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Aesquire
| | Posted on Sunday, May 05, 2013 - 06:40 pm: | 
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No kidding? A Thorium Shortage? damn.
The big auto makers don't make the Hybrid I want. I want a Van with a Diesel engine to get the unlimited range, and 100mpg. I've wanted one for years. Barring that, how good CAN you make a Pickup or Van with a locomotive style hybrid powerplant? A constant speed diesel alternator charging batteries & with no mechanical connection to the road wheels. It has to be easier to make! Mother Earth News built one.
I've also wanted a nuclear powered car. It's the 21st Century Dammit! The funny part is I know how to make one using reactor waste. Try getting a "don't fill up for 12 years" car past the regulations. |
Aesquire
| | Posted on Sunday, May 05, 2013 - 06:56 pm: |
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I'm all for Thorium Reactors.
And Orbital Solar.
Government subsidy for "alternative" energy sometimes makes some sense. Good idea every time? No I don't think so. Bad Idea every time? perhaps not. You can go so far that roads are too socialist for you.
We never ask, and the politicians will never answer, "how socialist do we want to be?" I'd vote for less but not zero. If this was 1791, I might vote to keep it zero, but just as we have 33 million undocumented D voters, and 90 million "underemployed" and more than half the total population on public assistance of some sort. That's insane, and going to be damn hard to reverse.
What the US has spent.... ok, here's 2 different examples. George Bush's wars in Afghanistan & Iraq, over the 7 plus years cost about what the US war in the Pacific in WW2 cost. About a Trillion. Barack Obama has overspent MORE than that every year he's been in office, ( and we'll cut him ZERO slack for that first year, and the LAST we had a budget, since Obama voted for that budget )
One year of Obama Overspending, 2 wars Bush didn't pay for, Or............ Orbital Solar stations in process?
Which would you pick? Same cost.
Yes, the first station would not massively effect the energy crisis, but the cost to make them would go down, a lot, once the first was built. All the plans, tooling, and structural requirements would be, done.
In 20 years who has oil would only be of academic interest. Everyone would buy power from us.
Unlimited, ( ( for millions of years ) ) renewable, clean power, for the cost of 1 year of just the cost over runs in the US government. |
Chauly
| | Posted on Monday, May 06, 2013 - 06:19 am: |
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I love the Top Gear thing. Now, run it the other way. Can you drive an M3 so as to get 45 mpg without screaming from boredom? :-) |
Tootal
| | Posted on Monday, May 06, 2013 - 10:45 am: |
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The only way a M3 will get over 45 mpg is a huge cliff, neutral and a push!! But boy is it fun to drive!!
My 80 year old buddy has a Prius and gets a constant 50 mpg. We made a run from North Georgia to Florida at a constant 75 mph, except through Atlanta, and the computer said 51 mpg. I didn't believe the computer so when we got gas I did the math and I got 51.4!! It is pretty amazing, just don't want to own it when the batteries die! |
Chauly
| | Posted on Monday, May 06, 2013 - 11:13 am: |
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I have the original battery in mine after almost 10 years and 246K miles.
Now that I've said that... :-) |
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