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The Pub For General Automotive Related Talk |
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#31 | |||
Regular Member
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 179
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Quote:
Well not really as the petrol motor on the Volt will kick in to get you home the last 6km's. However unlike the Prius the petrol motor is only used as a generator for the electric engine, the electric motor is the only drive unit in the car. All up the range is suppose to be over 450km for the Volt, more than handy! |
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#32 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-new...0615-yb01.html
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Daniel |
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#33 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://www.caradvice.com.au/70669/el...hunter-region/
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Daniel |
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#34 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-new...0625-z4fr.html
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Daniel |
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#35 | ||
Pity the fool
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Wait Awhile
Posts: 8,997
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One of the things that irks me with the argument about the current crop of hybrids is the "innovation" word. Toyota has had mass-market hybrids out for over 10 years now and they are still the same basic configuration and still rely on the petrol engine for speeds greater than peak hour driving.
Now, Hyundai's hybrid Elantra with an LPG fuelled sustainer engine instead of petrol, that's much better. Less harmful emissions too.
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Fords I own or have owned: 1970 XW Falcon GT replica ![]() Proud to buy Australian and support Ford Australia through thick and thin |
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#36 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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Well this is the second organisation to produce a fast charge to a battery (the other mob was a university which would fully charge a battery but required tremendous amounts of power).
http://www.caradvice.com.au/72980/jf...-fast-charger/ Quote:
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Daniel |
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#37 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://www.caradvice.com.au/79427/ch...race-dongfeng/
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Daniel |
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#38 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://www.autoblog.com/2010/11/01/j...-be-overhyped/
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Daniel |
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#39 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Sydney
Posts: 1,868
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Anyone interested , there was a brilliant documentary made a few years back called " Who Killed The Electric Car " exposing the cynical way G.M. got round selling cars in California by offering the EV1 in its range to dodge paying massive environmental fees . Then at the end of their leases crushed every one .
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#40 | |||
VFII SS UTE
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Central Coast
Posts: 6,353
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Quote:
EV1 and rav4/EV and honda all had to drop development.. so any EV/hybred must run on substandard, lead acid/li'on batterys..
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I don't often hear the sound of a screaming LSX. But when I do, So do the neighbours.. GO SOUTHS
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#41 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 4,167
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There will be no use importing all those EV cars from China if there are no charging stations. 50,000 EV's sitting on the docks going NOWHERE. Flat batteries. And thats how we can protect our industry.
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igodabigblackshinycar and I relented and allowed a BMW into the garage. ![]() |
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#42 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-new...105-17gvh.html
Quote:
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Daniel |
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#43 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://www.caradvice.com.au/91499/in...ge-from-china/
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Daniel |
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#44 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-new...225-1b8sa.html
Quote:
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Daniel |
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#45 | ||
Cruising...
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Perth
Posts: 3,819
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So if i buy an electric car, can it take me at least 600kms to the next town before needing a recharge? Available in practical size and weight? Decent performance? Available in 4wd?
No? No thanks....if the above is met then maybe....just maybe. Edit: Also affordable. By the way electricity is costing us now...
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FBT '98 BA XT '04 F100 4x4 '82 Subaru Outback '02 |
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#46 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: W.A.
Posts: 1,713
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January 1, 2015
CHINESE CARS NOW ALL THE BUZZ Chinese car-makers Chery and Geely have joined forces to buy out the mining companies responsible for 97% of the world's neodymium supply - now, they are the only manufacturers with affordable electric cars. Up to 100,000 are expected to flood the Australian market over the next five years... ![]()
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His: 2019 Ford Focus SA Trend with Driver Assist Pack: 1.5 Ecoboost 3-cylinder (yes, 3 cylinders!), 8-speed automatic in Ruby Red. ![]() Hers: 2020 Ford Puma JK: 1.0 Ecoboost 3-cylinder, 7-speed DCT in Frozen White. |
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#47 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...2578500022D780
Buyers shun green cars Quote:
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Daniel |
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#48 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: On The Footplate.
Posts: 5,086
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I still like the Fiesta Eco advert with a guy pasting up a big poster for the Prius with "Australias most fuel efficient car", and a woman parks a Fiesta directly in front of the picture of the Prius...then the guy looks down as if to say "D'oh!", and starts tearing off the picture of the Prius...
![]() the biggest "fear" with hybrid cars is the batteries...no one seems to want to talk about the elephant in the room: namely how long do the battery packs last and what do they cost to replace? How will it affect second (and third and fourth) hand sales in years to come and will they be worth anything? Can they justify the simply vast cost of a hybrid...that tiny little Miev thing is going to cost over $70,000!!! Hell, I've got a G6E worth a bit over $54,000 (when you tot up the options and all) in the driveway...I think I'll take that and just wear the extra fuel costs, thank you... Perhaps...just perhaps, if they made them look like normal cars, the "ordinary" as opposed to "dedicated green" people would buy them. Look at the hybrid Camry and hybrid Honda Civic...they look like perfectly normal cars except for the little "hybrid" badge on the back. The Prius sells in bigger numbers though than these two. This was explained by motoring journalists on a show I saw on TV a while back, who said that, generally, people who bought a hybrid not only wanted to own a hybrid, they more importantly wanted to be seen to be driving a hybrid...if your hybrid looks like any other car, how the hell can you feel smug about it and show off!!??? Hybrids are an interesting idea, but ultimately flawed. Too costly, not as fuel efficient as, say, a VW Golf Diesel or many other not-so-small cars available now, and they still have a stigma of future value and return on your not-inconsiderable investment in the thing. |
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#49 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: NSW
Posts: 4,324
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Hydrogen sounds good to me.
The hydrogen runs an electric motor. But hydrogen can be put into your car just as quick as petrol at a service station and you get as much range as a petrol car. No stupid 10 hours charge for 50kms range. They need to figure out how to make hydrogen cheap and easily available to everyone. I wish scientist could make a direct replacement for petrol. So we can still have ICE V8's Who can get excited over a car that sounds like a TV that makes that high pitch sound when it has just been turned on. |
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#50 | |||
Moderator
![]() ![]() Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Kenthurst
Posts: 40,394
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Quote:
That doco was excellent in showing who was actually in collusion with who. I think the EV1 worked too well ... and in the end the oil companies didn't like it ... and the government was brought in and the whole thing was quashed. Such a shame ... the vehicle at the time was actually well a head of its time .. and looked to be doing well in California. Government and greedy money hungry oil conglomerates came in and spoiled the party.
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The Current Stable 2016 SZII TS Territory RWD Petrol The Evolution of the EGA54D utes AU Workshop Build thread of EGA54D B-Series Workshop Build thread of EGA54D 2004 SX TX Territory AWD - Gone but not forgotten 2010 FG XT "The ex-rental" - Moved onto a new home Mechan1k's Flickr Page |
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#51 | |||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Sun City, North Australis
Posts: 4,274
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Quote:
Last week in Townsville (or was it Cairns???) anyhoo the local news here reported that ERGON energy had leased/ bought 8 fully electric cars for a trial. The ERGON carpark has an electrical outlet for charging them, cars have a range of 60 to 70km. The idea of the trial was to see how much infrastructure is needed, how its affected or gets affected by peak hour demand on the grid etc.. I honestly cant see electric cars being useful over long distances, but clearly in large cities where parking is a premium and high speed isnt needed, there is a niche market for them. In large capitol cities a lot of people commute to work now using electric trains and then bus the rest of the way to work. Maybe a trial where train commuters when they get to their destination can hire a car at the railway station to get into town, use the car for the day, then return it to the railway station at the end of the day?
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You've seen it, you've heard it and your still asking questions?? Don't write off the Goose until you see the box going into the hole.... |
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#52 | |||
Last warning
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Mornington Peninsula, Victoria HeadCount: 3
Posts: 11,194
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Quote:
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FALCN6 - Turbo, Air Bag Suspension - Hibernating EL GT - Supercharged NASCAR - 83 Thunderbird , Bagged DAILY - BA Fairlane Ghia, Boss 260 Turbo OFFROADER - Ford Explorer ![]() |
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#53 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Sun City, North Australis
Posts: 4,274
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Er.. people already pay stupid prices to park.
The idea is to remove/ keep peoples own car at home and use the electric one while at work because of the cars limited range. Im not saying its a solution, its an IDEA. This would get a few more people onto public transport and less cars on the freeway (giving people a nice fuzzy feeling)
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You've seen it, you've heard it and your still asking questions?? Don't write off the Goose until you see the box going into the hole.... |
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#54 | |||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 2,312
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Quote:
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My ride: 2007 Falcon Ute BF XR8 Orange, MTO. |
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#55 | |||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: NSW
Posts: 4,324
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Quote:
Our trains at work have a 16cylinder turbo diesel engine that runs 6 electric motors powering the wheels. I never really asked about it, is it supposed to be more fuel efficient or something? I know on a loaded coal train the 2 locomotives combined have a fuel consumption of more then 1500L/100kms. Yes that's correct they use one thousand five hundred litres of diesel for every 100kms they travel when loaded. ![]() I'd love to see how they can make it more fuel efficient. |
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#56 | |||
Meep Meep
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Southside
Posts: 1,513
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Quote:
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Thundering on.... |
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#57 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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Quote:
This Hybrid style used on heavy earthmoving machinery has found to be more fuel efficient. The only time mechanical brive is better is up hills. But CAT's new hybrid bulldozer is meant to have a fuel saving of 25% which would be very applealing.
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#58 | |||
IWCMOGTVM Club Supporter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Northern Suburbs Melbourne
Posts: 17,798
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http://www.goauto.com.au/mellor/mell...2578840025854B
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#59 | ||
Starter Motor
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 19
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alot of prius taxi's goin round in qld, spoke to a few taxi operators and they love em
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#60 | ||
FF.Com.Au Hardcore
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: On The Footplate.
Posts: 5,086
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Dream on everyone.
Unless Australia goes nuclear, electric cars are a total dream in this country. They will have to be heavily subsidised to be competitive with petrol and diesel cars, and billions...maybe hundreds of billions...would have to be spent on "filling stations" every fifty kilometers or so acround the entire country. Y If people expect them to be in "widespread use", then you have to cater not only for the crap "fuel range", but for varying ranges of cars...some will go for a couple of hundred k's...maybe...but most will go a lot less, and given varying temperatures, hilly conditions compared to flat roads, winding compared to straight, hot weather for extended periods where people use the air con and stuff more, fifty kilometers would be about right for each station. Won't a typical long drive in Queensland be fun when you have to stop for a few hours every hundred kilometers or so at most with the family on board to "fill up". As for hybrids, why bother? Buy a damn Volkwagen Golf diesel and get better fuel economy and be done with it. "Driver apathy" is perfectly natural. Why pay a massive premium for a Prius or other hybrid...or $70,000 fricking dollars for that MIEV thing!...when you can get perfectly serviceable economy from a wide range of far cheaper cars which also get amazing economy. Hell, I still marvel at cruising along at 100 to 110 in our G6E and seeing the fuel economy sitting around 7.5 to 8.5 ltr/100km! I can't get that out of my 1982 Toyota Celica with a 2 ltr four cylinder and five speed manual! Hydrogen is a dream as well...and expensive and problematic dream. It, along with ethanol, is an energy negative fuel...it takes more energy to process, store, transport, and deliver, than is contained in the fuel product you are making. Unless some amazing new catalyst or process is invented to make it without relying on vast amounts of energy, it'll remain a difficuly fuel to make. It remains an even more difficult one to store. Not sure I want to drive around with a massive insulated tank storing liquid hydrogen at a couple of hundred degrees below zero right behind me. What is wrong with concentrating on proven technology...direct injection, LP gas, super-efficient turbo diesels, and other new tech which is easy to fit to existing vehicles on existing production lines using existing networks of fuel stations? To digress: people wonder why good money is being spent on making human-shaped robots, when a box on wheels with a couple of arms is a better and easier to build proposition. The reason is simple: to fit in with the world as it is now without major changes to things like staircases, doorways, and peoples houses. This then links to cars. We already have a wide network of stations that are designed to fill a car with a combustable liquid. We already have tens of thousands of tanker vehicles of all sorts to transport that liquid. Peopleare used to going where they want when they want, and simply pulling in and filling up and going on thier way again in minutes. Why not take the advantage and spend the investment dollars to concentrate on modifying and improving the systems we have in place now instead of expecting the whole country to change radically (and expensively) the way we do an everyday task, deliberately making it more complicated for very little, if any, benefit? |
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