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Page Directory:
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| Solar and Electric Bicycles, Scooters and LEV's | |
|
Solar Bug
http://www.freedrive-ev.com/info.html |
 This
is a neat little two person 4 wheel electric vehicle being developed right
in our own Bozeman, MT area by Steve Titus.Steve is now offering the
production version and has 53 pre-orders: |
| Solar Scooter
Article on the scooter in Tree Hugger with some additional pictures:
Updated: Don reports on the status of the scooter
after three seasons of heavy commuting use. |
 A
solar scooter by Don Dunklee. Street legal, affordable and
dependable.
Thanks to Don for making the plans available! |
|
Light Electric Vehicles (LEV)
This is a good place to start looking for a small efficient electric vehicle. |
 A great
site for unbiased information on light electric vehicles, which includes
electric bicycles, scooters, 1 person cars, motorcycles, ...
Lots of good, practical electric transportation.
Even some DIY kits. |
|
BugE
http://blueskydsn.com/BugE_Concept.html
Owner's manual: NEW: Nap Pepin's
BugE based advanced homemade EV -- 56 watt-hr/mile: |
 A very
nice and efficient little three wheel,one passenger, electric vehicle with some weather protection. Offered as a
kit for about $4000. |
|
Meyers No-More-Gas
http://www.myersmotors.com/index.html
|
 These
three wheel electric vehicles are kind of a cross between a motorcycle and
car.One person, 75mph top speed, 30 mile range, heater, power windows, licensed as a motorcycle, safety features, ... 2 cents per mile fuel cost. |
|
Vectrix Electric Scooter
|
 A
electric scooter to be on sale in early 2007. Top speed 62 mph, 0-50
in 6.8 sec, up to 68 mile range. Regenerative braking. It looks
like a well thought out design that is new from the bottom up.The website has quite a bit of information, and also includes some interesting planned projects, as in a hybrid version. About $8000. |
|
SunETrike Solar Powered Trike
|
 A
solar and pedal powered trike kit.170 watt solar panel/roof. Can actually run directly off solar panel at 6
to 8mph without pedaling. 12 to 14 mph with battery. |
|
Solar Electric Bicycle Project
|
 An
electrically assisted bike with onboard 5 watt PV panel for solar charging.
|
|
My Electric Bicycle Project Eric Peltzer
|
 Very
nice DIY electric bike conversion. Good detail on the conversion, and
good information on all the design decisions.This bike has more hill climbing and acceleration ability than most conversions.
|
|
Kevins Electric Bike with Solar Mud Guards
|
 Kevin
built an electric. Maximum speed is about 25mph, and the range is
about 12 miles -- more if you
pedal some.And, the PV panels double as mud guards. More ... |
|
Drive and EV and Never Buy Gas Again Mother Earth News |
 An
overview article on small electric vehicles from the Mother Earth News,
April/May 06 |
|
SUNN - Solar Powered Car Kit
Kit Info:
|
 A two
person, 25 mph, 12 mile range Neighborhood Electric Vehicle.Solar panel on the hood for charging the battery. Plans and a parts kit are to be available in the spring of 07. |
|
"Moonbeam" -- a DIY 100+mpg car
|
 Homemade
car made from motorcycles and a lot of time and thought.Quite a bit of information on building it. |
|
Motorhome Bike
From Bike Portland and Treehugger |
 Brian's
amazing homemade motorhome bike."Amazingly, the guy claims to have ridden this contraption all over the U.S. and down to Mexico" |
|
Bike Electrified Bicycle Kits http://www.werelectrified.com/
|
 The
link listed is a seller of Bike Electrified electric bicycle kits.
These kits allow you to convert your bike to run on electricity. |
|
Electric Bicycle Experiments http://electric-bicycle-experiments.com/
|
 A
large collection of experimental electric bikes and trikes. Some with
fairly detailed descriptions.Useful information for electric bike designers. |
|
Latest in Electric/Solar/Hybrid Bikes and Scooters
|
 A
good
page on what's new in electric, solar, hybrid and fuel cell bikes and
scooters. |
|
Ben Nelson's Electric Motorcycle http://web.mac.com/benhdvideoguy/iWeb/cycle/Welcome.html More here: More Motorcycle Conversions from EValbum: |
 A
pretty detailed description of converting a Kawasaki KZ440 to and electric
motorcycle.This looks like a manageable conversion that does not require "super mechanic" skills. Range 15 miles, speed 38 mph. |
|
Ecomodder
|
 The Ecomodder site has user submitted projects ranging from simple tips and mods to some very ambitious projects. Lots of detail on some of them. Lots of interesting material. "Welcome to EcoModder.com, an automotive community where performance is judged by fuel economy rather than power and speed. EcoModders employ a combination of vehicle mods, driving techniques, and common sense to squeeze every penny out of the pumps." |
|
Dog Powered Scooter http://www.dogpoweredscooter.com/
|
 Yes,
I can just see my dog doing this -- not. |
|
Electric Cars |
|
|
Mitsubishi i MiEV
http://www.autobloggreen.com/ ...
|
 Mitsubishi's
electric car version of the i MiEV.4 passenger, 80 mph top speed, and 80 mile range. "Ride comfort is surprisingly good" 330 volt Li-Ion battery system charges
in 7 hours, but a half hour quick charge is being pursued. |
|
The Obivo 828E www.zapworld.com/ZAPWorld.aspx?id=386
|
 Small
Brazilian electric car made specifally for the US market.ay be imported to
US in 2006. Up to 3 passenger (one seat). Length 9 ft, weight 1328 lb. Top speed 120 mph. Range 200 miles. Price around $49K. |
|
The Buddy
Small electric car from Norway
|
 A
small electric car that is currently available and (I'm told) popular in
Norway and a number of other countries.3 people, crumple zones,
regenerative braking, and trunk capacity of "8 bags of groceries".
Also accepts "varying battery technologies". |
|
EV Resources
|
 A
list of EV and EV conversion resources, clubs, suppliers, ... |
|
Solar Electricity at Home..., Kevin Johnson |
 Home
Power magazine article, issue 117.This is quite an amazing story. Kevin details how his family has 1) cut their transportation energy use to about 5 KWH per day by using an electric vehicle conversion, and 2) their home electricity use to about 5 KWH per day through conservation. All of this energy is supplied by all of this energy is supplied by a 2.9 KW grid tied PV system. |
|
Why We Need Electric Cars, Steve Heckeroth, Mother Earth News http://www.motherearthnews.com
|
 Mother
Earth News, Oct/Nov 2006, issue 218.Good article on electric cars -- makes a good case for electric vehicles and plug in hybrids. Shows that even with electric cars and plug in hybrids charged from the largely fossil fuel powered electric grid that a significant reduction in green house gases results. |
|
Tesla
AutoBlogGreen has 200+ entries on Tesla:
|
 The
amazing 2 seater electric sports car that does 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds,
and has a range of 220 miles.A bit out of my price range, but nice to see what can be done. |
|
EV Conversions Converting a gas engine car to an EV is entirely feasible simpler than many would think. There are kits available that make the job even more straightforward. |
|
|
How Stuff Works -- Electric Cars http://auto.howstuffworks.com/electric-car.htm
|
 A
good getting started article on electric cars and electric car conversions.Goes through an actual conversion as an example. |
|
The Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington
DC http://www.evadc.org/index.html Build and EV:
|
 Good
information on converting a gas powered car to an EV. Includes some
material on selecting the right kind of 'donor" car, and on doing the actual
conversion.Its not as detailed as some of the materials below, but its a good overview of the whole process. The site also has some current news on EV developments. |
|
Jerry's Electric Car Conversion
and, EV Range Calculator:
|
 Very
well done personal site on converting a gas powered Mazda car to run on
electricity. The description is very detailed and covers all the design and build issues encountered in detail. If you want a feel for what's involved in a conversion, this is the one. |
|
Build Your Own Electric Vehicle, Bob Brant, TAB Books, 1994
|
 Quite
a good book on converting an existing car or truck to electric
operation. My reaction after reading this was that it looks a lot more straightforward and practical than I thought it would be. Part of this is due to the inherent simplicity of electric cars compared to gas engine cars. The book provides quite a bit of design information, as well as a detailed how-to on the actual conversion. |
|
Born to be Wired, Kelly Davidson, Home Power Magazine issue 122 |
 A
nice detailed description of the conversion of a 2001 GMC pickup to full
electric operation.Covers the tradeoffs on range, battery capacity, vehicle choice, and provides a bit of detail on the actual conversion process.
|
|
Solar Van UK http://www.solarvan.co.uk/index.htm
|
  An
interesting and advanced EV conversion of a van. The conversion uses an AC motor and is power by Lithium batteries. Picture
at right shows battery installation under a raised floor. |
|
EV Album
|
 Descriptions
of 1402 EV conversions ranging from skateboards, through bikes, to cars and
trucks of all types -- even a few boats.A page of technical data on each conversion, and in some cases, pointers to websites that give more detail. |
|
Drive Electric http://www.driveelectric.org/cars/index.html
|
 Information
on electric car conversions. |
|
Solar Car Anatomy, Nelson Kruschandl www.speedace.info/solar_car_anatomy.htm
|
 Some
fairly detailed material on designing a car that is powered solely from
solar energy by onboard PV cells.There is quite a bit more information on the site on electric cars and solar cars. |
| Gas Powered Scooters | |
|
Scooters www.Vespa.com Articles on popularity of scooters: |
 At
50 to 100 mpg scooter sales are picking up a lot. Looks like fun.
|
|
Vetter Streamlined Motorcycles
|
 A
really interesting website by Craig Vetter on the development of efficient
motorcycles through streamlining and on human powered vehicles.His current project is a practical motorcycle that gets 120 mpg under real highway conditions and is comfortable to ride. I really like the cardboard prototype. |
| Green Cars | |
|
Fuel Economy dot Gov
|
 Pretty
informative site. Fuel economy data on all models. Some info on
the various green and fuel efficient technologies. |
|
Hybrid Cars dot Com Selecting an efficient car: www.HybridCars.com Excellent
Gas Mileage Impact Calculator:
|
 An
excellent calculator to compare conventional cars to hybrids. Give gasoline
savings, and green house gas emissions reduction.
Sample: Ford Explorer to Toyota Prius |
|
Latest
EPA Fuel Economy Guide http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/feg2000.htm
|
 EPA
fuel economy for all models. A good way to compare cars on fuel
use. Mid-size cars show a range of 12 to 55 mpg! |
|
Top 100 Green Cars
Top 100
|
 A quick way to browse the 100 most green cars, as rated by Environmental Defense. The green rating depends mostly on fuel economy, but takes a number of other factors into account. |
|
AutoBlog Green
|
 The
Auto Blog Green has become my favorite source for what's going on in the
world of more fuel efficient and green cars.Covers the whole range of developments, and is very timely with a high volume of new material. |
|
Does It Pay to Drive a Hybrid? Andy Kerr Home Power Magazine article How to get articles from Home Power ... To download the spreadsheet: |
 This
is a very good Home Power article by Andy Kerr that goes over the factors
that determine what the economic payoff for YOU will be in buying a hybrid
car. You can download the spreadsheet that goes with the article to determine the payoff for buying a hybrid for your particular case. Most of the analyses out there on hybrid payoffs make a whole set of assumptions that are likely not right for you. |
|
PV and EV -- My Solar-Electric House and Car Mark Jensen Home Power Magazine Article, Issue 113 |
 Good
Home Power article. Mark describes the large PV system that runs his
house, as well as keeping his Toyota RAV 4 EV (Electrical Vehicle) charged.These EV's are no longer offered by Toyota, and after reading the article, one wonders why? |
|
Green Car Congress
http://www.greencarcongress.com/topics.html
|
 The
latest news on fuel cells, hybrids, engines, BioDiesel, fuel efficient cars,
...Well organized and up to date. |
|
Hybrid Cars dot com http://www.hybridcars.com/index.html
|
 Good
website for information on hybrids. Benefits, tax incentives, reviews,
gas mileage calculator. |
|
10,000 Miles in the Jelly Bean car Gary (Updated 7/2007 -- 40,000 miles and 100F) |
 A
quick report on life with a Prius
Other Prius Websites & Info: |
|
Fiat 500 -- efficient, clean, safe, cheap, and cute Green Car Congress on the 500 ... |
 Fiat
500 gets 50 mpg, 5 star rating on Europe's crash test.Cost 10,000 Euros. Voted "European Car of the year 2008". Available in the US? I suppose not. |
|
Saturn Vue Green Line will offer 2-mode and plug-in hybrid technology
|
 GM
has committed to introducing several new hybrid cars over the next couple
years, including the first production plug-in hybrid. The plug-in will
have an about 10 mile all electric range.Finally some signs of life from Detroit. |
|
PV Enhanced Prius Lapp Renewables Ltd.
www.lapprenewables.com/hybrid%20project.html |
 The
conventional wisdom is that cars use energy at such a high rate that tacking
a few PV panels on top would not be of much use.Lapp has found that if you start with an efficient car, that you can indeed make a worthwhile improvement. The (admittedly non-optimum) prototype achieves a 10% improvement in mileage, and the potential for an about 33% improvement is discussed. |
|
Solar Prius Solar Electric Vehicles |
 A
kit offered by SEV that includes additional battery capacity and a solar
array that is custom fitted for a Prius roof. It allows all electric
operation for up to 20 miles, and is claimed to improve fuel economy by 17
to 29%. |
|
CalCars.org -- Plug in Hybrids
A video from Science Channel on Plug In Prius:
|
 A
group working on developing the plug in hybrid -- a hybrid that plugs into
the grid (or PV) at night to extend its range on batteries. The video gives a good overall description of the concept. A question one might ask is do plug in hybrids result in lower GHG
emissions when you include the GHGs from the grid electricity used to charge
them? |
|
The Obivo "Trybrid"
|
Small
Brazilian car that may be imported to US in 2006. Runs on gasoline or
alcohol with electric hybrid drive. High performance and prices starting at $14K are claimed. |
|
ZENN (Zero Emissions - No Noise Car) www.feelgoodcars.com/features/features_index.html
|
 Zero
emission, low speed electric car.Top speed 25mph, range 40 miles. Driven by 72 VDC, 5hp electric motor. More pictures of the Zenn taken at the Livingston, MT Sustainability Fair |
|
The "It" electric car
|
 A low
speed electric car with a range of about 30 miles. Operates for
about $7 per month. |
|
The Bruce Weiner MicroCar Museum http://www.microcarmuseum.com/index.html
|
 Fascinating
collection of Micro Cars. These very small and efficient cars were developed
in Europe in the rebuilding times after world war II. Many on display in Madson, GA |
|
1989 Geo Metro
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geo_Metro http://www.carsurvey.org/review_24325.html
|
 I've
seen several comments in discussion forums in which people recalled getting
50mpg in Geo Metros nearly 20 years ago, and wondering why we seem to be
having such a hard time doing as well today. I tried looking up info on the Metro -- these are the best of the links I found. Its kind of a mixed story. I'd be interested in hearing from Metro owners. From Jonathan: "I owned a Geo Metro with the 1.0L 3 cylinder engine, and 5 speed manual transmission. I think it was a 92 model. It didn’t have much pep and couldn’t go over 80 mph floored. It did get 48-49 mpg consistently." From Jerimiah: "I drive a 1993 Metro that I modified a bit. I just broke my previous records for fuel economy with it; my last tank of fuel was 648 miles on 9.75 gallons - 66.5 mpg. That was 55 mph interstate driving." Full details on Jerimiah's Metro and its mods... |
| Efficient Driving | |
|
GasSavers -- Helping you Save at the Pump
The "Top Ten Vehicles" section is quite interesting. |
 An
active forum on saving gas:"GasSavers is a community of
fuel economy enthusiasts. Our typical member does not own a hybrid. Our
typical member is like you: With a normal vehicle and a desire to increase
the fuel economy of that vehicle." |
|
Hypermiling CBS hypermiling story Hypermiling website: |
 Hypermiling
is a set of driving techniques that can be used on any car to dramatically
increase gas mileage.
The CBS video covers an "ordinary" driver and a hypermiling driver using identical cars on a trip from Chicago to New York. |
| Concept Cars and Prototypes | |
|
Toyota 1/x Concept Car
|
 This is a
concept car showing what Toyota thinks it can achieve when a hybrid power
plant is combined a very light weight design in the future.It uses carbon composite construction and weighs only 926 lbs! The gas engine is only 500 cc. Same interior space as a Prius. Estimated EPA mileage is just over 90 mpg. Batteries can also be charged from grid. |
|
GM Volt Electric Car http://www.chevrolet.com/electriccar/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Volt A site dedicated to ongoing news on the Chevy Volt: http://www.gm-volt.com/ |
 GM
is (they say) putting a lot of serious effort into the Chevy Volt concept
car.It is an electric car with an all electric drive train, but has an onboard IC engine to charge the batteries on longer trips. It is said to have a range of about 40 miles before the gas engine is needed. The charge for the first 40 miles comes from the grid. GM says they have set an internal target date for production of 2010 -- I guess we will have to wait and see if they are really serious this time. |
|
Honda Clarity Fuel Cell Car -- drive report http://www.autobloggreen.com/ ... This is quite a detailed report on the Honda Hydrogen fuel cell car and a
drive in it from AutoblogGreen. NEW
Home Energy Station -- make Hydrogen at your home for the FCX... |
 This
is Honda's very serious go at a fuel cell car. It is designed from the
ground up as a fuel cell car. Plans call for introducing the car in
limited numbers as lease vehicles in southern California in 2008.The specs make it sound like a practical, usable, high efficiency car -- the biggest problem being the availability of Hydrogen (and cost?). The "Home Energy Station" is interesting -- A home station that makes Hydrogen from NG, and uses waste heat for space heating. Its puzzling that this only achieves a "30% reduction in CO2 compared to home with IC engine car and electric heat"? Seems like it should do much better? |
|
Think Electric Car
To be offered in the US: <-- NEW Larger, faster 2011 model: The sleek version: |
 A
Norwegian electric city car -- soon to be in production.2 or 4 person capacity, air bags, heating and AC, power steering, regenerative braking, ABS, ... Range 120 miles, top speed 62 mph, weight 3000 lbs, Li-ion or sodium batteries. The company also has some unique ideas on how the car and batteries are to be sold and marketed. The 2nd two links are for follow on models. |
|
Honda Developing New Hybrid www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20438234/site/newsweek/page/0/
|
 Interesting
to see this after Honda dropped its Accord hybrid.The article also talks about Toyota coming out with a whole line of Prius based cars. |
|
Venture Tilting Two Seater
"Flying the Road"
http://www.autobloggreen.com/...
|
 This
three wheeler leans into turns depending on the lateral g force. The
back two wheels and power plant stay flat on the ground as the rest of the
body tilts. It is to be offered as both a pure EV as well as a series
hybrid. 100 mph top speed. EV has 120 mile range. Target
price is around $20K.I have to say that the video makes it appear to be a very fun car to drive. Kind of a cross between a motorcycle and a car with an outstanding view of the scenery. |
|
Diesel-Hybrid Pickup Coming to US, From Treehugger http://www.treehugger.com/ ...
|
 A
diesel-hybrid pickup to be introduced in 2010 with the potential for 40 mpg.From Mahindra. Not sure I quite believe this, but their tractors have a good reputation. |
|
Prius PlugIn Hybrid
|
 Toyota
announces a plug-in hybrid version of the Prius.Specs are a bit underwhelming, but maybe things will improve with the Lithium batteries. A
question one might ask is do plug in hybrids result in lower GHG emissions
when you include the GHGs from the grid electricity used to charge them? |
|
MDI Air Car http://www.popularmechanics.com
http://www.theaircar.com/howitworks.html
|
 MDI
seems to be serious about introducing several versions of a car that runs on
energy stored in compressed air tanks. The compressed air drives a
piston engine. They are also planning a version with an onboard fossil
fuel compressor to make compressed air as you go -- a sort of air hybrid.I could not find any information on CO2 emissions for the energy that is used to compress the air. It would be nice to know how these air cars compare to pure electrics, hybrids, and plug in hybrids on total CO2 emissions, with the electricity sourced from coal or NG power plants -- please let me know if you see this -- Gary. (thanks to Jerry for suggesting this item) |
|
Wind-to-Wheel Energy Assessment, Patrick Mazza and Roel Hammerschlag, Institute for Lifecycle Environmental Assessment http://www.efcf.com/reports/E18.pdf
|
 This
very interesting paper compares the range achieved by identical cars using 4
energy storage technologies -- battery, compressed air, and Hydrogen powered
fuel cells.Batteries appear to be the clear winner from this point of view. (Thanks to Ron for finding this) |
|
MIT's pint-sized car engine promises high efficiency, lost cost --
Ethanol empowers little engine that could Massachusetts Institute of
Technology news office
|
Article from MIT Tech Talk on a gasoline engine that uses direct injection
of Ethanol to suppress knocking under high power demand situations. Claim is that this allows a much smaller, higher compression, turbo charged gas engine to power a car, with injection of Ethanol only when high power is demanded. The claim is that this could reduce fuel consumption by 30%, which is comparable to hybrids, but at a much lower cost. |
|
Scuderi Engine -- Potential air hybrid
|
 A
new engine design that separates compression and combustion into
separate paired cylinders. This may offer some advantages in
efficiency (claim is that a 30mpg car becomes 40 mpg car), and the
possibility of a compressed air hybrid at a lower cost. |
|
PML's In-Wheel Motor, Plug-in Hybrid Mini http://www.greencarcongress.com
|
 A
new hybrid technology testbed.Motors in wheels, 21 KWH lithium-polymer battery pack, 200 mile range as electric, 930 mile range as gas hybrid. Zero to 62 mph in 5 seconds. 250cc engine. Traction control and anti-skid built into each wheel. 80 mpg? |
|
The UltraCommuter -- 500 mpg 2 seat car, University of Queensland Description form Univ of Queensland
Description from Green Car Congress
|
 A
2 seat "UltraCommuter" car from the University of Queensland. It is a
hybrid, and has 2.5 m^2 of PV panels as well as a compressed natural gas
tank that runs a 10KW generator to provide power when the batteries have
been exhausted. Claimed fuel economy is 0.44 liters per 100km (535
mpg).“This is a real car designed for today’s Australian conditions using current technology,” he said. “Our goal is to have a fully operational prototype on the road later this year.” |
|
Taiwan Solar Car Prototype
|
 Solar
powered, Lithium Polymer battery prototype. Weighs 250 kg, top speed 7
km/hr, and 3 hr run time."The battery can be charged with just a few hours sunlight and can power the car for three hours." Expected to be available "this year". |
|
UBC 3100 mpg car www.physorg.com/news70040977.html
|
 Winner
(by a wide margin) of the
SAE Super Mileage
Contest 3145 miles per US gallon!“We achieved this level of efficiency by optimizing many aspects of the vehicle design, including: aerodynamics, light-weight construction, a small displacement engine (54 cc), and conservative driving habits,” says Team Captain Kevin Li. |
|
Peugeot -- 69 mpg Diesel Hybrid
NEW update on the Peugeot diesel hybrid: |
 Fairly
detailed article on prototype Peugeot hybrid diesel. Sounds great, but unfortunately not available until 2010. |
|
Loremo debuts 150 mpg concept car in Geneva From AutoBlog
|
 Up to 150 mpg on this low drag, light weight diesel. Price projected
to be $13K to $18K. Production not scheduled to start until 2009. |
|
Daimler Chrysler "Boxfish" 70 mpg
|
 A
70 mpg, Diesel hybrid, 4 seater.Drag coefficient of 0.19. |
|
Accelerated Composites Aptera 230 mpg car
|
 Accelerated
Composites Aptera is a 230 mpg, diesel hybrid, two seater. Weighs 850
lb. Zero to 60 in 10 secs. Drag coefficient of 0.05. |
|
Bob -- A Motor Home for the Greenhouse Gas Age? www.andrewmaynard.com.au/BOB01.html
|
  I've
often wondered if there is a way for people who like RVing to be able to
keep doing it in a way that is responsible given our greenhouse gas and
climate change problems. Well, here is one concept that might work.
Not much detail, but an interesting idea. |
| Commercial Vehicles | |
|
Mercedes-Benz Actros -- an efficient big rig http://www.autobloggreen.com/...
|
 This
40 ton Mercedes Benz Actros big rig managed 12.4 mpg with a 25 ton
payload. This was on a test track at 50 mph, but still pretty amazing
considering that a lot of these big rigs only get 5 mpg.Lots of interesting material on factors effecting big rig mpg and CO2 emissions in the article. |
|
London Plans for Hybrid Bus Expansion
|
 London
plans to convert its entire fleet of 8000 buses to diesel hybrids by 2012.
The diesel hybrids generate 40% less CO2. |
|
Hybrid School Buses http://www.hybridschoolbus.org/ Hybrid Drivetrain Maker:
|
 "11
states are first in the nation to receive hybrid school buses""40 percent increase in fuel efficiency" So, maybe city buses, garbage trucks, ... are coming? |
| Car Fuel Conversions | |
|
EERE Alternative Fuels & Advanced Vehicles Data Center http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/
|
 New
EERE website to bring together resources on alternative fuel vehicles.Includes basic info on alternative fuels, index to publications, data on alternative fuel use, incentives programs by state, and lots of alternative fuel resources (although not a lot of the best ones from the point of view of Do-It-yourselfers). |
|
VW Jetta Conversion to
Vegetable Oil Jeff
|
 Jeff
describes his conversion of a 1998 VW Jetta Diesel to burn straight
vegetable oil. VERY detailed.
Thank you Jeff! |
| Mike Pelly's biodiesel method http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_mike.html http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_library.html Part of the Journey to Forever site: |
 Nice
clear explanation of how to make biodiesel, and some of the chemistry behind
it.The Journey To Forever site is very interesting, with a good collection of information on biofuels and many other fine projects. |
|
Do-It-Yourself Automotive LPG Conversion http://www.wps.com/LPG/LPG-book-final.html So, is an LPG conversion a way to 1) save some money, 2) reduce greenhouse gas emissions -- all without spending a lot of money on a new car, an expensive conversion, or the hassle of making Biodiesel? Any thoughts on this? -- Gary |
 Pretty
detailed account of conversion of a Rambler to burn LPG. Includes some
of the mechanics of the conversion, plus driving experiences, finding fuel,
...LPG is a lower carbon fuel than gasoline, and will reduce greenhouse gas emissions -- and maybe save you some money. It is also appears to be a relatively simple conversion, and fuel is widely available. |
| See Also -- the BioFuels page | |
| Aircraft | |
|
Aeros airships http://www.aerosml.com/Aeroscraft Info.asp
|
 Something
like a tenth of our oil goes into aircraft transporting people and cargo.
Maybe its time to think about aircraft that use less fuel? |
| Solar Boats | |
|
The Biggest Solar Electric Boat this Side of the Mississippi Steve Cooper |
 Home
Power Magazine article, issue 57Interesting article on using solar PV to provide auxiliary power on a 30 ft sailboat. |
| Solar Trailers and Mobile Workshops | |
|
Portable Solar-Powered Workshop Jon Haeme Search Home Power article archives for issue 47, and order it. |
 Home
Power Magazine article, issue 47Article on a complete, PV powered, workshop in a trailer. |
|
90 Solar Powered Portable Workshop Search Home Power article archives for issue 90, and order it.
|
 Home
Power Magazine article, issue 90Interesting article on a portable, PV powered workshop in a trailer. Uses one 120W PV panel, 2 Trojan T105 batteries, and an 1800 watt inverter to power a wide variety of tools. System cost $2600. |
| Solar Tractors and Mowers | |
|
ElecTrack electric tractors .... Mark Frerking
|
 This
article by Mark describes in detail a line of electric tractors and
riding mowers offered by GE and others a few years ago.These are fully electric, use no gas, and make no pollution. They could even be charged with a PV array. The fact that many made back in the 70's are still working is testament to their rugged design and construction. It boggles the mind that nothing equivalent is offered today. Thanks very much to Mark for providing this. |
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Converting an Allis-Chalmers "G" Cultivating Tractor into an Electric
Vehicle, A USDA Funded SARE Grant
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 Detailed
instructions on converting an Allis-Chalmers "G" tractor for solar electric
operation.Covers both the tractor conversion and a charging station. The author uses two of these converted tractors day in and day out. |
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David Goes Electric Bruce Johnson Search Home Power article archives for issue 53, and order it. |
 Home
Power Magazine article, issue 53Interesting article on converting a walk behind gas tractor to electric power on a budget.
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| Lee's Solar Lawn Mower |
 Lee
describes in detail how he converted a Troy-Bilt gas mower deck into a
clean, battery power, electric lawn mower that will soon be solar charged. |
| Converting A Gas Lawn Mower To Solar Charged Electric Power, Guy Marsden |
 Guy
shows in detail how he converted a noisy polluting gas mower into a solar
charged electric mower.Guy's website has a wealth of information on solar
space and water heating, conservation, ... |
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Solar Charged Lawnmower From Appropedia.org www.appropedia.org/Solar_Charged_Lawnmower Potential cheap source for electric lawnmower motors ...
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 Appropedia
article describes converting a gas mower to a solar electric motor.Provides some useful information for any project that needs a fair amount of power (1 hp) run from solar electricity. |
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Solaris Solar Mower http://www.solarispowerproducts.com/index.htm
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 This
is a commercially available electric mower with an option for solar
charging. The mower is a 19 or 21 inch, self propelled, and is said to
be capable of 7000+ sqft on one charge.Available mostly in Canada, but may be more available in the US soon -- about $500 to $600 Dan has purchased one, and will be reporting on how it works out (good so far) on Dan's site ... |
