Pardon the pun!
www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_transstats/docu...8
--
L\'escargot by name, but not by nature.
|
Some highlights that tickle me:-
1903:Driving licences introduced - obtained by paying a fee of five shillings (25p) across the counter at a Post Office. (At this time they were used merely for identification purposes.)
1907:First AA patrols go on duty on bicycles. Their primary duty was to warn motorists of police speed traps ahead.
1930:Road Traffic Act 1930 abolished the 20mph speed limit and set a variety of limits for different classes of vehicle. There was no speed limit for vehicles carrying less than seven persons
1950:Seatbelts fitted for first time to Nash Rambler, intended to prevent sleeping passengers from falling out of their seats.
WTM
|
MY hunch is that the current milestone is the Toyota Prius, and its hybrid technology. OK, it may not be the world's most exciting car, but a gearless electric transmission system with a 25%+ saving on fuel over a similar vehicle with a conventional mechanical gearbox AND an ability to run on battery power alone when desired can't be ignored for long.
Cheers, Sofa Spud
|
Sorry but even as a Toyota salesman i would not buy a Prius. It's not pretty, It's not cheap, It's not quick, It's not particularly economical.
Saving the planet is a good idea - just not when my pocket is paying for it.
|
|
but if you happen to be leader of a political party fighting a general election, t'iz a useful car/message to have in your driveway - and Howard has one, according to a report I read last week.
|
|
|
>>Sorry but even as a Toyota salesman i would not buy a Prius. It's not pretty, It's not cheap, It's not quick, It's not particularly economical.
Ahh, but... The Prius itself might not be exactly a 'must have' car, but its hybrid technology is already finding its way into other vehicles including a Lexus 4x4 SUV.
If its hybrid drive system gains in popularity, its price will come down, and when it starts being combined with diesel engines we ahould see real economy. I could see the hybrid system replacing the automatic gearbox option to begin with. Taxis would be an obvious initial market, plus urban stop-start delivery vans.
Cheers, SS
|
|
|
|
MY hunch is that the current milestone is the Toyota Prius, and its hybrid technology.
The Prius is an clever bit of technology, but I suspect it'll turn out to be a technological dead end.
It's not massively more economical in operation than an ordinary petrol car, but its construction involves a heck of a lot more fancy gadgetry. It'd be interesting to see an analysis of its energy use over a whole life-cycle -- I suspect that the complexity will shorten its lifespan conpared with an ordinary petrol car, and the environmental impact of all those batteries etc is not a nice thought.
|
The Prius is an clever bit of technology, but I suspect it'll turn out to be a technological dead end.
I agree with you NW, but I think that the Honda Insight has a bit more potential, it has better economy and has a good review from HJ.
The problem I'm most concerned about, as you quite rightly mention, is the longevity of the batteries. Surely whatever battery technology is used, charging the battery in the time it takes for you to brake to a standstill won't do it much good at all. Also, what's to say that Honda will continue interest in this technology in the future. I visited the Hockerton Housing Porject last year, who have a Peugeot (106?) which runs purely from rechargable batteries. After 10 years it could bearly move because of the battery age, and Peugeot are not interested in helping them as they have stopped developing electric cars some while back. Hopefully the Honda and Toyota engineers have programmed their ECUs cleverly enough to prevent over- and under-charging, to promote a better charge cycle which would see these cars lasting a lot longer. What green campaigners nor Honda and Toyota want is to see these cars on a scrapheap in less than 10 years.
--------------
Mike Farrow
|
Most important recent milestone is when Honda produced the CVCC engine in the US. It showed how you could have a small, efficient, economical engine and still meet emmission rules. That one engine virtually guaranteed the huge dominance the Japanese now have over the US passenger car (not SUV) market.
I remember driving in the US in 1979 in a 3.8litre six cylinder Dodge that had so little oomph that it struggled to get up the rockies. A Mazda with a 2.0 four cyl romped up the same road with more luggage, more comfort, and more economy.
--
Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
|
I remember driving in the US in 1979 in a 3.8litre six cylinder Dodge that had so little oomph that it struggled to get up the rockies. A Mazda with a 2.0 four cyl romped up the same road with more luggage, more comfort, and more economy.
Well, IMHO Americans make lots of fine cars, but they really dont understand how to make decent 4 cylinder cars anymore.
|
Did they ever?
Best American car I had was a brand New Chrysler Le Baron with 5.2ltr V8. Very comfortable and remarkably economical on a cruise. Never driven a decent 4-cyl Yank car.
--
Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
|
My (perhaps too subtle )point was that because Americans dont understand how to make 4 cylinder cars, they think that no-one else does, and so tend to rubbish other cars just on that basis alone.
MInd you, the last time I was 'over there'-last year- I was stuck with a 2.2 chevvy cavalier, and most unpleasant it was too!. A family friend who lives there come here for a while and was loaned an SRi astra. His grin said it all.....
WTM
|
Seem to remember reading that a replacement battery pack for the Toyota Prius was circa £3000, a lot of money if it needed replacing when the car was say, 10 years old.
Re the American market; as they say, theres no replacement for displacement...or words to that effect anyway!
|
Seem to remember reading that a replacement battery pack for the Toyota Prius was circa £3000, a lot of money if it needed replacing when the car was say, 10 years old.
If the cost leads to the car being scarpped early, the waste could easily offset the relatively small savings in fuel used.
And what's the battery pack made of? I doubt that the discarded batteries are wondefully eco-friendly.
|
1983 - launch of the Peugeot 205 diesel.
As a family we had one of these new in 1986 and it was mightily impressive. A few weeks ago I had a drive in another, bodywork was now a bit ropey (although no rust) but that XUD engine still impresses. OK by modern standards its power output is modest for a 1.8 and I expect the emissions are relatively high but in terms of refinement it still is great.
My Renault Megane dCi 1.5 generates a whopping 100bhp but like all modern diesels does it with the aid of a turbo and complex engineering. The XUD was all the more impressive since it achieved all its goals with simplicity.
|
|
If it's true the batteries on a hybrid need replacement after 10 years and they cost £3000, that would be a problem. However, the replacement battery pack would be likely to outlast the car by several years. Maybe someone might step in and offer replacement batteries with a 4-5 year life, at a lower price. I don't know if this is technically feasable - any ideas?
Cheers, Sofa Spud
|
|
|
|
|
