Coming soon, the car that runs on air: Peugeot Citroen unveil new 117mpg hybrid...

The London Daily Mail ^ | January 22, 2013 | Ruth Sunderland

[MasterGunner01]

What’s next, a perpetual motion machine that doesn’t use energy? Bravo Sierra. There is NO free lunch.

[iowamark]

[freedumb2003]

>>Had one of these on the farm I grew up on, it was always breaking down. <<

So you had my ex-wife too, eh?

Nowadays she is fat as all heck and someone else’s problem. Like old farm equipment.

[freedumb2003]

>>Natives didn’t appreciate him calling it Frisco...<<

Which is why you are honor bound to refer it so whenever possible!

[2ndDivisionVet]

Gunner, did you read the article?

[MasterGunner01]

Yes. It is still a hybrid that uses fossil fuels and an ICE to compress the air. That it gets 117 mpg is nice, but at what price? All of these “green” energy system solutions have huge price tags when compared to a conventional vehicle [example: Chevy Cruze vs. Chevy Volt]. What's the return on investment [how long to recoup the price in savings]? Is there a real market or is this just another “green” toy for the rich to buy and show the rest of us peasants how backward we are?

[The Wizard]

If just 20% of the cars were this way gas would tumble for the rest of us.

[cunning_fish]

BTW, this 1997 Volga sedan is a deeply restyled Plymouth Valiant from earlier 1960s. Powered with V8 engine it is not a best example of green gas milage.

[Moltke]

The SMART car is loosely associated with Mercedes, not BMW.

There now is a Bavarian hit squad looking for you.

[Portcall24]

Heck, the government in Washington will get 500 MPG.

[bigtoona]

If they can make it work without tax subsidies and people want to buy them, then I think its great. There are definitely places like warehouses and cities where these would be useful.

[staytrue]

“Compressed air as an energy storage medium has a lot of possibilities.”

Let’s look at how battery tech has progressed vs. compressed air tech.

Battery tech has blossomed, compressed air tech has not.

Coming soon, cheaper batteries that can be moulded into various shapes that hold more energy.

Compressed air won’t cut it.

[cableguymn]

The smart car has no ability to absorb energy. It simply transfers all the force to the occupants. At least the bodies will be identifiable.