geothermal, solar, eind etc.

  4. Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Posts
    29,354
    #4
    Quote Originally Posted by meledson View Post
    Sana the technology is cheap enough para kahit sino ay puwedeng ito na lang.
    That's the problem. The cost of the technology is still expensive, even just to retrofit into an existing (cheap) car.

    The main hurdles are the costs in the following:
    -high efficiency motors/regenerators
    -power controllers
    -light weight and high energy density battery technology

    But overlooking the costs, the technology is already here. I have scouted 20hp to 50hp pancake motors which can be retrofitted into the location of the rear drum brake. Power controllers can be purchased off the shelf or custom built. Heavy deep cycle batteries could be used and then replaced as battery technology advances.

    At the start of the oil crisis, I did a preliminary study on the cost feasibility to create a "kit" to retrofit into existing cars (like an AE101 Corolla). Unfortunately, the price would make it unfeasible for anything beyond proof of concept prototype.

  5. Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Posts
    22,705
    #5
    "Proof of concept" or "Let's just do it for the hell of it" stage... you mean...

    20-30k for the motors... and the battery packs for a 100 kilometer (or much less) range cost about 80,000 pesos (depending on the weight of the vehicle... at higher weights and speeds, the range goes down significantly).... Still.. it would be an interesting project if we could find some backers...

    As for the cleanliness of the energy... much of our power locally comes from hydroelectric and geothermal plants... so the overall carbon footprint is still reduced... at least for this country.

    Your biggest issue, really, is battery pack longevity (especially for the class of batteries you can buy in this price range) and fast, economical, recharging... which requires a high voltage line installed in your garage.

    Ang pagbalik ng comeback...

  6. Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Posts
    3,601
    #6
    Not to mention that it's almost always necessary to use the car's electronics (A/C, stereo, headlights and wipers when it rains) so that's quite a lot of electronics to consider. And if you run out of juice, what happens? Di naman pwede i-jumpstart. You'll need to bring a generator that can charge the car, that generator will require fuel, and we go back to the internal combustion engine...

  7. Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Posts
    29,354
    #7
    Quote Originally Posted by mbeige View Post
    Not to mention that it's almost always necessary to use the car's electronics (A/C, stereo, headlights and wipers when it rains) so that's quite a lot of electronics to consider. And if you run out of juice, what happens? Di naman pwede i-jumpstart. You'll need to bring a generator that can charge the car, that generator will require fuel, and we go back to the internal combustion engine...
    Actually, my proposed project is similar to a hybrid system which uses the car's original engine along with the electric drive. The electric drive would lower the HP needed to move the car using the engine alone. For shorter distances, you can use the electric system to move the car while the engine idles to power the A/C, power steering, brakes, radio, and lights.

  8. Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Posts
    5,994
    #8
    made me recall about the fastest electric milk delivery vehicle or whatever it is. lot's of batteries in it. if i remember clearly, there's a compact type battery with high outputs that even made world records on acceleration however the battery burns right after lol
    Damn, son! Where'd you find this?

  9. Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Posts
    3,601
    #9
    Quote Originally Posted by ghosthunter View Post
    Actually, my proposed project is similar to a hybrid system which uses the car's original engine along with the electric drive. The electric drive would lower the HP needed to move the car using the engine alone. For shorter distances, you can use the electric system to move the car while the engine idles to power the A/C, power steering, brakes, radio, and lights.
    I was talking about the Getz, which, according to the article, had an electric motor, not a gas-electric hybrid.

    The electric drive should provide more torque to get the car off the line quicker, to minimize fuel consumption at that acceleration point (which is almost always high).

    How are you going to adapt the engine shut off feature when the driver only wants the electric motor to run instead? And vice versa, how are you going to start it instantly - the moment it needs more power, the engine turns on?

  10. Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Posts
    29,354
    #10
    Quote Originally Posted by mbeige View Post
    I was talking about the Getz, which, according to the article, had an electric motor, not a gas-electric hybrid.

    The electric drive should provide more torque to get the car off the line quicker, to minimize fuel consumption at that acceleration point (which is almost always high).

    How are you going to adapt the engine shut off feature when the driver only wants the electric motor to run instead? And vice versa, how are you going to start it instantly - the moment it needs more power, the engine turns on?
    In my proposed design, there is no automatic shut-off/start-up system.

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emission-free converted hyundai getz