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Forum » EV Forums » Environmental Discussion

The most efficient highway car

Author	Message
Written on: 25 February 2010 [20:02]
rkdjones Topic creator registered since: 25.02.2010 Posts: 3	I am seriously looking for an efficient (minimal fossil fuel use) car to be used to take trips with my family. Something the size of a midsize sedan or wagon with the capacity to tow a small trailer with extra gear would be optimal. I doubt that an electric option will be available anytime soon. Even the Prius is just an aerodynamic ICE car on the highway, but carrying a lot of extra weight and complexity for the electric motor and batteries. It seems that to minimize fossil fuel use I would want something with great aerodynamics and a really efficient ICE. I don't think weight has that much effect, but I could be wrong about that. I'm looking for resources that would allow me to search for such a vehicle. The EPA site misses the boat in that it does not allow one to search on a particular type of driving, (ie. highway only). Any suggestions? Robert
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Written on: 25 February 2010 [20:27]
JBode63 registered since: 11.02.2010 Posts: 77	Robert - the effect of weight is important when accelerating orr going up accents. I have no idea about using a trailer, whether there are specifications made by the manufacturers or not more likely this is not recommended as being energy efficient often reduces motor sizes ... At least: every trailer will destroy more or less all aerodynamic benefits! And the additional drag will cause the energy consumption go up. To answer your question properly, you need to define more what you need: - how often would you need to go on these trips? - how far? - how often would you go with trailer, what kind of trailer? - what are your (you and your family) every day mobility needs? ... and many more questions around mobility ...
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Written on: 26 February 2010 [02:49]
iamian registered since: 23.02.2009 Posts: 105	Aerodynamics dominates at highway speeds ... and matters at any speed... So the better the aerodynamics the better... just remember it is not just the Cd number ... but Cd and A combined ... CdA ... a car with a better Cd but more Frontal Area 'A' ... might end up being less aerodynamic... so look for the CdA number. Weight limits acceleration, hill climbing, load hauling, and rolling resistance matters at any speed... the less the vehicle weighs the better... in general, if you don't want to get complicated it is a close approximation to equate weight in a linear fashion with rolling resistance... so if car 'A' weighs 2,000 pounds and car 'B' weighs 3,000 pounds ... car 'B' effectively has ~50% more rolling resistance at any given speed. Vehicle weight is usually published so that one is easy to look up... Aerodynamics is bit harder... bellow is a link to a decent list of the aerodynamics of several vehicles. http://ecomodder.com/wiki/index.php/Vehicle_Coefficient_of_Drag_List Remember the lower the combined CdA the better the vehicle's aerodynamics. ----------- All of the Above ignores the efficiencies of the Engine , transmission , driving habits, driving conditions , etc... but those two I find are a great place to start your search for a efficient vehicle. Also remember , many vehicles that do not come with Towing equipment standard can have it put on after market by many skilled mechanics. 2000 MT Honda Insight MIMA & FAS equipped ... PHEV in progress. Franken E-Bike 36V NiMH 600W Hub-Motor.
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