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PurdueGuy

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Everything posted by PurdueGuy

  1. You might check & see if a dealer in northern utah might be closer - it is for me. +1 for them needing more locations. 2hrs is closest for me (northern utah), and Idaho only has one dealer (boise).
  2. Saturn LK0 - 1.9L TBI SOHC: '91-'94 (Linda doesn't count, though, due to it being basically the same engine as the L24 MPFI SOHC used from '95-'02, as well as sharing a lot of parts with the LL0 DOHC.) Could get into the 3.0L V6 used by Saturn in the L-Series and Vue, which was somewhat short lived *in this market.* ('00-'05 in the L, '02-'03? in the Vue)
  3. Look at some more of the Craftsman product. Most if not all the power tools are made in other countries, and many other items. Most of the hand tools are still made in the US, but the rest is hit & miss.
  4. I think the SS SC was deserving of the SS badge, this all the more. The 2.4L Cobalt should NOT have worn the SS badge. The 2.4L is a fine engine, but not SS worthy.
  5. Actually, that's not what Pontiac is about. That's what Pontiac should be about.
  6. Unless you know something I don't, there aren't any confirmed product changes for the Astra. There is talk of the 1.4L turbo... sometime... maybe. The next gen Astra is coming in a couple years or so... That's all we know that I'm aware of. I personally expect little change in the current gen Astra, but a lot of change come next gen.
  7. I'm sure there have been plans for a next gen Astra Redline for a long while now... Still remains to be seen if they'll do any other engines in this gen.
  8. Hydrogen & Electrolysis, A crappy combo... or is it? We all know that the "hydrogen economy" has a long way to go in a lot of areas before it is viable: - development & reduced cost of fuel cells (for stationary and automotive use) - standardization of hydrogen storage, transportation, and transfer (fueling) - development of hydrogen sources Regarding the development of hydrogen sources, there are a number of sources being studied, including bacteria and plants that may create hydrogen as a natural product, superheating water in nuclear plants, stripping hydrogen from fossil fuels, and various others. Then there is electrolysis. I and many others have pointed to electrolysis & said "that's the most stupid method possible!" Indeed, it seems very backward, as it requires producing electricity to create hydrogen in order for the fuel cell to make electricity. In this process, hydrogen is not really a fuel source, but an electrical storage method - a sort of alternative to using batteries in an electric car. Fuel cell vehicle studies show that this may be a method toward better vehicle range, but of course with the added system loss of converting energy from one form to another more times. But while thinking/daydreaming about various topics recently, I realized something that may be relevant to the whole issue. Have you ever driven past a wind farm, and noticed some windmills turning and others not? From what I understand, this is due to the varying need of the power grid. During the day, the nation's power grid is stretched to the limit - we can't get new power plants fast enough. This fact makes the use of electrolysis seem even more silly - why use electricity when the grid is already maxed out? Simple: varying demand. I was not able to find a reputable source on how much variation there is in demand, but the difference between night and day is, well, night and day. It's huge. And my understanding is that wind farms are often among the first power providers to be shut down, as they are often set up to provide extra power during peak demand times. So, if these wind generators are being shut down so often... why not use them to create hydrogen via electrolysis? Unlike other power plant types, where you would have to use/burn more fuel, using the wind generators would only add some extra wear on bearings, etc, which I would expect could be easily offset by the sale of the hydrogen produced. Depending on the additional profit vs additional wear, this may even help increase profitability of wind farms, and speed in their proliferation. A similar setup may be viable for nuclear and hydro electric as well, which are by far among the lowest cost/unit producers of electricity right now. Hydro may be limited, though, as in many areas their main function is the regulation of water flow, and electrical production is a secondary benefit. If they are having to allow water flow without power production, though, there may be enough extra production capability there to merit some hydrogen production. In addition to a source of hydrogen, this off-peak hydrogen production may help offset the set costs of power facilities and reduce electricity costs. I don't propose this necessarily as a main production method in a future "hydrogen economy", but it may be a good supplement, and an easily implemented methodology for near-term production while more efficient methods are further developed.
  9. Is that the one that's a 4cyl? I know the swift & metro are near twins, but the swift had a 4cyl version, which scoots...
  10. Well, yeah, that's entirely different. I notice you don't list a car among your suzuki's... and that's their problem. People love their bikes & other small motorized recreation stuff... but generally forget their cars even exist, and don't take them seriously if they do think of them.
  11. That's a pretty silly comment - Crown Vics have been spectacular taxis, getting decent mpgs for their size, decent comfort for passengers (if the taxi's interior isn't totally messed up), and they just keep going, and going, and going, and going... Yeah, that's such a terrible vehicle for a taxi. That said, vehicles like this, if they get good enough fuel economy and keep operating costs down and run for a long time, are great. Easier for most people to hop in & out of a taller vehicle like this, and especially around town the aerodynamic disadvantages of a tall vehicle are nil because of lower speeds most of the time.
  12. maybe the flextreme has a feature they didn't mention - paint that changes to match it's background.
  13. ^those are pretty cool cars (SVX), though from what I understand, not particularly fast, reliable, or cheap to maintain...
  14. I've seen far worse.
  15. I wouldn't say sub 3k, they're right at 3k.
  16. So the question is... is this info being pointed out so you can catch some good pics of new product... or so they can "take you out." lol That's right PCS, if he has any "unfortunately accidents" in Delaware, we're prepared to see right through it!
  17. None of those are series hybrids. You want to compare plug-in hybrids, look up info on the upcoming plug-in Vue and compare that with others. A series hybrid is notably different than just a plug in hybrid. Particularly because once they develop the first car, engineering will have a pretty easy time designing car #2, #3, and so on with different provisions for electricity - diesel, fuel cell, whatever. A plug-in hybrid squeezes every last bit of efficiency out of ICE design, but the series hybrid design could allow GM to take major steps toward any number of alternative fuel sources, and after the volt, with relative engineering ease.
  18. I'm curious, what are you going to say when people start buying them? You whine about GM giving too many details before they really know the details, and now you want details. Your never ending well of cynicism gets really, really old. Realism and calling GM out on things when they screw up is one thing, but you take it to another extra crappy level.
  19. Unless it were being used instead of the 3.6L, why would it need to provide the same performance?
  20. cool. Glad to see there aren't more "promises" in this, as well. They've made enough indications about what the car will be, no need to let it get out of hand.
  21. Well, here's the question: if tomorrow you came across the same car, but V6 & loaded for $1,000 (which doesn't seem that impossible), would you kick yourself for spending $500 on this one?
  22. Solstice is 3,000lbs and scoots with 260hp. That's .086666... hp/lb. If they can push it to 300hp and the car weighs 3600lbs, that's .08333... hp/lb. To have equal hp/lb as the Solstice GXP, it would only need 312hp. Again, as long as the torque curve isn't crappy, that's doing pretty darn well, IMO, especially for a base engine. 204 hp would put it even hp/lb with the base Solstice, BTW. The 260hp setup would put it somewhere between base & gxp solstices, which still isn't bad for a base engine, I wouldn't think...
  23. I would think 260hp/260 torque (or higher, as mentioned earlier in this thread) ought to be able to do alright even in a heavier car, unless the torque curve is just craptastic (which hasn't seemed to be the case in articles I've read regarding the Kappa turbos...) Perhaps people get too hung up on the # of cylinders? 4cyls have come a LONG way since the 80's...
  24. Only way a Sky targa would make sense is if there was enough demand for an Opel version, and Sky got it by default. I'm sure Pontiac would fight it tooth & nail.
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