Natural gas in your car ?
Since we have already reached peak oil , there is a very real need for replacement fuels for transportation . And the likely short term replacement is natural gas [nGas] . It seems to be plentiful right here in the US .
Can you power your car directly with nGas ?
Sure it can be done but there are a number of problems with it . Take a look at this existing vehicle , the Honda GX [the only nGas car offered for sale in the US] .
Honda Civic GX Natural Gas Vehicle Review - Kelley Blue Book
And here is a video about filling up your nGas tank at home :
CNG fueling in your garage
OK , let's summarize the problems this vehicle has :
less power , less range , can't fold back seats down , smaller trunk ,
fills overnight in your garage but gets only about 200 mi of range after the fill .
But the fill unit is leased for $40 to $80 / mo . You pay to install it [up to $1500] .
Then there is the danger from explosions ! [even during filling]
OK , now it is time to point to the solution , the electric car .
Do I hear objections that the e-car is also afflicted with low range problems ?
That may be true with some of them but by 2014 [less than 2 years away] we should see substantial improvements to the storage system in e-cars . And lower costs too .
Two more things : The e-car is a lot more efficient than the nGas car with an IC engine . In other words you will pay a lot less per mile to fuel it . And the e-car has terrific performance . It is extremely fast off the line . The nGas car by contrast has lousy acceleration [judging by the Honda GX] . In about 2 years the e-car will probably be one of the most sought after vehicles on the market . And do you know who will be making it ? Go on ask me . I dare ya ...
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Yes , GM did just cut back on their production of the Chevy Volt . But it is not the end for that vehicle .
As I said in a link , there is a better battery already out of the lab . I expect to see it hit the market in as little as 2 years but definitely within 4 . And 3 years may just be realistic at this point . That battery should make the Volt much less pricey . It will be a really enormous improvement to the electric non-hybrids now on the market .
" mile for mile, it costs less than a Prius to drive. "
That is to be expected . Natural gas is extremely cheap right now . But how does it compare with a Volt , mile for mile ? I can tell you the answer to that . It won't stack up .
BTW , a Prius is just not the same animal as the Volt . Just because they both call themselves hybrids doesn't mean they are comparable .
Incidentally , how long does it take to fill up that Tundra ? What kind of range does it have ? How about acceleration ?
As to that video , it was nearly useless . Is there a followup ?
Mike ,
The reason his car is so cheap to drive is that nGas is very cheap to buy right now . But that same nGas he is putting directly in his car can be burned as fuel at the utility plant to produce electricity . If it is done that way it would burn far less nGas than putting it into an IC engine . There is no comparison .
BTW , as to performance , there is no way that a gasoline or nGas engine can compare to an electric motor driven car . Electrics are extremely fast off the line . That is why electric motorcycles always beat similar powered cylinder driven cycles . And you should also ask him how much room the nGas tanks take up . Don't forget to ask him how long it takes to fill his tanks [if he does it from home] .
As to the Volt , it is just catching its breath for the second leg of this race .
Fiskeris a sore subject. The price tags outrageous!
Fisker Automotives troubles have gone from bad to worse. The California start-up that created the $107,000 Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid had to suspend work on its second model, the $50,000 Nina, due to a lack of funds. Now, its flagship car has suffered the worst possible black eye: it broke down in the middle of a Consumer Reports test.
Gee, I wonder what happened to the $550milFisker took from the govmt and disappeared with to Finland?? Supposedly Al Gorewas a big supporter of Fisker getting the govmt funds.
Their flagship broke down in the middle of a Consumer Reports test? Ha! Poetic justice (minor)for ripping off the taxpayers.
I like the idea of natural gas and hydrogen powered cars , much more so than ethanol or any other options.
Toyota and hydrogen cars in 2020
Has anyone explored putting a wind sail on top of a car?
Right now, I'm still more favorable aboutelectriccars than nGas. But that doesn't mean that I am counting them out of the race. I think as with all new technology, there are always fits and starts... hopefully more starts. Failures have to be expected along the way. Think Wright brothers. But the ultimate goal will be the golden ticket for those whopersevere.
I don't even think that the Fisker was a total failure. It is part of the learning curve.
I really don't want to get into the Fisker . It is not easy to form a start-up . Most start-ups flop within 2 years of their inception . Why should this industry be any different ?
I can't wait until we're driving cars that fly, like in the Jetsons! Please dear God, let it be in MY lifetime!
^ I think as with all new technology, there are always fits and starts... hopefully more starts.
Yup. This is kind of new territory we should have been exploring years ago but would we have had the knowledge or access to the knowledge then that we do now? Maybe things are unfolding at exactly the right time and place.
Just think, not that long ago we walked or rode a horse n buggy. I kind of like that idea even now. Can't decide ..... Jetsons or horse n buggy ....
Natural gas and hydrogen are two very different things . Hydrogen cars are inevitably talked about as electric vehicles running off a fuel cell . The technology for that is coming along . But hydrogen is not a source of energy , only a storage medium .
By contrast natural gas is a source of energy but it is not nearly as efficient in a fuel cell as hydrogen is . Having natural gas stored in your vehicle is extremely dangerous .
Even filling your vehicle with it can be dangerous . However , burning it at the power plant to produce electricity for your electric car is both efficient and safe .
As to a sail on a car ... is that an overpass up ahead ? Stop the car and retract the mast , NOW !
"I'm skeptical about there really being 100 years supply of NG."
You could be right about that . Here is what Obama said about that according to this Iranian website :
"Obama: US is 'Saudi Arabia' of natural gas"
" the batteries really need to drop way, way, way down in price "
If you take a look at the link in the above article , you will see it is not far off till that is acheived . The new battery already out of the lab could be in production in as little as 2 years .