Kenneth Waller
http://www.tinyurl.com/272u2f
----- Original Message -----
From: "Adam Maas" <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: Car buffs, help needed
On Sat, Oct 31, 2009 at 1:22 AM, paul stenquist <[email protected]>
wrote:
Thanks Ken. Some good material.
Paul
On Oct 31, 2009, at 1:06 AM, Ken Waller wrote:
Several items come to mind :
+ Twin turbo engines, replacing normally aspirated engines of higher
displacement, ala the Ford's Eco-boost engines - ie an Eco boost V 6
replacing a normally aspirated V 8, with almost constant Torque from say
2k
rpm to redline.
Not really news, Nissan and Toyota started doing this years ago. The
Skyline GT-R and Supra TT along with the Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 (aka
Dodge Stealth Turbo) all had this in the early 90's, with the Toyota
and Dodge both being widely available.
I don't recall those engines having the flat torque curve that the Eco-boost
engines have - something like 80 to 90 % of max torque available from around
2
K rpm up to max rpm.
The big deal is Ford doing it on mainstream American cars with turbo 4's
replacing V6's where it had
previously been used as a replacement for V8's on high-end sports
coupes previously.
+ Stability control , where the brakes are utilized to control vehicle
dynamics in a turn ie applying the inside rear wheel brake to help in an
understeer in a turn situation.
Once again, not really news, late 90's entrance into common use
No production vehicles come to mind.....
+ Electronic throttle where there is no mechanical linkage between the
accelerator pedal and the throttle body.
This is now getting popular, but it's been around since the 80's.
'Being around' and in production volumes are quite different.
I worked on anti skid for under 10K pound gvw vehicles in the mid 70's but
it really didn't get into high volume mass production until the late 80's.
+ Electronic steering, where there is no hydraulic assist.
New in common use.
+ 'Active speed control' (not sure of the exact name - after a few
Bombay
Sapphire gimlets), where the distance between you and the vehicle you're
following is maintained, and if you approach the vehicle in front, the
system applies the brakes.
this is nifty and new.
I might be able to think of more in the morning [:+}
BTW ceramic brakes are offered on several Porsche models and they
definitely last more than 200 miles. although the $8 to 10 K price
premium
is way too stiff IMO.
Kenneth Waller
-Adam
--
M. Adam Maas
http://www.mawz.ca
Explorations of the City Around Us.
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