- The United States with the rest of the world needs to increase its investment in better fuel efficiency for automotive transportation, not necessarily moving to electric cars.
- According to the government, only 14-16% of energy from the gas put into your car is used to move you down the road!
- Potential for improvement is enormous.
- The NRDC claims US spends $13 million per hour on foreign oil
- of the $54 billion in trade deficit, $12 is the result of importing crude oil
- The US consumes 11% of the world's oil produced
- On Aolautos.com, the top sedans that were sold between 2009 and 2010 averaged 32 mpg.
- But according to this site trucks seemed to be more popular than sedans and more were sold. They averaged 21 mpg.
- As a country we should do better than this.
- Variable Valve Timing & Lift
- These optimize the flow of fuel & air into the engine for various engine speeds creating a more efficient engine.
5%
- Cylinder Deactivation
- These deactivate unneeded cylenders when not much is needed out of the car.
7.5%
- Turbochargers & Superchargers
- Increase engine power, allowing manufacturers to downsize engines without sacrificing performance or to increase performance without lowering fuel economy.
7.5%
- Integrated Starter/Generator (ISG) Systems
- Automatically turn the engine on/off when the vehicle is stopped to reduce fuel consumed during idling.
8%
- Direct Fuel Injection (w/ turbocharging or supercharging)
- Delivers higher performance with lower fuel consumption.
11-13%
Hybrids are less than a partial solution
- Some have questioned whether the hybrids and battery powered cars have the battery pack located in the crumple zone of the vehicle - not the case.
- The safety issue is much more about the size of the car.
- Currently, electric cars are very small.
- Increase investment in automotive technology to create much greater fuel efficiency.
- Take advantage of national natural resources in areas like North Dakota to further decrease or dependence on foreign oil.
- Incent Americans to move toward fuel efficient vehicles by making them truly cost-effective alternatives. Fuel efficient vehicles need to be available for those that want/need 4-wheel drive.
Why I chose this
I've always thought about going into the Automotive Industry and finding new ways to improve car efficiency and to benefit the environment and ultimately the economy.
Fuel Efficient Cars
Works cited:
Safety is Questionable
- Prices are high
- Fuel savings exaggerated
- Battery needs to be replaced
- Some need charging stations
- And...
Stop using foreign oil!
Solutions?
Ways to Improve gas efficiency
Too many cars have poor fuel economy