March 2006
The New Scientist edition of 25 March has an article about a new development of self charging batteries. The device uses bar magnets with the ends covered by an almost frictionless magnetic goo, sliding in a tube. About the centre of the tube is a generator coil. The tube is rocked from side-to-side, and as the magnets slide past the coil enough electricity is generated to charge a capacitor. It?s early days yet, but the first applications are to power navigation buoys at sea, rocked by the waves. Then there is a device proposed to keep mobile telephones charged up, rocked as the owner moves about.
What does more rocking and lurching about than a car ? Cars are getting more power hungry with every new model. As the technology develops will we see devices to recharge the battery as you move without additional drain on the engine.
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Has Audi discontinued this model - is there a replacement planned? Read more
Audi is bringing out the all new electric a2 concept car.
Supposed to be this summer but has now been put on hold until summer 2017....
Can I call on your expertise here chaps?
Have just been offered £4500 by a dealer for my Berlingo in P/ex but wondered what a reasonable price would be to ask for it privately. It's an 03 reg, had MOT yesterday, new front discs and pads, has A/C, new Michelin front tyres 3 months ago, 37k miles, Modutop, Sahara Gold metallic paint (OK Adam, beige!). No dents, dings or other damage.
Thanks.
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Phil Read more
Lot of doggie people want these and wont consider one without aircon. Nothing worse than a hot and bothered dog on its way to a show.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
Am considering the above for my (pre common rail) 320d. Objective: smoother power/torque delivery, without undue detriment to fuel economy.
Questions arising:
- my insurer will probably accept such a modificaton - but at what sort of increased premium for the increased BHP?
- I believe the installation is more or less a plug-in and adjust operation with little or no drilling etc., and which can be reversed as and when the car needs to undergo some other form of diagnostic check.
Has anyone had experience?
Oz (as was) Read more
>> redafour - who was your insurer at the time?
>>
I`ve just had a hunt through my old documents and have
found that I was insured by Corinthian Insurance at that time
via a local broker.
Thanks.
I have a 1995/96 Range Rover P38 4.6 HSE could anyone please tell me how to remove the front electric headrests.Unlike standard headrests i cannot find a push in release clip or anything like it.If you could help i would be gratfull.
regards Read more
I ran out of petrol (tried to start this morning and jerking) i got about half a mile before it could not start at all.
I put some petrol in, and reset the ecu by taking off the negative battery lead. car is xantia 1.8 16v
Will i have done any damage to the cat or any other components? its running back to normal now.
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When the car runs low on petrol the mixture gets too weak to ignite properly and so you get 'misfiring'. Some unburned petrol therefore reaches the cat and actually oxidises in the cat. This is harmful to the cat. Realistically though, you are unlikely to have damaged it - they can usually stand a bit of minor mistreatment and 1/2 mile of misfiring shouldn't have harmed it.
HI
My dealer carried out some warranty work on my almost new car.. They gave the car back to me 'valeted'. I now notice swirl marks on the bonnet. What is the best polish to remove these given that the paint work is less than 6 months old
thanks
alan Read more
was just going to suggest detail world!!
hand glaze will was off after a couple of weeks....if you want over the counter products , try meguairs scratch x followed by some nxt wax
work the scratch x in on small areas at a time and repeat till swirl free..then apply 2 thin coats of nxt wax
(P.Mason's original Threadline was "Why do they do it?" It's been changed because it gave no hint of what the thread is about. HJ.)
Saw a Chrysler Grand Voyager in the local car park this morning -the front was hidden by a padded plastic cover that extended from below the grille to the windscreen. Presumably to prevent stone chips, but it completely ruined the look of the car.
I remember many years ago there was a fashion for thick clear plastic covers for car seats - a neighbour had just bought an Austin with two-tone leather upholstery, and had fitted(from delivery)these slippery covers,'to stop the leather wearing...'
Why not, I wondered, just specify the perfectly serviceable 'leathercloth' option?
P.
(Honda Aerodeck,full leather, no covers..!)
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The best trick is to keep a reasonable distance from the car in front ;)
Toddled off to tax my cars this morning my tii being £5 dearer than my 156. Not any more, Brownie slapped another fiver on the Beemer but a whopping £25 on the alfa up to £190. Know what the worst thing is? If I'd realised or even read that this was on the cards i could've done it last Sat. Now where did I put those donkey ears. Read more
While undoubtedly irritating £25 is 50p a week on the running cost of your car. Could loose/save that by flooring/not flooring the accelarator a few times. Measured against depreciation or servicing it's too small to bother with.
If Microsoft made cars...
General Motors press release
For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives, read on.
At COMDEX recently, Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with the technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics:
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive, but would run on only five percent of the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.
7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time a new car was introduced, car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again, because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. Oh yeah, and last but not least . . . you'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off! Read more
The old ones are always the best ones.....
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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"No such thing as free energy, don't forget it will take some of the car's momentum to set the magnet swinging.
Been able to get this technology for years in those torches you shake to charge a capacitor. Not sure what New Scientist is on about."
The idea is not new by any means, but the execution is very different. Some of the original shaken devices using moving magnets (e.g., torches) slide up and down with attendant friction losses, or work against springs and thus are quite inefficient. The thing about this new device is that there is almost no friction and thus vastly increased efficiency. It also uses a super-capacitor, which is relatively new.
And the car is going to swing whether you use the waste power or not.
I can't imagine that it will generate enough power to give the the battery enough charge to start the car, but it would recover some of the energy lost.