ReneKMueller.com: Mobility Diary *

Tag <Efficiency>

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2009/04/13
Lightweight Car: Loremo LS - 1.5L per 100km / 155 MPG
last edited 2009/04/15 10:43 (*)
I finally found a lightweight car, still 550kg, but that team realized the overall weight is a crucial aspect of the overall efficency: Loremo LS - developed by a german-based team.

2008/07/31 12:21

2006/10/26 16:59

2007/08/13 15:36

Technical Details:

weight: 550kg (6.8 vehicle/body ratio @ 80kg human)
seats: 4
fuel usage: 1.5L diesel / 100km or 155 MPG
fuel: diesel
max. speed: 150 km/h or 90 MPH
Euro 17,000 / US$ 22,000
Even though they still have 550kg, they seem to have developed a full scale car with 4 seats: 2 seats facing to the front, and 2 seats facing backwards. No regular doors but to open it with the entire front; this due the ridig steel frame for the front seats.
So, the vehicle/body ratio for:
1 adult: 550/80 = 6.87
2 adults: 550/160 = 3.43
2 adults + 2 kids: 550/260 = 2.11
4 adults: 550/320 = 1.71
which is impressive, almost reaching 1 - so a range of 1.7-6.8.
The overall fuel usage from 1.5 to 2L gasoline per 100km is much better than what I have seen so far, e.g. compare to micro-cars with only 2 seats still having 5-6L per 100km.
Update: The "EV" variant comes with an electric engine, and reaching 170km/h, see YouTube: 1st public run Loremo EV (2009/04/11) - it's a bit heavier with 600kg, and 150km / 90 miles range with one battery charge.
As comparison of diesel vs electric version:

diesel electric
weight 550kg 600kg
range 1000km / 600 miles 150km / 90 miles

Source: Loremo.com , Wikipedia: Loremo , YouTube: Loremo (german)
Tags: Lightweight Car, Efficiency, Loremo | Permalink

2009/04/13
Vehicle/Body Ratio: Efficiency and Safety
last edited 2009/04/13 13:19 (*)
Much of my argumentation of efficiency goes down to reduce the vehicle/body ratio, and only the human body, bicycles and a fully loaded truck are around 1 or below this ratio.
But aside this considerations, there is also another aspect often forgotten. The amount of energy to move a heavy vehicle (e.g. 1,500kg) is also the energy that vehicle has at a collision or crash - that energy needs to be distributed and transformed, and this is what a crash truly is, the energy which was used to move the vehicle needs to be released, mostly in deformation of the vehicle.
And here again, the vehicle/body ratio comes into place, when your vehicle is 9-12x times heavier than you, your body will be crushed and only 8-10% of the energy thereby released. What sounds a bit abstract, let me rephrase, the risk of physical harm done on the body is higher the heavier the vehicle you use. E.g. a pedestrian hit by a 1,500kg car is the worst case, the full energy of the car hits the body of the pedestrian, and deforms that body to release the energy.
Now, when you reduce the overall weight of the vehicles, you not just increase overall effciency since you require less energy to move the vehicle itself, but you also have less energy which in case of a collision or crash needs to be released - the lighter the vehicle the less energy is released in deformation of vehicles (cars or human bodies) - in a nutshell: lighter cars reduce the overall severity of crashes on humans and cars.
See my overview in Mobility of vehicle/body ratios.
Tags: Vehicle/Body Ratio, Efficiency, Safety | Permalink

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