Posted on 04/07/2010 11:42:01 AM PDT by rightwingintelligentsia
President Obama's limo is a basically a diesel-powered tank. When he came into office, the new President asked if he could get one with a hybrid drivetrain for his Presidential Topkick Cadillac to go along with his push for greener vehicles across the board. During a recent stop at a North Carolina manufacturing facility that builds battery components for hybrid cars, Obama was asked about the status of his hybrid limo hopes, and admitted that this isn't going to happen.
The reason, the President said, was that the Secret Service rejected his idea "because the cars that I'm in are like tanks," adding "there's a little bit of extra stuff on there." That extra stuff (security stuff, mostly) means the Presidential limo is about two to three times heavier than the average car, according to CBS, and so would not be able to accelerate with a hybrid powerplant.
(Excerpt) Read more at green.autoblog.com ...
obama brought the world and the US together. should be no need for a big heavy armored car.
oh, but there are bad guys out there, though?
okay.
then obama should “disarm” his limo to convince them not to harm him.
he’ll get better gas mileage on his newly inflated tires.
Now that’s funny right there...I don’t care who you are.
It would take a Nuclear power plant to generate enough electricity to get that thing from the Capitol to the White House.
Nor should it. Someday a reall President will need that car...
Zerobama is a phony hypocrite. But what else is new?
If he truly gave a care about reducing energy, he would quit making so many worthless and useless trips in Air Force One.
_________________________________________
How much fuel does a 747 use on takeoff?
3000 gallons of it’s 48500 gallon capacity
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_much_fuel_does_a_747_use_on_takeoff
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April 22, 2009 5:09 PM
Obama Earth Day Flights Burned More Than 9,000 Gallons Of Fuel
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-4962384-503544.html
When I was with Ford we built a Lincoln Limo for Nixon in 72 and it was armour plated by Stikes & Eisenhardt in Cinc. And you’re right it is like a tank I think it could hit an IED and just roll over. What was amazing is that the SS had buttons on the exterior by the hood that could blow confetti our of the grill to keep the engine from overheating. Plus other stuff.
“Zerobama is a phony hypocrite.”
But! But! Obama IS a hybrid!
Use Cadillac Escalade hybrid drivetrain. (same as Tahoe/Silverado; but for people who want a Cadillac badge)
If GM can’t easily do this, I’m sure a smaller company can.
Mercedes is bringing hybrid to their big S Series line, and Toyota has had their big LS Series in hybrid, for years.
This is NOT technically difficult, or leading edge.
Maybe it is for GM, who after years of fanfare will introduce the Volt, the one car which is supposed to rescue them.
GM, once the industry leader, now the industry follower.
I fear an EMP hit from Iran is gonna render most of our country immobile, put us back to 19th-century technology in the blink of an eye. We'd lose millions, if not tens of millions, of people by the time we got our infrastructure operable again. It's a very real threat.
The effect of EMP on electronically controlled engines..which almost now are..is a problem. Not much real research has been done. I’m certain that EMP could be effective with a little work.
That’s cool! Imagine the defensive goodies on the current presidential limo. The POTUS needs some horsepower to get away from danger. Not some hamster wheel hybrid POS.
An EMP hit would permanently destroy virtually anything in its hit zone that contains microcircuitry. Today, that's virtually all technology. You'd have to find old cars that had rotors and points in order to have a running vehicle. Power grids are computer controlled. Water systems. Sanitation systems. All communications. Medical technology. And on and on and on.
Our society is SO reliant on technology, and that technology would be rendered useless junk in the blink of an eye. No power. No water. No transportation. No comms. We would lose millions or tens of millions of people.
WND has a summary article here, and a link to a 200-page commission report released a few years ago, so quite a bit of research has been done.
Park a container ship a hundred miles off the east coast and fire a missile that detonates a nuke 100 miles above Indianapolis, and you've just decimated the USA. And Iran has practiced launching missiles from container ships. This is IMHO the gravest threat we face, by far, and we sit doing nothing while they race toward having the capability to actually pull such an attack off.
Oh BTW, there's a good novel called ONE SECOND AFTER, based on us taking an EMP hit. I think it's well researched and credible in its portrayal of what a post-EMP USA would look like.
The base platform is in fact a Cadillac DTS. The Armored Cadillac DTS Limousine is built O’Gara, Hess, and Eisenhart, armored vehicle builders who have been building armored presidential limousines since the 1960s.
The Armored Cadillac DTS Limousine has 5 inches of ballistic armor on the skin. Enough to take a hit from a grenade launcher. It’s considerably heavier then an Escalade.
From Wikipedia: “The vehicle is based on a GMC Topkick platform...”
“The current presidential limousine entered service on January 20, 2009. According to GM, the manufacturer, the “2009 Cadillac Presidential Limousine” is the first not to carry a specific model name.[1][2] The vehicle’s outward appearance is that of an enlarged Cadillac DTS limousine; however, the vehicle’s chassis and driveline are actually sourced from the GMC Topkick commercial truck.[2][3] Styling elements are sourced from a variety of GM vehicles; for example, the car uses Cadillac Escalade headlights, not DTS units.”
I don’t recall the exact dimensions, but I think the Limo is about 6-8” wider, further off the ground, and uses larger wheels. Further, it is rear-wheel drive. It could never have been based on the DTS platform, because the DTS is front-drive, and has no frame. It therefore would not have had the strength to handle all the armor needed.
Ah a newer one. I was thinking of the one that entered service in 2005. I didn’t know there was a new model introduced.
Again, from Wikipedia:
“The 2005 Cadillac DTS limousine is a hand-crafted, custom built, armored version of the stretch Cadillac DTS built on a GM four-wheel drive platform.[19]”
So even the previous version wasn’t really a DTS, just a lookalike. Again, the DTS platform is completely unsuitable as a true armored limousine, as it lacks a true body-on-frame design, and thus is incapable of supporting the weight of the armor and other upgrades.
And more:
“The [2005] vehicle is one of a kind. It sports a tall roofline, an all-wheel drive set up based on that of the Cadillac Escalade...”
Some details on the actual DTS:
“The original FWD K-body was shared with the downsized E-body Cadillac Eldorado beginning in 1980. In 1986 the Cadillac Seville was replaced with an even smaller front wheel drive model, also given the K designation. The Seville was lengthened in 1992, and the Deville was moved from the GM C platform to the K platform in 1994. The K platform was updated in 1997 with improved suspension geometry. The Seville was replaced with the rear-wheel drive Sigma-based Cadillac STS for 2005, but the Deville’s replacement, the DTS continues on the K-body.”
Hmmm.. From this article: http://www.netcarshow.com/cadillac/2006-dts_limousine/
“The 2006 Cadillac Presidential Limousine is a hand-crafted and armored version of the Cadillac DTS (DeVille Touring Sedan) stretch sedan for the President of the United States.
The new Cadillac DTS was first utilized during the second inauguration of George W. Bush in the January 20, 2005 parade.
The vehicle was custom built by O’Gara, Hess, and Eisenhart, armored vehicle builders who have been building armored presidential limousines since the 1960s. The base platform is a Cadillac DTS, but little of the original vehicle remains. For example, DeVille’s flush-style door handles have been replaced by a loop-type design apparently borrowed from the 1992-99 generation Buick LeSabre, doubling as grab-handles for the Secret Service agents running alongside the car. Exterior examination suggests that the head/tail lights, and the wreath-and-crest emblem atop the grille are some of the few stock components.”
And
“his is the most heavily armored presidential vehicle to date. The jet-black skin has 5 inches worth of ballistic armor, and is said to be able to withstand anti-tank grenade launchers. The underside of the car is also armored. The windows, which do not open, are transparent armor thick enough to block sunlight, which is the reason the interior is illuminated with fluorescent lighting. The vault like doors require automatic systems to open. Any casual observer can see the rolling fortress with the white rims on the tires, completing the armoring with a run-flat tire system. The limousine is also environmentally sealed against chemical and biological attacks.”
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