Rotaries, of old at least, are very power dense but have issue with complete combustion. They run at low CRs which is detrimental to efficient combustion. Also I don’t know of any rotary that can run a modified otto cycle to get good exhaust gas recycling. They also intrinsically burn oil which gives them terrible…

I know a guy who used to have an older model Pistenbully to level out his cranberry bogs, says it’s one of only a few vehicles that doesn’t get stuck in the bogs. He said while the tracks have large surface areas that result in low pressures on the ground, the tracks have long blades from side to side every few inches…

Obligatory notice: Accuweather’s CEO has actively lobbied Congress to force NOAA to stop providing weather information and data for free and instead sell it (to them, generally). Don’t support them.

According to the linked specs, and an online converter about 0.7 psi.

It’s likely thanks to that fact that he’s still alive.

Ive seen them float over fresh powder so pretty damn low.

Not a direct comparison, but the same channel just did a comparison test of ice/snow tires. The Pirelli Ice Zeros were more or less in the same ballpark as the Michelin X-Ice, with the Michelins edging the Pirellis on Ice, while the situation reverses on snow.

There was A LOT of warnings all over the news, social media, and talk all over where ever you went.   They were giving warnings the week before and had already put travel bans in place before Friday hit.   People either neglected taking the warning, or some were essential workers trying to get to and from work. …

Snow/winter tires are in issue. I spend a lot of time all around the Buffalo, NY area and its like anywhere else in the country. At most 10% of people put on winter tires. Majority just go with all-seasons, and a good 10% or more have tires with so little tread they are not safe in any condition, let along snow.

Not cold hearted at all. My thought was, “You have to be one dumb SOB to drive in a blizzard like this one if you absolutely do not have to do it.”  The only thing dumber is doing so and not being prepared for the absolute worst. 

I worked with a guy who grew up in N. Dakota and he told me about the winter survival gear that everyone carried in their car. Made a lot of sense.

No more vertical video!

When the RC51 reigned supreme on the track, during the Daytona race the bike on the high bank oval, at just over 200 MPH, was still not getting all the traction it could. Bikes drive by the average or better than average Joe will run circles around 4 wheels. Even into some well banked corners. Flat turns are a lot…

Electronic launch mode and traction control are the real stars in this comparison. Without it, they’d all just light the tires up (or flip over backward, in the bike’s case). I’d like to see this done again with a rolling start. Would this change the results?

Agreed on all counts. As usual, the Europeans are generally MUCH smarter about this than we are with learner requirements around how much bike you can initially own.

The early to mid 2000s superbikes are just ridiculous value these days.

Another thing to consider is the consumption of fuel. Because a jet engine burns jet fuel, it loses that 160,000 kg over the course of a flight, effectively becoming more efficient as it flies. The weight of batteries never leaves the plane.

I’m honestly shocked that the major automakers don’t offer at least an optional hybrid in most (all?) of their product lines. It’s not exactly new technology and all of them have to deal with federal (and Cali/NY) efficiency standards...seems like this would be an easy way to get there, with the added bonus of making…

I’m in a similar boat, where the red state I live in isn’t focusing on encouraging more charging stations. I’ll stick to hybrids for now and enjoy the great economy combined with the ability to fill up in under 5 minutes. I did see a Tesla charging at my local Buc-ee’s and had to do a double take. Forward progress, i…

Ariel Rider’s Kepler model does just that. Hit 40.2 mph on my first charge throttle only. Since then it tops out at 38.5 mph, but will typically do 35 mph & go 20 miles on a full charge. Just what you need! They advertise 1,000 watt/2,000 watt peak hub motor, but it hasn’t gone higher than 1,320 watts peak. This…