The Elio Engine

[Horn]

Not me. I've had cables stretch, bind up, and break. I've never had a problem with an electronic throttle. Either way, it wouldn't be a difference in whether I buy the Elio or not... But I think an electronic throttle is the better way to go.


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Realistically the chance of it stetching/snapping is slim. Probably the same as an electronic issue.

I had a clutch cable snap on my car....$15 later and it was fixed.
Now look at the issues you could have with a hydraulic cluch system. Bad master cylinder, bad slave cylinder, line....then you have to bleed.

No point really in arguing. Lol. Just preference. If the elio comes out, I'd prefer it to be as simple as possible.

 

[W. WIllie]

KISS.....................Then we can modify what we want.

 

[Horn]

You left out manual steering in cars with power steering, it's hard, but you can still steer with the engine off.
That won't be a problem in the Elio since it doesn't have power steering.

and W. Willie is correct, it is 2 clicks; it's been a standard since 2000.
If you turn an WOT runaway off, then back on, it will start the engine again. It would have to be off for a while (like till it stops spinning).

Yep. Manual steering is no problem on light cars. Not much of a difference at higher speed either.

I didn't mean starting the engine back up. I was thinking of steering lock, but that was on cars older than 2000. I would try hypermiling and the key would skip the first click and go to the second. I would immediately click it forward once to get the manual steering back. It would not start the engine.

I can hear the grinding of the starter and flywheel teeth. So horrible. Lol

 

[Horn]

W. Willie....i want your insight!

 

[Marshall]

I know little about mechanics, but I would worry about hacking unless the electronics is isolated from the cloud.

 

[bunchathrees]

The only time I had a throttle stick was a mechanical system. Even thought that particular engine didn't have a throttle plate (diesel), a throttle plate can stick whether it is mechanical or electronic. In fact, there are more failure points on a mechanical system than an electronic one.

If the throttle on the Camry feels odd, it's probably just the very disconnected feeling of some cars (and Toyota is notorious for this). I have driven drive-by-wire sports cars that feel every bit as connected as a cable or rod linkage.

I also like that the pedal can be remapped for a sportier response when desired. My Abarth does that when you press the Sport button. It also adds about 20 horsepower, tightens up the steering, and changes the shifting for a sportier drive.


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I am glad you pointed out the disconnected feel. There are many Makes and Models which just do not give enough feedback to the driver. This has kept me out of Toyota and GM products. Every now and then I check back in, but there is nothing quite like our Acura for complete driving sensation.

 

[Maurtis]

In terms of WOT, most cars should hit their rev limiter. I think you would be surprised how long a modern engine can operate at WOT with the limiter.

Agreed, on modern cars just let the engine bounce off the rev limiter for a while. No danger unless the car has been modified with an aftermarket ECU or reflashed to remove the rev limiter. If you watch drifting videos, those guys are always bouncing off the rev limiter and that is with motors making more power than stock. I hit it a few times on my bikes when not paying attention while passing without issue too.

Regarding turning off the car one click or two, that is harder when you have pushbutton start/stop.

 

[bighammer]

Early 70's Chevy Vega made a lot of people wary of aluminum engines. There were a combination of issues that led to its problems. GM decided that eliminating liners in the cylinders, they could save $8/engine. Reynolds Aluminum had created a new alloy that performed well, cutting the liners should not have been an issue. There were some cooling system design problems, that made the engine sensitive to overheating. Higher heat would weaken the new alloy, and you'd have scuffed bores, higher oil consumption, etc.

The aluminum block was very light, but more expensive to make. To further cut costs, a cast iron head was used to keep a higher profit margin. (yes, it weighed more than the block, and made it sort of top-heavy) The differences in their thermal properties created even more problems.

Aluminum is the most common motorcycle engine material. I have a Suzuki SV650, and it's a great example of low cost, bullet-proof power. I'm not concerned about the Elio engine at all.

 

[voyager]

I happened to come across Nissan's astonishing 1.5 liter 3 cyl. engine, called DIG-T R that promises 400 hp from a block that weighs only 40 kg, and that was also covered in this thread. Did Paul Elio in fact approach them? I wonder what a tuned down version (say back to 1 liter and 100 hp) might mean for economy...

 

[Ekh]

If you read up on that and then you learn that it has a very short time between overhauls. Measured in hours. Like three or some such