With gas prices being so high, alternative fuel vehicles have become a popular topic. Two of the types of vehicles that tend to get a lot of press are the hydrogen fuel cell powered vehicles and electric powered vehicles. Both are lauded as the way of the future
But which of these two options are really has the better chance of being the car your children drive.
Let’s look at hydrogen fuel cells first. When burned in an engine, the only emissions giving off is water, so a hydrogen powered vehicle is a zero emission vehicle. Hydrogen is also a better fuel than gasoline, it actually has the highest energy content per unit of weight of any known fuel.
Hydrogen is also a very abundant element. While current methods for making hydrogen are done by using fossil fuels, such as natural gas, coal, and oil, American wouldn’t be dependent on foreign oil anymore. Also, hydrogen can be extracted from water, and we all know there’s a lot of water on this planet.
However, hydrogen is not without its share of drawbacks. Probably the biggest problem right now is that it would require an entire new infrastructure. While gas stations could be outfitted with hydrogen fueling stations that would take years. Also, the technology to store hydrogen efficiently is still not ready for prime time.
Then there’s the electric car. Electric cars can also be considered zero emission vehicles since they give off no emission when running. However, electric cars do require power from the electric grid, which does give off emissions. As the electric grid gets cleaner, though, so do electric cars, and electric powered cars are substantially less polluting than gasoline powered cars due to the fact that power plants are far cleaner and more efficient than an internal combustion engine in a vehicle.
The technology for mainstream electric cars is also not quite ready for all the major manufacturers to stop making gasoline powered cars, but it’s much closer than hydrogen currently is. The challenge with electric cars right now is the batteries. The batteries are both expensive and current models, like the Tesla Roadster, have a range of only 250 miles – great for commuting, but not so good for road trips. The other problem is the length of time these vehicles take to charge. It’s not simply a matter stopping at your local power station and plugging in for five minutes and leaving. A typical charging cycle for current prototypes is 4-5 hours – again, fine if you’re commuting, but impossible for a road trip. While technology is being developed to make charging your vehicle as quick as quick as filling up with gas, it has a ways to go before it’s ready, just like hydrogen fuel cells.
Fleets of electric cars will certainly be hitting the roads sooner hydrogen fuel cell cars, but which one ultimately ends up being the vehicle of choice for American drivers remains to be seen as both have plenty of challenges to overcome before people will readily give up their cheap gas powered cars in favor of these alternatives.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Comparing Hydrogen Powered Cars To Electric Cars
With gas prices being so high, alternative fuel vehicles have become a popular topic. Two of the types of vehicles that tend to get a lot of press are the hydrogen fuel cell powered vehicles and electric powered vehicles. Both are lauded as the way of the future
But which of these two options are really has the better chance of being the car your children drive.
Let’s look at hydrogen fuel cells first. When burned in an engine, the only emissions giving off is water, so a hydrogen powered vehicle is a zero emission vehicle. Hydrogen is also a better fuel than gasoline, it actually has the highest energy content per unit of weight of any known fuel.
Hydrogen is also a very abundant element. While current methods for making hydrogen are done by using fossil fuels, such as natural gas, coal, and oil, American wouldn’t be dependent on foreign oil anymore. Also, hydrogen can be extracted from water, and we all know there’s a lot of water on this planet.
However, hydrogen is not without its share of drawbacks. Probably the biggest problem right now is that it would require an entire new infrastructure. While gas stations could be outfitted with hydrogen fueling stations that would take years. Also, the technology to store hydrogen efficiently is still not ready for prime time.
Then there’s the electric car. Electric cars can also be considered zero emission vehicles since they give off no emission when running. However, electric cars do require power from the electric grid, which does give off emissions. As the electric grid gets cleaner, though, so do electric cars, and electric powered cars are substantially less polluting than gasoline powered cars due to the fact that power plants are far cleaner and more efficient than an internal combustion engine in a vehicle.
The technology for mainstream electric cars is also not quite ready for all the major manufacturers to stop making gasoline powered cars, but it’s much closer than hydrogen currently is. The challenge with electric cars right now is the batteries. The batteries are both expensive and current models, like the Tesla Roadster, have a range of only 250 miles – great for commuting, but not so good for road trips. The other problem is the length of time these vehicles take to charge. It’s not simply a matter stopping at your local power station and plugging in for five minutes and leaving. A typical charging cycle for current prototypes is 4-5 hours – again, fine if you’re commuting, but impossible for a road trip. While technology is being developed to make charging your vehicle as quick as quick as filling up with gas, it has a ways to go before it’s ready, just like hydrogen fuel cells.
Fleets of electric cars will certainly be hitting the roads sooner hydrogen fuel cell cars, but which one ultimately ends up being the vehicle of choice for American drivers remains to be seen as both have plenty of challenges to overcome before people will readily give up their cheap gas powered cars in favor of these alternatives.
But which of these two options are really has the better chance of being the car your children drive.
Let’s look at hydrogen fuel cells first. When burned in an engine, the only emissions giving off is water, so a hydrogen powered vehicle is a zero emission vehicle. Hydrogen is also a better fuel than gasoline, it actually has the highest energy content per unit of weight of any known fuel.
Hydrogen is also a very abundant element. While current methods for making hydrogen are done by using fossil fuels, such as natural gas, coal, and oil, American wouldn’t be dependent on foreign oil anymore. Also, hydrogen can be extracted from water, and we all know there’s a lot of water on this planet.
However, hydrogen is not without its share of drawbacks. Probably the biggest problem right now is that it would require an entire new infrastructure. While gas stations could be outfitted with hydrogen fueling stations that would take years. Also, the technology to store hydrogen efficiently is still not ready for prime time.
Then there’s the electric car. Electric cars can also be considered zero emission vehicles since they give off no emission when running. However, electric cars do require power from the electric grid, which does give off emissions. As the electric grid gets cleaner, though, so do electric cars, and electric powered cars are substantially less polluting than gasoline powered cars due to the fact that power plants are far cleaner and more efficient than an internal combustion engine in a vehicle.
The technology for mainstream electric cars is also not quite ready for all the major manufacturers to stop making gasoline powered cars, but it’s much closer than hydrogen currently is. The challenge with electric cars right now is the batteries. The batteries are both expensive and current models, like the Tesla Roadster, have a range of only 250 miles – great for commuting, but not so good for road trips. The other problem is the length of time these vehicles take to charge. It’s not simply a matter stopping at your local power station and plugging in for five minutes and leaving. A typical charging cycle for current prototypes is 4-5 hours – again, fine if you’re commuting, but impossible for a road trip. While technology is being developed to make charging your vehicle as quick as quick as filling up with gas, it has a ways to go before it’s ready, just like hydrogen fuel cells.
Fleets of electric cars will certainly be hitting the roads sooner hydrogen fuel cell cars, but which one ultimately ends up being the vehicle of choice for American drivers remains to be seen as both have plenty of challenges to overcome before people will readily give up their cheap gas powered cars in favor of these alternatives.
Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cars
Hydrogen fuel cell cars, water power cars, whatever you call them it all comes down to the same thing and that’s cheap clean fuel. In the past people have been reluctant to use hydrogen technology, but now because of the unstable oil and gasoline prices and the poor state of the economy it seems that everyone is looking for alternative energy and cheaper fuels, and hydrogen for cars is gaining in popularity as a way to cut the high cost of motoring.
The Earth is made up of over 75% water and with this in mind scientists have been experimenting for years to try to make a viable fuel using water. Although it is impossible to power an engine or vehicle using just water alone, it has been proven that it can be used as an additive or supplement to other fuels to increase their potency and this is where hydrogen for cars comes in.
Although it sounds futuristic and a little bit Sci-Fi hydrogen technology is not new and has in fact been around for some time. However due to enormous pressure from the big gas and oil companies a lot of the information about hydrogen for cars, and water power cars has been suppressed and even ridiculed. (Let’s face it, if we all had water power cars they would no longer be able to make the huge profits that they do now).
There are now thousands of hydrogen fuel cell cars being driven around using plain old water as a supplement to gasoline and getting gas mileage improvements of over 50%. These water power cars have not been purchased from car dealers or manufacturers but have been converted by their owners. There are a couple of ways that you can convert your own cars into hydrogen fuel cell cars, you can either buy a complete hydrogen generator kit (these tend to be a bit expensive) with everything you need, or you can buy all the parts that you need yourself from auto stores and then simply download a step by step instruction guide from the internet to build your own water power cars from scratch.
Once your cars are converted into hydrogen fuel cell cars you can expect to get much better gas mileage, and also a cleaner burning engine which results in far less pollution being put into the atmosphere. Also this cleaner burning fuel is much kinder to you engine and helps to reduce the harmful carbon build up associated with an ordinary gasoline burning engine, helping to reduce the wear and tear and so cutting down on servicing and repairs.
So if you are one of the millions of people who are looking for cheaper or alternative fuels for their vehicles you really should consider converting your cars into hydrogen fuel cell cars. It is so easy and affordable for anyone to convert their existing cars into water power cars that this is by far the best alternative source of cheap fuel. If you want to save a fortune on the high cost of gasoline then do yourself a favour and build your own water power cars NOW.
The Earth is made up of over 75% water and with this in mind scientists have been experimenting for years to try to make a viable fuel using water. Although it is impossible to power an engine or vehicle using just water alone, it has been proven that it can be used as an additive or supplement to other fuels to increase their potency and this is where hydrogen for cars comes in.
Although it sounds futuristic and a little bit Sci-Fi hydrogen technology is not new and has in fact been around for some time. However due to enormous pressure from the big gas and oil companies a lot of the information about hydrogen for cars, and water power cars has been suppressed and even ridiculed. (Let’s face it, if we all had water power cars they would no longer be able to make the huge profits that they do now).
There are now thousands of hydrogen fuel cell cars being driven around using plain old water as a supplement to gasoline and getting gas mileage improvements of over 50%. These water power cars have not been purchased from car dealers or manufacturers but have been converted by their owners. There are a couple of ways that you can convert your own cars into hydrogen fuel cell cars, you can either buy a complete hydrogen generator kit (these tend to be a bit expensive) with everything you need, or you can buy all the parts that you need yourself from auto stores and then simply download a step by step instruction guide from the internet to build your own water power cars from scratch.
Once your cars are converted into hydrogen fuel cell cars you can expect to get much better gas mileage, and also a cleaner burning engine which results in far less pollution being put into the atmosphere. Also this cleaner burning fuel is much kinder to you engine and helps to reduce the harmful carbon build up associated with an ordinary gasoline burning engine, helping to reduce the wear and tear and so cutting down on servicing and repairs.
So if you are one of the millions of people who are looking for cheaper or alternative fuels for their vehicles you really should consider converting your cars into hydrogen fuel cell cars. It is so easy and affordable for anyone to convert their existing cars into water power cars that this is by far the best alternative source of cheap fuel. If you want to save a fortune on the high cost of gasoline then do yourself a favour and build your own water power cars NOW.
Fast Cars & Super Cars
For the rich and famous it seems to be a statement of success when they own the very expensive fast and super cars. These fast, super cars will usually be found in areas such as Hollywood, Las Vegas, or New York since these are the places where the rich and famous usually work and live. In other countries you might find royalty and upper members of government sporting these cars but few members of the working class will ever have the money to buy one.
Fast Cars, Super Cars – Looking At The Models
The exotic Ferrari Modena is a popular Ferrari model which offers a six speed transmission, a V8 engine, and will get about 11 to 16 mpg. With a price tag of $152,000, this car is capable of doing 189 mph and reaching 60 mph in 4.2 seconds.
One of the top of the line super cars, which is also a fast car, is the Lamborghini. The current Sypder is considered to be one of the most popular super cars available. Voted as the most beautiful car in the world, the Spyder sports a V10 which reaches a speed of 195 mph with the roof up and 191 mph with the roof down. It comes with a price tag of $195,000. Its lightweight aluminum frame allows the car to reach faster speeds and it can do a quarter mile in 12.2 seconds, reaching a speed of 122 mph.
If you want to come down a little closer to earth you might want to take a look at the Dodge Viper. It also offers a V10 which can reach speeds of 190 mph, will do 0-60 in 3.8 seconds, and a quarter mile in 11.9 seconds. The Viper is rated for 10 to 20 mpg and comes with a price tag of $80,000. This makes the Viper a super car which is a fast car with a more affordable price tag.
A never-ending classic super car is the Corvette which is put out by none other than Chevrolet. This American icon has been around for several years and continues to improve with age. Available in a coupe or convertible, you can choose from several color combinations. You also have the choice of a 6 or 7 liter engine, and the starting price is about $66,000. These cars have withstood the test of time and continue to be one of the most popular sport cars on the market today.
Fast Cars, Super Cars – Looking At The Models
The exotic Ferrari Modena is a popular Ferrari model which offers a six speed transmission, a V8 engine, and will get about 11 to 16 mpg. With a price tag of $152,000, this car is capable of doing 189 mph and reaching 60 mph in 4.2 seconds.
One of the top of the line super cars, which is also a fast car, is the Lamborghini. The current Sypder is considered to be one of the most popular super cars available. Voted as the most beautiful car in the world, the Spyder sports a V10 which reaches a speed of 195 mph with the roof up and 191 mph with the roof down. It comes with a price tag of $195,000. Its lightweight aluminum frame allows the car to reach faster speeds and it can do a quarter mile in 12.2 seconds, reaching a speed of 122 mph.
If you want to come down a little closer to earth you might want to take a look at the Dodge Viper. It also offers a V10 which can reach speeds of 190 mph, will do 0-60 in 3.8 seconds, and a quarter mile in 11.9 seconds. The Viper is rated for 10 to 20 mpg and comes with a price tag of $80,000. This makes the Viper a super car which is a fast car with a more affordable price tag.
A never-ending classic super car is the Corvette which is put out by none other than Chevrolet. This American icon has been around for several years and continues to improve with age. Available in a coupe or convertible, you can choose from several color combinations. You also have the choice of a 6 or 7 liter engine, and the starting price is about $66,000. These cars have withstood the test of time and continue to be one of the most popular sport cars on the market today.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
2009 Best Car For the Money
It's a confusing time to be shopping for a new car. While there are some incredible deals to be had, many of those incentives are for cars that don't offer a lot of value in the long term. The U.S. News Best Car for the Money awards point out the cars that combine value with day-to-day livability. See who tops the list!
Monday, July 20, 2009
The Best Car Interiors of Today
Edsel bracelet from the bottom of the mug constantly bashed Acura TL is something that has been percolating the blood of more than eager to comment about the car's exterior style. But more fun is the ability to carry the bowl picture is designed vehicles that unfortunately in a room that is often true measure of our cars. Because to tell old. "You can not see from inside the car" and you will be spending the overwhelming majority of your time. Adjust seat and bathtub? Check. IPod docked and loaded? Check A / C off the set? Check. Cupholders stocked? You bet, and whether switching from running in brutal traffic, hitting your favorite stretch of road in the twisties or on a topic close to the long distance travel you can do it in the litter cottage. For example, many of the sheetmetal, interiors allows for more subjective analysis. A hard or soft plastic? Center is a stack. mish-mash of buttons or easy to use? About seat? Leg room? Cupholders right to drink the Big Apple my perspective? As you may recall those and many other points have endlessly debated and written about other comments by the crew here MT.Com world HQ. What is to our collection please interiors. Some have world more lovely patterns but all of them are cabins that grabbed our attention and hold it. Please let us know what you think about our choices and interiors where you will find most pleasing.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Cheap California Car Insurance Tips
Searching for cheap California Car Insurance?
It's as easy as logging onto the internet to Google for, well, cheap California auto insurance rate quotes. Simple enough. Seriously, while it appears that California is well known for charging some of the country's highest utility and gasoline costs, Golden State residents are not paying the country's highest automobile insurance rates. An online investigation will result in a plethora of quotes from numerous auto insurers. But do not stop at a simple search. There are a variety of means to realize a lower auto insurance quote, many of which are conveniently simple to implement. Specific items like investing in a lower profile automobile, driving fewer miles, or moving to a more insurance friendly state are many times neither desirable nor even possible options. A number of of us would very much enjoy a high-profile, sporty car like a new sports car, or maybe a sweet Mercedez Benz. Many drivers are required to commute quite a distance to our place of work, but moving? That seems a bit extreme, especially just to save a little bit of money on auto insurance.
What are the alternatives? Well, for any of you residing in California who are skeptical about your chances of obtaining a cheap auto insurance quote, especially given you preferences or place of residence, let me offer a couple of quote-lowering tips
It's as easy as logging onto the internet to Google for, well, cheap California auto insurance rate quotes. Simple enough. Seriously, while it appears that California is well known for charging some of the country's highest utility and gasoline costs, Golden State residents are not paying the country's highest automobile insurance rates. An online investigation will result in a plethora of quotes from numerous auto insurers. But do not stop at a simple search. There are a variety of means to realize a lower auto insurance quote, many of which are conveniently simple to implement. Specific items like investing in a lower profile automobile, driving fewer miles, or moving to a more insurance friendly state are many times neither desirable nor even possible options. A number of of us would very much enjoy a high-profile, sporty car like a new sports car, or maybe a sweet Mercedez Benz. Many drivers are required to commute quite a distance to our place of work, but moving? That seems a bit extreme, especially just to save a little bit of money on auto insurance.
What are the alternatives? Well, for any of you residing in California who are skeptical about your chances of obtaining a cheap auto insurance quote, especially given you preferences or place of residence, let me offer a couple of quote-lowering tips
Thursday, July 9, 2009
2013 Cars
Though the details are hazy this early in the game, CG's resident future-car expert, Chris Poole, digs deep to provide you with insightful articles about what's coming up for model-year 2013. The highlights include a possible convertible from Volkswagen based on the BlueSport Roadster concept and a redesigned BMW 3-Series. Stay tuned for more.
2012 Cars
A deluxe version of India’s new "people’s car,” the Tata Nano America, should come to America with a chump-change $7,000 price. Add in urban-jungle agility, high mpg, and surprising space, and this cute puppy could spell trouble for other U.S.-market minicars.It may seem like a ways off, but we have some preliminary inside info about what's on tap for model-year 2012, such as the 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS Class and 2012 Carbon E7. Check back for updates about these future cars.
2011 Cars
The stylish Verve concept previewed Ford’s promised subcompact challenger to Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and other “B-Class” cars. The styling will change--as well as the name--but a Mazda foundation ups the chances for success.Read about the 2011 Fiesta and other 2011 models, such as the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee, here.
Future Cars
Our future cars article section is the new-car showroom of tomorrow. The links to articles on the following pages give you what you need to decide whether to buy today, or wait for what's on the horizon.Learn about scores of new cars, trucks, and SUVs going on sale in the coming months and years. These articles include news, pictures, analysis, prices, and specifications on 2011, 2012, and even 2013 models.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Best Cars Performance
Best Car Performance engine goes to AMG's 6.2-litre unit, which can be found in various states of tune in a variety of flagship Mercs - and which we'll be sampling in 518bhp form shortly in the E-Class E 63 AMG. Categories are separated by capacity, from sub-1.0-litre up to 4.0-litre and above, with this year's winners including Toyota's 1.0-litre engine from the iQ, BMW's 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel, and the BMW/PSA 1.6-litre turbo found in the MINI Cooper S. Here's a full list of the winners:
International Engine of the Year 2009: Volkswagen 1.4-litre TSI Twincharger
Best New Engine of the Year: Porsche 3.8-litre flat six
Green Engine of the Year: Volkswagen 1.4-litre TSI Twincharger
Best Performance Engine: Mercedes-AMG 6.2-litre
Sub 1-litre: Toyota 1.0-litre
1-litre to 1.4-litre: Volkswagen 1.4-litre TSI Twincharger
1.4-litre to 1.8-litre: BMW-PSA 1.6-litre Turbo
1.8-litre to 2-litre: Audi 2-litre TFSI
2-litre to 2.5-litre: Mercedes-Benz Diesel 2.1-litre
2.5-litre to 3-litre: BMW 3-litre DI Twin-Turbo
3-litre to 4-litre: BMW 4-litre V8
Above 4-litre: Mercedes-AMG 6.2-litre
International Engine of the Year 2009: Volkswagen 1.4-litre TSI Twincharger
Best New Engine of the Year: Porsche 3.8-litre flat six
Green Engine of the Year: Volkswagen 1.4-litre TSI Twincharger
Best Performance Engine: Mercedes-AMG 6.2-litre
Sub 1-litre: Toyota 1.0-litre
1-litre to 1.4-litre: Volkswagen 1.4-litre TSI Twincharger
1.4-litre to 1.8-litre: BMW-PSA 1.6-litre Turbo
1.8-litre to 2-litre: Audi 2-litre TFSI
2-litre to 2.5-litre: Mercedes-Benz Diesel 2.1-litre
2.5-litre to 3-litre: BMW 3-litre DI Twin-Turbo
3-litre to 4-litre: BMW 4-litre V8
Above 4-litre: Mercedes-AMG 6.2-litre
Porsche
Porsche's 3.8-litre direct injection flat-six engine from the Porsche 911 Carrera S won best new engine, seeing off competition from the ubiquitous BMW 3.0-litre diesel unit from '30' monikered cars and Jaguar's impressive new supercharged 5.0-litre V8 found in the XKR and XFR. The panel of judges chose Porsche's lump for its combination of fuel economy and response, as well as its significant decrease in CO2 output compared to the 3.6-litre engine it replaced.
BMW
BMW's twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre diesel came a very close second, with Audi's 2.0-litre TFSI engine third. But VW's TSI unit was just too good for them, impressing all of the 64 judges from 32 countries that made up the panel. Chairman of the awards, Dean Slavnich, said: "the fact that it wins both the overall award and our Best Green Engine prize indicates that you can have performance and efficiency in one package."
Volkswagen
Volkswagen has walked away with the International Engine of the Year 2009 gong, in a competition acknowledged as the closest ever by judges. The 1.4-litre lump - which debuted back in 2006 - is both supercharged and turbocharged, which allows it to perform like a much bigger engine while returning fuel economy of a small capacity unit.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Best Cars in the World - Champ Car
Champ Car was the name for a class and specification of cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race. Such racing has also been sanctioned by the American Automobile Association, the United States Auto Club (USAC), the Sports Car Club of America, the Championship Racing League, and the Indy Racing League (IRL).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)