Dr Automotive Design and Tools

Williams completed a successful first test of its KERS system at Valencia today despite never having run the system fully operational on-track before.

The team did not run the hybrid system during the 2009 season and has abandoned the flywheel hybrid system to develop its own battery-based KERS for the return of the technology this year.

Pastor Maldonado completed a total of 101 laps with the system engaged and technical director Sam Michael was pleased with the reliability after losing three hours of track time on the first day of the test with a KERS problem suffered when the system was not active.

"We turned KERS on today for the first lap and did 100 laps on it," said Michael. "Within five laps we were on full power and we ran it all day.

"We just started running KERS today, although we had bits and pieces on the car before and we haven't had any problems."

Maldonado ended the day seventh fastest overall and fourth fastest 2011 car, meaning that Williams finished the test with a productive day after losing some track time on Tuesday and Wednesday.

"It's been good," said Michael of the test overall. "We basically had five hours of downtime - three hours with the KERS motor problem on day one and then an electrical fault yesterday that cost us two hours. But apart from that, the car ran.

"We got some good mileage on it, understood all of the systems, got temperatures and pressures, seeing what rubs and what doesn't, looking at the internal conditions of the mechanical parts and it's all not bad. We had a few little problems here and there, but it's all solid."

Michael is reserving judgement as to the overall potential of the new Williams FW33, but is confident that the fundamental design has good potential.

"It's too early to tell because you don't know what fuel loads people are running," said Michael. "This is a very peculiar track because the lift/drag ratio is less than 1:1, so you need to get onto some proper tracks before you see anything.

"All of the cars will change before the first race, but there is nothing conceptually on our car that is fundamentally different than any other car, except for probably Renault with its exhaust."

Tim Stevens over at Engadget has written a post today about the death of the internal combustion engine (ICE), using cigarette smoking as a example of how trends can change.

Good to see the 'word' is finally getting out about the gross inefficiency of ICEs. The information referenced by Tim is actually fairly conservative as he's quoting 30% energy efficiency for petrol fueled ICEs but that is when measured at the flywheel. The real figure for an ICE vehicle is closer to just 15% total energy efficiency when measured at the wheels.

Yet even that may be over-stating energy efficiency as much of the remaining 15% used to get the vehicle rolling is also converted into waste heat when braking.

With an electric motor, most of which are 90+% efficient, energy converted into inertia when accelerating a vehicle can be regenerated during braking and reused in the next acceleration cycle.

In some cases, such as in urban stop-start traffic, regen can extend battery range by as much as 50%. This brake regeneration is the principle used in all hybrids to improve overall vehicle fuel efficiency, although it does absolutely nothing to improve ICE inefficiency.

Due to the fundamental energy efficiency of electric motors in both propulsion and braking, the ICE-less Nissan Leaf can to be equipped with a battery having a maximum capacity equivalent to only 0.65 US Gallon (approx 2.5 liters) of gasoline, yet still have the torque of a V6 and 100 miles (160 kms) range. If the ICE version of the Leaf (the Versa) had the same sized fuel tank it would barley cover 20 miles.

In the same way incandescent light bulbs are now banned for sale in countries like Australia, based on the fact that they convert 95% of the energy they consume into waste heat, for that reason alone (and there are PLENTY of other valid reasons), it would seem the shift away from ICEs and towards EVs is fairly inevitable.


Source: Engadget

Peugeot will use a 3.7-litre V8 turbo-diesel engine to power its new 908 Le Mans challenger the French manufacturer confirmed at the car's launch in Paris on Thursday.

Though the company has long considered the use of hybrid technology, it has instead decided to build an engine using its tried and trusted diesel technology, according to the ACO's performance equalising regulations.

"We have also made full of our experience with the V12," said Peugeot Sport's technical director Bruno Famin. "We ultimately decided to opt for a turbocharged diesel V8, the characteristics of which are very similar to those of the V12 (which powered the old car).

"The angle of the 'vee' is 90 degrees (compared with 100 degrees in the case of the V12) for balance reasons. The cubic capacity is 3.7 litres and the new V8 HDi FAP boasts peak power of 550hp. We ran it for the first time on the dyno on January 25, 2010."

The all-new 908, so named in reference to its ultra-successful forebear - the 908 Hdi FAP - also continues the theme of closed top prototypes recently followed by Audi with its own new R18.

"We knew from previous testing work that there is little significant difference between open- and closed-cockpit cars in terms of their aerodynamic performance," said Famin. "At the same time, despite the added constraints they bring when working on them at races, closed-cockpit cars provide additional safety for the drivers. We therefore decided to stay with the same solution.

"Given the big reduction in engine power resulting from the 2011 regulations (a fall of approximately 150hp), we had to take a fresh look at the trade-off between aerodynamics, drag and downforce. The latter has been significantly reduced in order to maintain a reasonably high top speed."

But though visually the 908 clearly carries much of the DNA aerodynamically of its predecessor, Famin claims it is a completely new design from the ground up.

"The experience we have gained over the past four years helped to steer the decision-making process and our technical choices, although the only component which has been carried over at the end of the day is the windscreen wiper!" he said. "One of the principal difficulties we faced was having to design an all-new car while continuing to race another at the same time.

"We also needed to set ourselves sound objectives with a view to obtaining the best possible package with regard to engine performance, aerodynamics and weight distribution. We will only find out how successful we have been when we start racing the new car..."

Peugeot has also opted to go for rear-width sized 14.5in front tyres, just as Audi has done with its R18 - a concept pioneered by Acura's LMP1 in the American Le Mans Series in 2009.

"Today's LMP cars have a shortcoming with regard to front-end road holding performance," explained Famin. "The logical way to cure this was to increase the size of the contact patch between the tyres and the track, which entailed running bigger front wheels, within the limits specified by the regulations. This aspect of the car's development was carried out in close collaboration with our partner Michelin."

Peugeot began testing the new car, then codenamed the 90X, as early as last July, and is confident that it will prove to be as driver friendly as the car that took it to the LMS and Intercontinental titles in 2010.

"One of the very positive points we found was that the car's handling lived up to our expectations out of the box," said Famin. "With regard to its other strengths and weaknesses, we will need to wait until the first races to see how we compare with our rivals.

"That said, we continue to work without worrying about what our opponents are doing; we are simply focusing on our own objectives. Between the car's track debut in 2010 and the 2011 Le Mans 24 Hours, we will have completed 12 tests in all, at a number of different circuits."

Despite Peugeot carting a hybrid version of their 908 HDi FAP called the 'hy' around the show circuit as long ago as 2008, there's still no confirmation Peugeot will ever use KERS on board the official works cars.

The first regular shipment of 100% electric Nissan LEAFs bound for Europe is today arriving in North East England.

The 67 Nissan LEAFs aboard the ‘City of St. Petersburg', Nissan's brand new energy-saving car carrier for transporting vehicles in Europe, are destined for customers in the UK and Ireland and will be unloaded from the Port of Tyne as the carrier completes its maiden voyage.

"The arrival of the Nissan LEAF, the world's first affordable, all-electric car, in Europe is a landmark day for Nissan and European transport. The Nissan LEAF is a genuine alternative to petrol and diesel cars in terms of style, features, safety, performance and handling," said Simon Thomas, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Nissan International SA, Nissan's European headquarters.

"It is fitting that this first shipment of Nissan LEAFs is arriving on our new energy-saving car carrier, the City of St. Petersburg. We look forward to delivering these cars to the very first Nissan LEAF customers, who share our vision for an environmentally sustainable future for road transport," he added.

The City of St. Petersburg has a sleek and semi-spherical bow which reduces wind resistance by up to 50%, resulting in fuel reductions of up to 800 tonnes annually, equivalent to about 2,500 tonnes of CO2 emissions. The carrier will join the fleet of ships which export hundreds of thousands of vehicles from Nissan Sunderland Plant each year.

UK customers have been able to pre-order the Nissan LEAF since September 2010 ahead of deliveries starting in the coming weeks. Pre-orders for the Nissan LEAF, which is powered by an advanced lithium-ion battery, have reached more than 27,000 units globally. The zero-emission car is currently built in Japan, but will be manufactured in Sunderland from 2013, following the start of production of lithium-ion batteries for such cars at the plant in 2012.

A comprehensive charging network is currently under development in the UK. North East England alone will have 1,300 charge points by 2013, including quick chargers capable of refuelling a Nissan LEAF from when the empty warning light switches onto an 80% charge in just under 30 minutes. Nissan's network of EV dealers - currently 25 sites across the UK - will all be equipped with a quick charger.

Across the UK there are programmes under way to install around 9,000 charge points by 2013.

Nissan research has found that 80% of daily driving in Britain is below 30 miles. With the Nissan LEAF's ability to carry five passengers up to 109 miles (175 km) under the New European Driving Cycle, its arrival in Europe marks a significant development in the environmentally-friendly, cost efficient options available for motorists.

Nei giorni scorsi Fiat ha stanziato i promessi 1.3 miliardi di euro destinati all’impianto di Torino Mirafiori, necessari per avviare la produzione dei SUV con marchio Alfa Romeo e Jeep. Lo riferisce AutoNews, precisando che i nuovi modelli verranno assemblati a partire dal terzo quadrimestre del 2012 in oltre 280.000 esemplari annui, di cui 100-130.000 con il logo del Biscione. Queste vetture occuperanno il segmento intermedio, attualmente “popolato” dalle Audi Q5, BMW X3 e Mercedes GLK.
(Fonte: www.autonews.com - 29/1/2011)

The world's largest solar powered boat will sail around the world to show solar power is a viable source of energy.


A nearly 100-feet long and 50-feet wide ship named "Planet Solar" weighs 60 tons, and is decked with photovoltaic modules. The vessel was launched in Monaco on Monday.

German entrepreneur Immo Stroeher and Swiss project founder, Raphael Domjan made their dream a reality.

They're taking it on a record-breaking round-the-world trip to show that solar power is a viable source of energy for transport.

On board batteries allow the boat to sail for about three days without fresh solar power.

According to the German shipbuilders, the vessel should be able to reach speeds of up to 15 nautical miles per hour. The crew of six hope to make it around the world in 160 days, all of them fossil-fuel free.

The catamaran will stop in Miami, Cancun, San Francisco, Sydney, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi.