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Sunday, October 23, 2011

Air car is not all hot air — Tata to release in '12


Tata says the Air Car stores enough compressed air to offer around 300km worth of motoring. Users will then be able to re-gas the car at certain filling stations that are equipped with special tanks of compressed air, in around three to four minutes for around $2. It will also come with its own generator pack which can be used at home capable of re-gassing the tanks in around four hours.... Tata is aiming to release the Mini CAT Air Car in India next year with prices starting at around $12,700.
(h/t Yves Smith at Naked Capitalism)

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8 comments:

  1. Matt FrankoOctober 23, 2011 at 7:53 PM

    Hey OPEC:

    Na Na Na Na

    Na Na Na Na

    Hey Hey Hey

    Goodbye!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousOctober 23, 2011 at 8:56 PM

    This is interesting :)
    As the article mentions, more details are needed wrt the compression process - how energy efficient is it?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Matt FrankoOctober 23, 2011 at 9:34 PM

    Laura,

    It's done with electricity.

    Preferably nuke-ya-ler.

    High pressure tanks at the commercial 'filling stations' can top it off in minutes. The idea is limited range with frequent but very fast fill ups...

    Na Na Na Na...

    Resp,

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tom HickeyOctober 23, 2011 at 9:53 PM

    Here's some more on air cars

    Air Cars

    Laura, click on "technique" in the menu bar.

    Here's more on efficiency

    Energy efficiency of compressed-air cars is disputed

    ReplyDelete
  5. ClonalOctober 23, 2011 at 10:12 PM

    This is just a rumor based on prior statements. I cannot find any official statement, press release or Indian newspaper report of Tata stating that they will be marketing the air car in India in 2012.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Matt FrankoOctober 23, 2011 at 10:20 PM

    Clonal,

    India WILL do this. India minds the external sector.

    India will NOT run up a bunch of external deficits to buy petroleum off of OPEC to fuel it's vehicular transportation fleet, no way.

    India is different in this way vs. other non-western nations.

    Resp,

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousOctober 24, 2011 at 6:24 PM

    Thanks Tom.
    It really is about the compressors and the engine itself and those two conversions determine the energy efficiency.

    I read once about an airplane driven by rubber bands as they unwound.

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousOctober 25, 2011 at 7:32 AM

    MDI failed so far to deliver the technology. Big promises since 2007. No wonder that there is no official statement from Tata Motors. Any related articles or connections to MDI have been deleted from the website of Tata Motors, including in the archive.

    ...

    http://www.catecar.ch/en_news.html

    ReplyDelete