If the wife complains about cycling costs.

[Tony Raven]

Phil Cook wrote on 09/04/2007 17:25 +0100:
> Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
>
>> On Mon, 9 Apr 2007 16:32:08 +0100, "Simon Mason"
>> <[email protected]> said in
>> <[email protected]>:
>>
>>> It burned oil from brand new!
>> Ah, it's an Alfa, then.
>>
>> Guy (specialist subject the bleedin' obvious!)
>
> That's why it says Alfa 156 on the invoice isn't it?

Are they planning getting round to a Beta version anytime soon? 156
reworks seems an awful lot for an alpha version. ;-)

--
Tony

"The most savage controversies are those about matters as to which there
is no good evidence either way."
- Bertrand Russell

 

[Dave Larrington]

In news:[email protected],
Just zis Guy, you know? <[email protected]> tweaked the Babbage-Engine to tell us:

> Asitappens, we are looking at possibly replacing the MDG with one of
> them Toyota Prius jobs. As an "out" geek, I find it horribly
> compelling.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!

On aesthetic grounds, if nothing else...

--
Dave Larrington
<http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk>
Murdock's Gardening Law: If it's green, the paving isn't
finished yet.

 

[Dave Larrington]

In news:[email protected],
Just zis Guy, you know? <[email protected]> tweaked the Babbage-Engine to tell us:

> Stillandall, my sidekick Phill has a Fabia diseasel and it is a
> thoroughly viceless little car, and very tidy inside, and costs much
> less to run than his old A3.

I got one of they and on the various trips over the Bank Holibob w/e, it got
over 60 to the gallon.

--
Dave Larrington
<http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk>
Murdock's Gardening Law: If it's green, the paving isn't
finished yet.

 

[Alan Braggins]

In article <[email protected]>, Tony Raven wrote:
>Just zis Guy, you know? wrote on 08/04/2007 20:26 +0100:
>
>> But. It has I think
>> lowest emissions in class, and runs in batterery mode when pootling.
>> Ultimately I suspect the conversion efficiency of the alternators and
>> associated trickery is lower than that of a good modern torque
>> converter, but the engine should only run at something like efficient
>> rpm.
>
>It does have a standard CVT albeit one designed to run the engine at
>optimum efficiency plus the engine is the more efficient Atkinson cycle
>rather than the Otto cycle with the power difference being taken up by
>the electric motors.

Someone in another group says it's the nicest car they've ever driven
for the CVT alone, though apparently not everyone likes the feel.


>The one thing I wish they did have is the USain thermos flask for
>storing the hot coolant for a day or so so that you are always starting
>a hot engine. The fuel consumption is always much worse in the first
>five minutes of driving.

At least you and Guy are probably less likely than typical drivers to do
journeys where five minutes driving is all or most of the journey....
(I'm told that before I was born my parents had a Rover that would hold
water for a day, but not antifreeze mixure reliably for longer. So every
evening they would drain the radiator which had a little brass tap, and
every morning my mother would boil a kettle so it could be refilled with
warm water....)

Apparently there is a UK company working on a plug-in conversion allowing
it to be used in pure electric mode for short journeys - I'd only seen
Californian ones before.
http://motoring.independent.co.uk/features/article355531.ece

 

[Tony Raven]

Alan Braggins wrote on 10/04/2007 16:10 +0100:
>
> Someone in another group says it's the nicest car they've ever driven
> for the CVT alone, though apparently not everyone likes the feel.
>

CVT takes getting used to if you haven't driven one before. Put your
foot down and it gives all the feeling of an high revving engine with a
slipping clutch while the vehicle catches up with the engine speed. I
like it but I have been driving a CVT equipped car for a few years now
so am used to it.

>
> Apparently there is a UK company working on a plug-in conversion allowing
> it to be used in pure electric mode for short journeys - I'd only seen
> Californian ones before.
> http://motoring.independent.co.uk/features/article355531.ece

Yep, the Amberjak conversion with Li ion batteries. Costs about £9k
though so I thought I'd save the money for now and get the 2009 model
when it comes out which will also have Li ion batteries and similar mpg.
I had also wondered about doing a supercap conversion, replacing the
battery with supercapacitors as a lot of the efficiency is limited by
the rate at which regenerated energy when you slow or brake can be
loaded into the battery.

--
Tony

"The most savage controversies are those about matters as to which there
is no good evidence either way."
- Bertrand Russell

 

[Ambrose Nankivell]

Tony Raven wrote:
> Phil Cook wrote on 09/04/2007 17:25 +0100:
>> Just zis Guy, you know? wrote:
>>
>>> On Mon, 9 Apr 2007 16:32:08 +0100, "Simon Mason"
>>> <[email protected]> said in
>>> <[email protected]>:
>>>
>>>> It burned oil from brand new!
>>> Ah, it's an Alfa, then.
>>>
>>> Guy (specialist subject the bleedin' obvious!)
>>
>> That's why it says Alfa 156 on the invoice isn't it?
>
> Are they planning getting round to a Beta version anytime soon? 156
> reworks seems an awful lot for an alpha version. ;-)
>
Tried it. They had to buy them all back and scrap them, IIRC.

A