CrazyPhuD

it depends....with a large battery bank now....absolutely....a good sized number of cells will weight at least 200-300lbs....however battery technology is always improving, in a few years....maybe it'll work.

Capacitors might work(I think they have a fairly high enery/lb rating), but charging them and storing enough energy will be a challenge....

Gernby

Storage capacity per pound is definitely MUCH greater with batteries. The only advantage to a capacitor is that it can charge and discharge very quickly. I doubt you could even fit a capacitor in a car that would provide 600 amps at 24V for more than 1 second before it was completely discharged.

CrazyPhuD

But there is new technology in the pipe, it remains to be seen if it will work but it has potential...

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/SciTech/Fut...h_040810-1.html

mikegarrison

You guys are getting exotic enough that I don't know why you don't go all out: a gas turbine engine hybrid.

The main problem with a gas turbine engine is that the lag time is too slow. So decouple it from the drive train by using an electric motor. Step on the pedal and the electric motor spools up fast (drawn from a capacitor, maybe). The gas turbine spools up slower, but fast enough to replace the power in the capacitor. Something like that.

Gernby

I'm holding out for the Mr. Fusion that will charge the flux capacitor that drives my 2000 HP electric AWD S3000.

EDIT: A big part of my concept (named the Gern Mobile) is that it will not have a frame or body panels. All the essential components (including myself) will just be suspended by a force field. The total weight of the vehicle will be a scant 452 lbs including fuel (garbage). The exterior design will be flexible, since it will just be a hologram.

MacGyver

Damn, Gern, I think you need to consider Weight Watchers

Gernby

That hurts.