The biggest problem with CNG right now is it still uses an ICE, which means efficiency is still crap (even though it does pollute less than gas or diesel). Plus the tanks take up a lot of space (and unlike batteries they aren't flat, so can't be easily stored under the floor).

There's actually still a bunch of stuff you can replace in an EV: more powerful batteries, motor, inverter, controllers etc. It's all a matter of finding the bottleneck in the car and expanding it. Of course, that does mean low hanging fruit like an intake is off the table. But there's still plenty of wrenching…

In hybrids, you care more about power density than energy density. There are a couple of lithium cell types that have an insane amount of power density (SCiB cells have 3600W/kg, a123 5300 W/kg). For the a123 cells, that's equivalent to 3.2hp/lb. The motor in the Tesla roadster is 2.5hp/lb (288hp/115lbs). Mix the two…

"They represent The Government meddling in something we are all very passionate about. To the average Jalop, Government killed the muscle cars, they killed true fuel efficiency innovations like cleaner diesel and hydrogen powered vehicles because hybrids showed up and were 'good enough for now'."

Not much different from completely ignoring refining losses (which are significant at about 20%) when comparing gas/diesel efficiency or never accounting for the extra energy and carbon in diesel when comparing gas to diesel.

Bingo. What I hate about AT&T is you can't even use an unlocked smartphone without them adding a data plan automatically. That means I can't even use a smartphone on wi-fi without being forced into an expensive data plan that I don't need.

The CA driver handbook actually mentions "lane splitting":

Lane splitting is legal in CA (no laws against it but no specific law that allows it either.

Citation please (what vehicle code do you violate if you do so). The CA dmv handbook says "Motorcycles may travel faster than traffic during congested road conditions and can legally travel in the unused space between two lines of moving or stationary vehicles; this is commonly called "lane splitting.""

I also find it hard to believe you can lose control in a 25mph zone without speeding. As for jodark's theory about "loosen the rear end of a 430 at 25mph if you stomp the throttle", the 0-30 mph time for a f430 is 1.3 seconds. Unless you were speeding in a 25mph zone (or intending to), I don't see any reason or…

There's a difference with being associated with a person that did something bad and doing something bad yourself. We aren't considering voting for Ayers to be President here, but we ARE considering voting for Romney. Plus from my quick research, deeper investigations by journalists showed Obama wasn't really close…

"bad choices kill people"

The battery will have lower apparent capacity (before it is warmed up by internal resistance or by an external battery heater). That means apparent range might drop (until it is warm again, then it is back to normal). This is because the cold increases battery resistance.

People keep talking about the taxpayer money being spent on advanced technology vehicles, but I think the DOE has done a good job of protecting the money. First, the loan application process is onerous in the first place. Second, you have to meet milestones in order to receive money which is given in stages (if you…

It won't necessarily save the Earth but it can result in less overall emissions (even when you factor in emissions in the production of the new car). This is because emissions from the operation of a vehicle makes up ~80% of lifetime emissions of a car.

There's two different issues here:

"CNG is a great fuel, and this is a great step to using it more often. It's the cleanest burning of all hydrocarbon fuels, it's totally renewable..."

Same with me. My 3G phone drains battery like crazy when talking. Switching to 2G definitely helps battery life.

Carpool stickers (the white and green ones) are still valid for EVs and plug-in hybrids (as well has CNG and hydrogen cars, but they are more rare). They aren't valid for normal hybrids anymore (the yellow ones expired).

Devil's Advocate: