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How To Build A 100 Mpg Car

zelio

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A fascinating article on what it would take. With current technology, a four seater is projected to be $50-70,000 in volume. Also includes a recap of current high mileage vehicles.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/fuel-economy/3374271?click=main_sr
I didn't read the entire article but I did notice the second paragraph. A statement that the driver had used solar panels to recharge his car. I can't help but wonder what kind of weight that added to the car. :-) Z
 

RUCRAYZE

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A fascinating article on what it would take. With current technology, a four seater is projected to be $50-70,000 in volume. Also includes a recap of current high mileage vehicles.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/fuel-economy/3374271?click=main_sr

using lots of solar, light weight, and a straight run, remember seeing a clip from Australia of college teams running one gal of gas From what little I do remember (CRACK) is a bi_ _h- they easily went over 200 mpg, yea it'll never be a "real" car, and it looked like a cockroach with the panels but it was cool
 

Jeff Porter

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NSTG8R

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Okay, this is HIGHLY controversial, but in the diesel forums (specifically big trucks), adding HHO via a hydrogen generator (electrically energized metal plates breaking down water into Brown's gas [hydrogen and oxygen]) and adding to the intake air "allegedly" can give drastic mpg improvements. I've been reading up on it off and on for a year or so since it's so cheap ($50) to make your own with stuff from the hardware store, that I might whip one up to test on my F250 ('96 7.3L Powerstroke). Diesel's have the advantage that they don't have MAFs, MAPs or O2 sensors to adjust the fuel flow via the ECU. There's some mods that need to be done to a gasoline engine to keep the computer from adding more fuel due to the increased oxygen in the exhaust (they say), but there's plenty of open source sites that for the EFIE (electronic fuel injection enhancer) to trick the computer into thinking everything's cool. They claim anywhere from 30% to over 100% increase in mpg.

Waiting for Snick to chime in and tell me I've got a "mental disorder" (RE: Orange Balls) thinking this could be real. ;)
 

Ty

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Okay, this is HIGHLY controversial, but in the diesel forums (specifically big trucks), adding HHO via a hydrogen generator (electrically energized metal plates breaking down water into Brown's gas [hydrogen and oxygen]) and adding to the intake air "allegedly" can give drastic mpg improvements. I've been reading up on it off and on for a year or so since it's so cheap ($50) to make your own with stuff from the hardware store, that I might whip one up to test on my F250 ('96 7.3L Powerstroke). Diesel's have the advantage that they don't have MAFs, MAPs or O2 sensors to adjust the fuel flow via the ECU. There's some mods that need to be done to a gasoline engine to keep the computer from adding more fuel due to the increased oxygen in the exhaust (they say), but there's plenty of open source sites that for the EFIE (electronic fuel injection enhancer) to trick the computer into thinking everything's cool. They claim anywhere from 30% to over 100% increase in mpg.

Waiting for Snick to chime in and tell me I've got a "mental disorder" (RE: Orange Balls) thinking this could be real. ;)
I also suffer from big truck low mileage syndrome. HHO won't work. It requires more power to make the gas than the gas will produce. It would be nice but the fact is that Ford and GM compete so hard on mileage that if it were that easy, it would be standard. It's easy enough to make the gas though. Skip the injection part at first and see how much gas you can make.
 

karl

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I didn't read the entire article but I did notice the second paragraph. A statement that the driver had used solar panels to recharge his car. I can't help but wonder what kind of weight that added to the car. :) Z
There are solar panels now as thick as 35mm film (if you can remember that) The adhesive to hold it on would be about as heavy.
 

ross

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Okay, this is HIGHLY controversial, but in the diesel forums (specifically big trucks), adding HHO via a hydrogen generator (electrically energized metal plates breaking down water into Brown's gas [hydrogen and oxygen]) and adding to the intake air "allegedly" can give drastic mpg improvements. I've been reading up on it off and on for a year or so since it's so cheap ($50) to make your own with stuff from the hardware store, that I might whip one up to test on my F250 ('96 7.3L Powerstroke). Diesel's have the advantage that they don't have MAFs, MAPs or O2 sensors to adjust the fuel flow via the ECU. There's some mods that need to be done to a gasoline engine to keep the computer from adding more fuel due to the increased oxygen in the exhaust (they say), but there's plenty of open source sites that for the EFIE (electronic fuel injection enhancer) to trick the computer into thinking everything's cool. They claim anywhere from 30% to over 100% increase in mpg.

Waiting for Snick to chime in and tell me I've got a "mental disorder" (RE: Orange Balls) thinking this could be real. ;)
I built a hydrogen generator and put it on my '85 diesel rabbit, hooked it up to a relay off the headlight/parklight switch so as not to generate explosive gas without the engine running. I built it for less than $30.00 and went from 35 mpg to 45 mpg with just one unit. I was going to install a second unit when Chrysler came out with the Lifetime powertrain warranty and I went down and bought my PT loser and unloaded the rabbit.
 

NSTG8R

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I also suffer from big truck low mileage syndrome. HHO won't work. It requires more power to make the gas than the gas will produce. It would be nice but the fact is that Ford and GM compete so hard on mileage that if it were that easy, it would be standard. It's easy enough to make the gas though. Skip the injection part at first and see how much gas you can make.


That's kind of what I've heard! BUT there's also a lot of people that say they've gotten impressive results using HHO. All anecdotal for sure. Apparently, it's not the volume (LPM) that matters, but a certain ratio that does the trick to increase mpg. There's no doubt that a HHO generator actually makes a highly flammable gas. It's "supposed to" improve the combustion of the fuel being used. I've seen statements that too much HHO actually degrades the effects. There are kits to supplement diesel engines with propane (straight propane, no additional oxygen as there is in HHO), but having a propane tank stuffed in the frame of my truck kind of scares me...it's not always "on the road". The dry cells (on demand) type HHO generator's are what interest me. As for "requires more power than the gas will produce" seems valid, but I can also find "claims" that since the alternator is cranking out "X" voltage anyway, and only requires "X" hp to produce the HHO (5 amps if the HHO generator is built correctly) that the amount to "improve" combustion is a very small amount (1.8 lpm). I'm not quite convinced yet, but for the price of experimenting with it (I'm getting 18mpg with the truck now...consistently), and the weather getting crappy, I might go ahead and give it a try. If I can get any amount of improvement in mpg on my truck, I will consider trying to retrofit a HHO generator to my Elio (Subaru will be the first guinea pig). Interesting to see that Ross went from 35 to 45 mpg with a HHO unit...that's impressive!
 

CheeseheadEarl

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(snip) ...the amount to "improve" combustion is a very small amount (1.8 lpm).

A naturally aspirated 6L diesel is pumping (ignoring volumetric efficiency losses, for simple math purposes) 4500 l/min of air, turbo motors more yet.

Does anyone really believe that changing the makeup of 4 ONE HUNDREDTHS OF ONE PERCENT (.0004) of that volume will make a real, measureable, difference?

Snake oil, y'all.
 
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