Air-Powered Car Coming to U.S. in 2009 to 2010 at Sub-$18,000, Could Hit 1000-Mile Range. The Air Car caused a huge stir when we reported last year that Tata Motors would begin producing it in India. Now the little gas-free ride that could is headed Stateside in a big-time way. Zero Pollution Motors (ZPM) confirmed to PopularMechanics.com on Thursday that it expects to produce the world's first air-powered car for the United States by late 2009 or early 2010.
As the U.S. licensee for Luxembourg-based MDI, which developed the Air Car as a compression-based alternative to the internal combustion engine, ZPM has attained rights to build the first of several modular plants, which are likely to begin manufacturing in the Northeast and grow for regional production around the country, at a clip of up to 10,000 Air Cars per year. We'll believe that when we drive it, but MDI's new dual-energy engine—currently being installed in models at MDI facilities overseas—is still pretty damn cool in concept. World's First Air-Powered Car: Zero Emissions by Next Summer. June 1, 2007 3:05 AM This six-seater tax, which should be available in India next year, is powered entirely by a tank filled with compressed air. India's largest automaker is set to start producing the world's first commercial air-powered vehicle. The Air Car, developed by ex-Formula One engineer Guy Nègre for Luxembourg-based MDI, uses compressed air, as opposed to the gas-and-oxygen explosions of internal-combustion models, to push its engine's pistons.
Some 6000 zero-emissions Air Cars are scheduled to hit Indian streets in August of 2008. Barring any last-minute design changes on the way to production, the Air Car should be surprisingly practical. The $12,700 CityCAT, one of a handful of planned Air Car models, can hit 68 mph and has a range of 125 miles. Of course, the Air Car will likely never hit American shores, especially considering its all-glue construction. Air-Powered Car, AirPod: The Future Of Urban Transportation? Compressed air car. A compressed air car is a car that uses a motor powered by compressed air. The car can be powered solely by air, or combined (as in a hybrid electric vehicle) with gasoline, diesel, ethanol, or an electric plant with regenerative braking. Technology[edit] Engines[edit] There have been prototype cars since the 1920s, with compressed air used in torpedo propulsion. Storage tanks[edit] Energy density[edit] In order to increase energy density, some systems may use gases that can be liquified or solidified.
Emissions[edit] Compressed air cars are emission-free at the exhaust. However a study showed that even with very optimistic assumptions, air storage of energy is less efficient than chemical (battery) storage.[3] Advantages[edit] The principal advantages of an air powered Disadvantages[edit] The principal disadvantages are the additional steps of energy conversion and transmission, because each inherently has loss.
Additional concerns: Crash safety[edit] According to a report by the U.S. APUQ[edit] How the Air Car Works" Gasoline is already the fuel of the past. It might not seem that way as you fill up on your way to work, but the petroleum used to make it is gradually running out. It also pollutes air that's becoming increasingly unhealthy to breathe, and people no longer want to pay the high prices that oil companies are charging for it. Automobile manufacturers know all of this and have spent lots of time and money to find and develop the fuel of the future. The search is on, but what will this fuel of the future be?
Ready-made fuels like petroleum are becoming more difficult to find and automobile manufacturers are turning to greener energy sources like batteries. Air? Unfortunately, air alone can't be used as a fuel. At least one manufacturer thinks that it's ready to sell air cars to the American public. Top Five Air Powered Vehicles. If the Cash for Clunkers incentive wasn’t enough to curb your unsettled feeling about owning a new gas guzzler, you might want to start saving for one of these truly awesome air-powered eco-rides. Sometimes called PHEV (pneumatic-hybrid electric vehicle), these cars are most typically powered by a compressed air engine combined with an electric motor. The engines are similar to steam engines as they use the expansion of externally supplied pressurized gas to perform work against a piston.
Don’t settle on a fuel/electric hybrid or a biofuel burning vehicle before you take a look at our list of top 5 air powered vehicles that will soon be available in the United States. 5. Magnetic Air Car For the sports car lover who also wants a zero-pollution vehicle, take note of San Jose Club Auto Sport, who claims to be developing the first Magnetic Air Car. 4. 3. 2. Unveiled at the 2008 New York Auto Show, the OneCat from MDI has a style that may win over the Mini and Smart Car owners. 1.