[ExI] future ape haulers: the tata nano

spike spike66 at att.net
Wed Jan 11 21:36:20 UTC 2012



-----Original Message-----
From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org
[mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of Henrique Moraes
Machado
...
 
>>...http://www.examiner.com/auto-industry-in-san-jose/tata-nano-the-world-s
-chea
pest-car-starts-delivery-to-first-customers
</spike>

>...When I look at the Nano, I still see some things that could be cheaper.
For instance, if the headlights were round, there would be no need to make
left and right different. The same goes for rearview mirrors. Suicide doors
for the backseats could make the structure lighter. A CVT instead of a
regular transmission would probably be lighter, save space and be cheaper
also. And so on...  Henrique


Ja, and of course make them one-seaters, or perhaps two.  Plenty of
motorcycles are one-seaters, and most of them are two, people still use
them.  Structural weight can be saved if it's gross vehicle weight rating is
for 150 kg of apes full stop.  The wheels can be made lighter once you
recognize the side loads are reduced from that to which we are so fondly
accustomed.  With a reduced passenger design load, you can lose still more
engine mass, and some additional structural mass, the back two seats.  The
headlamps can be white LED, which would allow them to either have separate
rechargeable batteries or a single one that runs both headlights, so you
save weight and manufacturing cost in copper wire and wiring harnesses.  The
brake lights and turn signals can all be done wirelessly, so you can get by
with no almost no wiring harnesses at all.  You can make engine control by
wire and shift by wire.  We can have integrated unit engine and
transmission, as seen on smaller motorcycles.  That would allow easy
carrying of a spare engine and transmission behind the front seat, and make
it to where one feller could swap it out beside the road.  

Those weight savings and obviating of wiring harnesses allow the polystyrene
body shells to be cast as a unit, very little assembly required.  Next time
you see a motorcycle fairing, imagine a thinner version of that: consider
that those things are cantilevered and made for triple digit speeds as
measured in miles per hour.

I bet we could get it under 400kg and over 100 mpg.

spike




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