Recent content by tarzan1930

I think the slower speed made a big difference. Windows open at 45mph isn't going to take as much energy as windows open at 55 mph. And the efficiency of the condencer in the A/C is lower at 45mph than at 55mph. But the biggest problem, especially if you live in a place like Florida, is that...

Well, the doubling is is only for the energy needed for rolling -- not the total energy needed to overcome the other things that sap energy, like aerodynamic drag. If you want details, take a look here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolling_resistance One thing that might help asphalt a bit...

Depends on the tires and road surface. Running on concrete is about twice as efficient as running on asphalt. On asphalt, 1000lbs more weight (about 500 kg) probably needs an additional force of about 150 N for rolling. So for every mile, you need about an extra 240,000 Joules of energy. At...

Haha. Yeah. Still, that seems to be the way things are going. I'm betting that the electrics or hybrid electrics are going to take that 20hp at 45mph and drop it maybe to 10hp. At that point a decent audio system starts to take a more serious chunk of the power.

Yeah. What you said about losses makes me wonder if maybe there'll be a market for "green audio".

Your car battery is setup to be charged by the engine. Sure, you can turn the engine off and run the stereo for a while from the energy that was stored in the battery, but once you start the car up, it's going have to put that energy back into the battery. And that energy comes from the gas in...

1 horsepower = 746 watts. At 45 mph, a car needs about 20hp, or 14914 watts. A decent audio system might need 750 watts or about 1 horsepower. So, if you need 20 horsepower to cruise at 45 mph, and 1 horsepower more to run the audio system, then it takes about 5% more fuel to generate that...

It takes gas to make electrical power, and it takes electrical power to make audio. So when does the audio system really start to hurt gas milage? Cruising at 45mph might take about 20hp, and a typical decent audio system might require 1hp. That's about 5%. I guess I can live with that...