Boy, that’s fugly
MiniC.A.T. Air Car runs on air – GadgetCentre.com: This actually runs on compressed air.
The MiniC.A.T Air Car has been in development by Moteur Development International (MDI) for the last 14 years, resulting in an engine which will run on thin air. Understandably, MDI say this “could become one of the biggest technological advances of this century”.
The engine runs on compressed air and, with a single charge, will deliver 200km worth of pollution free travel- although this assumes you’re driving under 60km/h, once you go faster than that you’ll start to burn fuel. Nonetheless, at speeds above 60km/h the car still produces less pollutant than your average.
Quite literally not a car for the petrol head then, but it sounds like great news for the environment. No idea when the car will be released, but it could cost as little as £5,500.
Thanks to BubbaRay, who provided the link to this video in the comments section for this post, showing the vehicle in action.
Saw something like this on Discovery. Good idea!
As always, it sounds wonderful until you remember that the energy to move the thing comes from somewhere, and that somewhere is the gasoline- or electric-powered air compressor…
As with electric cars, it just moves the source of pollution elsewhere.
#2, Yes, it might be true, but not necessarily so. Moving that source elsewhere, we’re giving a chance for clean energy sources to also supply our cars and not only our houses. I’m talking about dams, wind generators, solar power, etc., etc.
#3 – Miguel Correia
You are quite correct; not necessarily so. Unfortunately, here in the real world, usually so. 🙂
@2. So you go solar and let the sun generate your electricity.
Sounds wonderful, mark. Take a week, weather permitting, to collect sufficient solar energy to convert to sufficient electricity to run the air compressor long enough to pressurize the tank enough for 2 hours driving…
Sorr-ree. Conversion inefficiences are essential factors in this scenario. They are real and they haven’t been solved satisfactorily yet – not at anything resembling economically viable cost levels, that is.
Now, if you have infinite funds, sure…
6. Think positive. Solar collecting stations can be built, its very doa-ble. On a larger scale much as a gas station. I easily generate 5KVA with the small system I have at home, enought to run a compressor, no prob. Have done it for years in the tropics where power is unpredictable. Although I dont know what type of pressure requirement needed for this, it would be interesting. But yes, weather is a problem in many areas, but not here in the Southwest OR in the Virgin Islands.
6, Lauren, I got all excited about a guy in New Mexico that has gone ‘off-grid’ with his house, until I learned it cost him about $400K. That ain’t unlimited funds, but I wonder how many could afford that expense on _top_ of their house payments.
Here’s a very nice video about this tech:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFbKINlXzRk
8. Are you talking about the housing development outside Taos? I think its called Earthship. They are more than off the grid, they create there own water from recycled waste, homes are underground, Its an interesting but not very pretty development. Maybe Eideard knows something about this. I think he lives nearby.
I don’t agree with #2.
The PR says if you go under 37.2 miles per hour it doesn’t burn fuel, it j expands air. Obviously we all go faster than that but we could technically go that slow and it is a starting point for a car still in beta.
The website says a gas/air station will fill the air tank with a simple compressor in 3 minutes for $2. (Or the car will fill itself in 6 hours.)
A tank of air will go 124 miles. In a similar sized car, say a Mini Cooper which gets 40 MPG on the highway, that would take 3.1 gallons of gas.
I doubt it takes 3.1 gallons of gas to run an air compressor for 3 minutes.
I don’t think this is like an electric car where you are simply using electricity from fossil fuels burning hundreds of miles away.
This is a terrific idea.
Where you see “fugly” I see cool.
Now, make it faster with far far better range… and they’ll get there… and it will be a real product.
Equip it with pedals and make the kids pedal.
Doesn’t this look like the car from Total Recall?
Geev these peeple sahm ahr!
12. Yeah. Dual Purpose, keep the little monster lean and mean.
9, Mark, thanks for the tip. Earthship has a nice website. I was speaking of another guy who spent $400K getting off the grid in NM. I doubt I could spend that much money for electricity to power my aircar. If this tech takes off, I want one that will go 300 miles per charge and looks like a Ferrari 🙂
15. Its all relative, your friend must be living pretty large. you could generate a lot of power for that kind of moolah. A small house (1200 sq ft) you could do for about 25K for 5Kwh per day. Water Heater on the roof hooked to its own PV cell array, and a pellet stove or woodburner for heat. Forgot about AC.
I want to see the compressor that can charge 2 6 foot cylinders to 3000psi in 2 min. I watched this on the discovery science channel and it is all hype, the car has no ac no power steering and minimal crash protection to keep it very light so that the crappy underpowered engine can move move the glorified go cart around. This guy is shopping for venture capitol so he can line his pockets
Stick with Bio fuels and electrics they actually have promise
17. A typical scuba tank is filled with 3000psi in a matter of 1-2 minutes. Tanks are approximately 3 ft tall. I dont see how that would be an issue at all.
17. A typical scuba tank is filled with 3000psi in a matter of 1-2 minutes. Tanks are approximately 3 ft tall. I dont see how that would be an issue at all.
It appears to be nothing more than a very light hybrid car that is using a gasoline motor-driven compressor and air tank to replace the gasoline motor-driven generator and battery of a conventional hybrid (a Toyota Prius for example). Its efficiency comes mainly from its light weight. Once you add on crash protection and all the things you find in a Prius, it will probably perform about as good as a Prius. Sorry folks, there is no free lunch here.
Nobody else notice that the referred article at http://www.gadgetcentre.com syas it will deliver “2000km worth of pollution free travel” not 200km as your posting states? That’s 1,100 miles. Whose got it right?
It runs on hot air, what were you expecting from a French car to run with?
I want the lawnmower distribution for the southwest US and the snowblower distribution for the north. Naw, too greedy. But how cool that would be. A little carbon fiber tank, and we’re in bidness.
If you are at all familiar with industrial settings, you will know that compressing air is one of the least cost efficient things you can do. A bunch of compressors that output air at over 4000 psi is not the best way to save the planet.
Don’t let the oil companies find out this, they will buy the company and destroy all of the cars as they did with the electric car.
You people have it all wrong…
It fills up on coke and mentos…
duhhh
Still prefer an electric car. Less conversion loss.
Sorry to be so late, but here’s another great video about this tech. It’s about 8 minutes long, but (IMHO) worth your time. Well produced, and shows details about the engine.
29, OK, cowboy, why not the URL to go with it? Let’s try again with TinyUrl:
http://tinyurl.com/26weth
This is the same technology my favourite rocket toy used. Pump the handle a few time and the thing went as high as one of the those other rockets did.
I wonder if NASA can use this technology in their rockets.