The Fisker Kharma is a fully functional Electric Plug in automobile with the advantage that it has a range extender. Just like the Volt. All R&D has been done and already a few thousand have been sold. I can think of a number of companies that should be studying this opportunity. Even if they won’t continue to produce the car the way it is now, at least all the technical research has been done and proven in a fully working functional automobile. Skip the eco friendly interior, go straight for the power plant. Fiat has proven that it can take over companies and make them succeed. Since it already controls a number of exotic cars, this would be right along its specialty. Tata Motors took control of Jaguar. Although Jaguar is showing attempts at hybrids it may still be a long way from a production model. Again this would be a chance to get into this technology which had been painstakingly developed over many many years.

Or what about a Chinese company? Tell Uncle Sam thanks for the loans or supposed loans but we don’t need you any longer. We got cash and are very interested in seeing China go green. Can a Fisker Kharma be produced at half the cost?

Its time that an Arabian company starts producing something else besides oil. Think of the huge PR opportunity if a Saudi Arabian Oil Sheik started producing clean electric vehicles.

So maybe I can’t afford to buy Fisker Kharma corp. I already own a Volt, its cheaper sister, and I would seriously consider trading it in for a Cadillac ELR. But a person can always dream big! That is one thing I like about America, no lack of opportunity to dream big!

Bob Twaalfhoven

Bob Twaalfhoven + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Owner and Visionary Creator, but people just call him “Bob T”.. Here is his full Bio: Bob Twaalfhoven. Bob lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Founder of BobCAD-CAM software. BobCAD-CAM was created by Bob, who was an engineer graduate of MIT in 1978. He created the software as a means to bring the technology of CAD/CAM to the personal computer. But overall – Bob is a lover of cars, engines and anything that is fast…

 

New York Auto Show: (Pictured: Nissan Leaf)

The New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) will open its doors to the public on Mar. 29 in the 900,000-plus square-foot Javits Center. Featuring more than 1,000 vehicles, and revealing the World Car of the Year at the event’s conclusion, the 2013 NYIAS will also display several world debuts. The show is an important gathering for many industry players, hosting a meeting of the Greater New York Auto Dealers during the week, as well as an International Motor Press Association get-together.

New York Auto Show: Video

View some truly amazing film footage (above) from a vehicle parade that took place right around the time of the first New York Auto Show in 1900. Courtesy of the Library of Congress Motion Picture division, the group of vehicles must have been quite the unique attraction at the time. Lacking air bags, radios, and in most cases, combustion engines, the parade featured a variety of American and European models. Electricity was still the predominant form of propulsion for cars at that time.

New York Auto Show

The New York event is famous for its World Car of the Year Award. Last year’s Green Car division was won by the Mercedes-Benz 250 CDI. The show also hands out trophies for overall Car of the Year, Performance Car of the Year and Design Car of the Year. In fact, the show never disappoints when it comes to alternative fuel vehicles. The 2012 NYIAS displayed the Chevy Volt, Ford’s new C-Max hybrid, the Cadillac Escalade, the BMW ActiveHybrid, and the Ford Focus Electric, along with many other green rides.
If you plan to attend the New York Auto Show, purchase tickets online and remember to bring the printout to the show. Tickets are transferable but not refundable. Or just show up at the door and buy your tickets there. Adult admission is $15 per day.

For all the latest on the NYIAS, see the event’s website:
http://www.autoshowny.com/

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Li-ion battery modeling

Most models of lithium-ion batteries follow the one-dimensional analysis approach. The major drawback of this is that the porosity and liquid-phase salt transport and solid-phase electronic conductivity are not explicitly resolved and the diffusion of lithium into and out of solid is modeled using representative spherical particles assuming perfect symmetry. These modeling assumptions limit the achievable accuracy; refinement of spatial computational grid and time steps cannot overcome the modeling error introduced by the above assumptions.

Researchers at Battery Design LLC and CD-adapco set out on a new approach, one that would avoid the limitations of the standard approach by resolving the structure of the electrode and explicitly modeling the transport of lithium in the electrolyte and solid phases. The following factors motivated the researchers to go down this path.

It is now possible to obtain exact geometry of solid particles in electrodes. While the resolution of scanning devices currently is relatively poor for such microscopic structures, there is no doubt that within a few years an adequate resolution will be possible. This will allow for the building of CAD models of solid and fluid regions of battery cell electrodes.

Commercial software allows creation of quality grids in arbitrarily complex geometries. Grid-generation methods based on tetrahedral elements have been available for a long time. These elements are not best suited for diffusion-dominated problems such as those in battery electrodes, requiring layered (prismatic) meshes along solid-liquid interfaces. However, over the past decade methods of generating polyhedral grids with prismatic layers along interfaces have been developed, allowing for an adequate resolution of complex geometry present in electrodes.

Computing power is steadily growing. Computational grids made of hundreds of millions of control volumes currently are used in some advanced niche applications, such as Formula One, but it will become commonplace in the near future.

The method to allow a detailed modeling of porous electrodes and associated processes is by explicitly separating solid and fluid regions within electrodes and performing a three-dimensional discretization based on the finite volume method. Used for this research were manufactured geometries that have similar porosity, tortuosity, and active-surface-area-to-volume ratio comparable to real electrode material in order to develop the basic models and computational procedure. Real geometries can then be introduced as they become available without the need to modify the solution method. Other research groups are pursuing similar approaches.

The complex model was implemented within the finite volume framework of the computational continuum mechanic software STAR-CCM+. A sample application was undertaken, focused on a small region of a LiMn₂O₄ chemistry cell. The results were compared with an established 1-D model, and favorable and realistic trends are shown within the 3-D model. Further studies will include the analysis of grid and time step dependence and the determination of minimum size of computational domain needed to obtain reliable solutions with minimum effort.

Having shown the credibility compared to a 1-D model, this 3-D model will be further enhanced to include detailed analysis of effects at the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer to account for possible Li-ion plating due to local conditions. As the understanding of other capacity-fade processes evolves within literature, these can be added to this base modeling framework.

Attention will also now turn to improvements in the generation of representative models and the overall user process to enable industry to repeat and extend the reported work. In parallel to the generation of further idealized models (which will include binder, conducting aid, range of particle sizes and shapes, etc.), this code will also be used on data generated from scanning tomography of actual electrode samples, as soon as they become available with sufficient quality needed to generate computational models of the presented kind. Further effects that can be accounted for in the future include electrolyte flow, expansion and contraction of solid material during charging and discharging, edge effects, etc.

Bob Twaalfhoven

Bob Twaalfhoven + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Owner and Visionary Creator, but people just call him “Bob T”.. Here is his full Bio: Bob Twaalfhoven. Bob lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Founder of BobCAD-CAM software. BobCAD-CAM was created by Bob, who was an engineer graduate of MIT in 1978. He created the software as a means to bring the technology of CAD/CAM to the personal computer. But overall – Bob is a lover of cars, engines and anything that is fast…

 

Falling Asleep? Fresh air helps. Pictured: Honda EV-STER

While reliable statistics are hard to come by, police organizations say that sleep-impaired driving is becoming more common, especially among young people who work non-standard shifts. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration devotes an entire section of its main website to the topic, discussing the causes and remedies. Very few tickets are written for drowsy driving, except in extreme cases, because there are as yet no scientific tests that can prove how sleepy as person has become.

Falling Asleep While Driving: Video

The informative video clip below demonstrates some clever ways to stay awake while driving. Of course, it is always best to pull over and find a safe place to catch a few winks. If you do realize that you’re nodding off and still need to cover a few more miles, try some of the easy techniques mentioned in the clip, like conversing with passengers, singing along with music, making the car’s interior a little bit uncomfortably cold, or chewing gum. Contrary to popular belief, caffeine is not a good idea because it only works for a brief spell, and tends to dehydrate people.

Falling Asleep While Driving

For a comprehensive discussion about drowsy driving, courtesy of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, see the organization’s website, below. A long-form academic treatment of the topic, readers can scan through the contents and read about specific areas they find interesting. In one section on biology of sleep, for example, we learn about the causes of drowsiness, how it impairs driving performance, and what actually controls the sleep-wake cycle. Under the heading of “risks,” the authors point out that many factors besides sleepiness contribute to drowsy driving accidents, especially medication, alcohol, and undiagnosed sleep disorders. A treasure trove of information on the topic, the NHTSA website makes for interesting reading.
http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/drowsy_driving1/drowsy.html

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Car theft prevention: It’s more about the contents than the car.

Several New York State police departments have launched a car theft prevention program called “Operation Open Door.” When police see valuables, keys, or unlocked car doors, they leave a small note on the windshield to warn the driver that such practices can lead to car theft. After a year that saw record high levels of auto thievery, many of the local New York departments are now looking at parked vehicles to see if any valuables are in plain sight, if doors or windows are left open, or if keys are in the ignition. One police officer involved in the program noted that theft is essentially a crime of opportunity, and it is much easier to prevent crime than to track down an offender after the fact.

Car Theft: Video

The short clip above is from the Virginia State Police Dept. It is not only eye opening but quite useful. It features the top ten tips for preventing auto theft. Sadly, we are all probably guilty of not doing one or two of these common sense measures, especially the ones about hidden keys, registration, and leaving a car running for “just a second” while at the ATM or mailbox. For several of the tips, the narrator explains the percentage of car thefts that are related to that specific behavior, like leaving doors unlocked or parking in dark places. The good news is that every one of the tips is something that can be easily done, and all go a long way toward preventing car theft. Interestingly, as this clip and much other data suggests, thieves typically target the contents of a car rather than the car itself.

For an overview of vehicle theft, as well as a sampling of statistics, prevention methods, and sources for further reading, see the following educational website, and as the old commercial used to say, “Lock your car, take your keys. Don’t help a car thief.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motor_vehicle_theft

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Auto insurance is important: An $8,000,000 Maybach Exelero

Amid all the overblown Internet advertising, there actually are solid, reliable ways to reduce the amount of money you pay for auto insurance. One expert summed it up in four words, “graze, raise, shop, drop.” What at first sounds like a crazy song lyric is really sound advice. Grazing refers to choosing, as in car shopping. When you buy a new car, keep in mind that you will pay a higher insurance premium for a more expensive vehicle, especially one with lots of extras. If you buy only as much car as you need, your insurance costs will be minimized.

Auto Insurance: Video

One of the best-kept secrets in the world of auto insurance has to do with credit scores. Your score directly impacts the rate you pay for car insurance. The expert financial planner from USAA explains all the ins and outs of the situation in the following short clip. Besides getting your rates down and your credit score up, she advises how to secure better financing on your next car purchase. While credit scores are just one aspect of getting a better deal on car insurance, their importance cannot be understated. Keep in mind that even in the most favorable cases it takes several months to raise credit scores, so start early and be patient.

Auto Insurance

Raising your deductible can be an immediate cost-cutter, especially if you can afford to cover the first $1,000 of an accident’s expense. If so, consider upping your deductibles and you might save a bundle. Drop unnecessary coverage, especially if you own an older car. Finally, shop for a better policy. Companies and rates change constantly, so consider using an independent agent to help you locate a better bargain on your insurance needs. There is no reason to skimp, but remember that deals are out there. You just have to shop for them.

Auto insurance laws in the U.S. vary from state to state, and can be quite complicated. The following informational website covers the topic’s many aspects clearly and objectively:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_insurance_in_the_United_States

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Safety: VW Touareg has a rear view camera

When cold weather comes to most areas of the U.S., drivers worry about safely managing the road in snow, ice, and drizzle. Insurance industry leader USAA has noted that several new accident-avoidance systems are now available on many automobiles. A decade ago, none of the high-tech options, like lane departure warning systems or collision avoidance were even in existence. Now, cars come equipped with highly advanced safety features as standard, and others as options. All of them can save your life.

Latest in Safety: Video

For a clear demonstration of how some of the new safety features work, have a look at the following video from Honda, which walks us through three of the most important safety systems. While the clip emphasizes Honda’s research, keep in mind that most major carmakers are working on similar projects. The collision avoidance mechanism is perhaps the best known of all, whereby the car’s radar and camera components work in tandem to calculate the safest distance between your car and other vehicles on the road. As explained in the video, such features alert the driver not only to other cars, but also to stationary objects and pedestrians.

Latest Safety Features

Rearview cameras, infrared night-vision, and lane departure systems are among the most effective of the new safety regimen, since they instantly increase a driver’s visibility. More complicated mechanical components, like collision avoidance and automatic braking, work with advanced radar and camera systems built into the car in order to reduce the probability of a crash. Air bag systems are actually a part of the new high-tech safety market. Each year, bag devices are upgraded and redesigned to deliver maximum crash protection and are in fact one of the most technologically complex parts of a vehicle.

For more about auto safety, see the following educational site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Car_safety

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Low-Rolling-Resistance: 2013 Toyota Camry Hybrid

As more hybrid and electric car models come to U.S. showrooms, tire makers are bringing out additional sizes, and more varieties of low-rolling-resistance tires. These new tires, which help deliver better fuel economy, are building markets in the U.S. and Europe at a fast pace. What was once a product only for a handful of hybrid and electric vehicles is now spreading to the entire transportation sector. Some studies conclude that such tires will account for about one-third of all units sold in Europe within the next five years, and could dominate the market by 2020.

Low-Rolling-Resistance: Video

For a very short, but highly informative primer on low-rolling-resistance tires, spend three minutes with the following video clip. As the expert points out, each brand of tire has its own personality, and you should make purchases based on how you drive, where you live, and the type of car you have. All those factors, and actually many more, are part of the tire-buying decision.

Low-Rolling-Resistance

While low-rolling-resistance tires can reduce fuel consumption by as much as 7 percent, they tend to cost a bit more than conventional tires. As a rule, manufacturers say that low-resistance tires do produce higher mpg numbers, but also give up a bit of ground in the area of braking performance and durability.

As for the tires tested in the video, the final review shows exactly why this is so. The two with the best fuel economy had the least amount of wet traction, while the lower fuel economy tires were the best in the wet. Keep in mind that dry climate areas are ideal for low-rolling-resistance tires, since braking ability in the rain is not as much of a factor.

For more about low-rolling-resistance tires, how they are designed, and how they can save you money at the gas pump, see the following educational website on the subject:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_rolling_resistance_tire

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Car Cleaning: Protect your ride before winter arrives

Car cleaning during cold months is a challenge. One expert on the subject, when asked about the best way to approach car washing in cold regions of the country, said, “Move.” He was halfway serious, because frigid temps can get in the way of a good wash, unless you take several precautions. Try to use indoor, automatic washes if they are available. Otherwise, use two buckets of very hot water and do it yourself at the local bay wash. Be certain to rinse the salt and grime off before applying any kind of soapy water.

Car Cleaning in Winter: Video

For a visual of the above information, see the video clip below for a walk-through on washing a car in extremely cold weather. Low temps present special problems, and you should remember not to wash a car when the thermometer is below 25-degrees Fahrenheit. Immediate ice buildup from the water can wreak havoc with your paintjob. The beauty of the video is its simplicity. With written instructions for each step, the driver uses a standard two-bucket system at a nearby wash, and ends up cleaning and detailing his car in less than 40 minutes. Even if you live in a warm climate, it helps to know the rules of frigid-weather car cleaning for those occasional road trips to colder climes.

Car Cleaning

If you can hand wash the car in a garage, where the temperature is higher, by all means take advantage of the “inside job.” After the car is dry, find an indoor location to apply wax. During the winter, expect to wash your car more often, especially if you do a lot of driving in snow and ice, which contains road salt, the natural enemy of your vehicle’s paint.

For all you need to keep your car clean during the winter months, see the following website:
http://hotbodywax.com

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

BMW 535i. Big on safety

Car safety is no longer just about stopping for red lights and driving at the speed limit. Nowadays, all sorts of electronic gizmos work to enhance a driver’s arsenal of safety armor. From electronic stability control to automatic braking, newer cars are starting to pack a punch when it comes to protecting occupants. Most auto experts recommend that owners opt for as many of the features as they can afford, since each reduces your risk of an accident, or injury, by a significant amount.

Insurance industry titan USAA lists the following seven features as being among the newest, and most effective, at providing reliable protection for drivers and riders:
Lane departure warning systems. Cameras sense when you are moving outside lane range and uses high-pitched sounds to warn you of a possible head-on collision.
Automatic braking. This works much like radar to automatically slow down the vehicle before it hits something.
Infrared night vision. INV allows drivers to see beyond the headlight range after dark.
Rearview cameras.
Reverse backup sensors. The sensors warn you when you are backing up and about to run into something.
Pre-crash warning systems. Available on 19 vehicles from 2011 onward. Officials say that over 1 million crashes could be avoided if all cars were equipped with such devices.
Electronic stability control. This feature helps correct swerving.

The above video clip from Consumer Reports shows exactly how collision warning systems work. Using a real car that drives toward a fabric-covered barrier, the system will actually apply the car’s brakes or slow it down even if the driver does not see the hazard. CR then follows up by interviewing the driver, who explains how it feels when the car “takes over” to avoid a crash. It’s all very high-tech, and quite interesting as you will see in the video.

For more information about USAA, see the organization’s official website:
http://www.usaa.com

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…

Car Design Contest: 1961 Chevy Mako Shark concept

You don’t even have to like the taste of pizza to enter the Domino’s Pizza car design contest. If your design, or a part of it, is chosen, you stand to win a part of the $50,000 prize purse. The company behind the contest is Local Motors, who together with Domino’s is asking entrants, both professional and amateur, to offer their visions for the ultimate pizza delivery vehicle. Creators of the nationwide ad campaign expect a large number of entries to be either electric or hybrid cars, with an emphasis of cost cutting and fuel economy.

Car Design: Video

The brief video clip below provides an overview of Local Motors, a Chandler, Ariz-based open-source auto manufacturer. The company made a name for itself with its Rally Fighter super car, which was designed the same way the ultimate pizza car will be, by a community of interactive engineers, students, amateurs, and plain old car buffs.

Car Design: Contest Details

The initial phase of the contest runs through Sept. 23, during which an overall design concept will be put together. Local Motors will place complete competition specs on its website next week for those interested in taking part. The entire process is based on co-creation and open-source design.

Packaging, interior, surfacing, and rendering sections of the competition will take place until Feb. 19, 2013. Each portion of the contest involves prize money, which totals $50,000. Local Motors wants to “empower the crowd” to create vehicles through the open-source method, especially making an effort to bring what it calls “game-changing” vehicles to the public. Already, the company’s group of designers is more than 18,000 members strong. Be sure to check in with the Local Motors website (see below) for details about how to participate.

For more about the company sponsoring this rather unusual design contest, see the official website of Local Motors:
http://www.localmotors.com

Larry Bell

Larry Bell + is My Perfect Automobile’s Genius Author, but we call him ‘The Expert‘. Here is his full Blog: My Perfect Automobile. Larry lives in San Jose, CA and is also the Expert Author. Larry is a lover of the Automobile as well and shares a passion for Concept, Hybrid and Electric Cars…