[PLUG-TALK] Driving in Cities: How Ants Commute

[Rich Shepard]

On Wed, 21 Jan 2015, Keith Lofstrom wrote:

> The cars in most of the world have half (or less) of the horsepower used
> in the United States.

   When I lived in Israel in the mid-1980s vehicles were taxed based on
horsepower, so a 600cc Subaru was quite common. The more powerful the engine
the higher the registration fee, but in a non-linear way; the fee increased
more quickly than did the engine stroke volume.

   My diesel pickup (now 30 years old) gets 20-24 mpg depending on headwinds,
road conditions (e.g., mountain passes) and engine RPM. It is geared as a
work vehicle so it accelerates and climbs slowly; I've had kids on
skateboards pass me heading west on 26 as I count the rocks along the side
of the highway. I'm the one in the right lane with the four-way flashers on.

   Many, if not most, cars and other vehicles in Europe have diesel engines
rather than gasoline engines. Better fuel economy (and most are now direct
injection with turbo chargers) and longer lasting. I've been told the reason
diesel fuel here is kept more expensive is to discourage use because the
petroleum industry makes much greater profits on gasoline than on diesel.

Rich