Top Gear: Season 13

[Xinger]

Originally Posted by equinox22

And 50 years later when you have your electric supercar, you will also have the latest means to ensure you never go above 40 kmph.

Won't be necessary. In fact the Tesla S (mentioned by Jassi above) already has a speed limiter built in -

The standard Model S will do 0-60 mph in under six seconds and will have an electronically limited top speed of 130 mph, with sport versions expected to achieve 0-60 mph acceleration well below five seconds! ~ from Tesla website

The reason it won't be necessary is this - in technology already in advanced stages of development (I think some production cars already have it), there will be such a thing as automatic collision prevention built into cars. So cars will will communicate electronically with each other, with sensors built into the road, and with a centralized traffic control to ensure that there are no accidents however fast you are going.

Sure, all this will take away the inherent sense of danger (which is half the thrill of driving fast) but I'm sure die-hard speed freaks will find a way around anything to get that rush. They always do!

[sujaylahiri]

Originally Posted by Xinger

These are the same kind of things they said when the horse-and-buggy was about to be replaced by the internal combustion engine! And 25 or 50 or a hundred years down the line, this will be the same kind of things that are said when a newer, better technology replaces fuel cells as the primary energy source of personal transportation. And there will be naysayers even then... "how can water/air/garbage ever replace electricity as fuel in our cars," they'll say. "It'll never happen..." "I hope to never live to see the day..." etc etc.

Even today, most of the concept cars that companies come up with use some kind of fuel cell/hybrid technology. And yes, some of these are high-performance sports cars. And they do actually manage sports car-like performance! I have no doubt that inside of 10 years a sports car running on some kind of alternative fuel technology will easily outperform today's so-called 'supercars.'

Let's face it, Jeremy is a very entertaining host, but he belongs firmly to the middle part of the 20th century.

No horse and buggy could match the performance and excitement of today's sports cars. And even these sports cars have been watered down nowadays with electronic nannies like top speed and rev limiters, a million bulky airbags, automatic transmissions etc. I'm all for road safety but they should at least make some cars these days which are just pure fun, nothing else.

As far as newer technologies are concerned, if we are not hovering around in our personal supersonic rocket cars with thrust vectoring within the next 30 years, then I'll be really disappointed. Other than that, the basic internal combustion engine has stayed the same for the past 100 years with a few minor tweaks here and there.

Running a battery powered electric motor in conjunction with a gasoline engine is no big achievement and cannot be termed as "new" technology. It's just a new idea. Next they'll tie down a horse to your car and call it a 1hp hybrid motor.

[14000rpm]

Originally Posted by sujaylahiri

Running a battery powered electric motor in conjunction with a gasoline engine is no big achievement and cannot be termed as "new" technology. It's just a new idea.

ain't a new technology but I've ended up hybridising a reva! yupp, we plonked in a 400cc lombardini diesel engine in the so called luggage bay in the front and made it to charge the batteries continously getting rid of its range issue.
benefit, diesel engine running at max efficiency rpm gives tremendous FE and the motors having good torque pulls out nice and easy in traffic. a little noisy i admit. but it was worth the effort.

[Nitronium]

Originally Posted by 14000rpm

ain't a new technology but I've ended up hybridising a reva! yupp, we plonked in a 400cc lombardini diesel engine in the so called luggage bay in the front and made it to charge the batteries continously getting rid of its range issue.
benefit, diesel engine running at max efficiency rpm gives tremendous FE and the motors having good torque pulls out nice and easy in traffic. a little noisy i admit. but it was worth the effort.

Explain it in detail in the Technical Stuff thread please! Sounds very interesting

[14000rpm]

Originally Posted by Nitronium

Explain it in detail in the Technical Stuff thread please! Sounds very interesting

Geez thanks. But,I can't put too much of information coz I assisted a group of students and honestly it was their project. I fabricated it all for them. The interface module was integrated by them and I have ever since not heard from them. last I heard they got very good reviews for the job. We made the entire roof a panoramic roof!! and made the engine bay in Sheetmetal for handling the heat. I've asked one of them boys to post the details here. lets see.
Its unfair to lay claim to that project. you know what I'm saying.

[Nikhilb2008]

Man! I'm missing the show already. Withdrawal symptoms :(