Thursday, May 22, 2008

Not One Thin Dime for Gas!

You wouldn't feel any pain at the pump if you had a solar powered car. And you can have one now for only $117,000. By the looks of it you can only take one passenger and neither of you will have much leg room. I'm guessing there isn't a lot you can put in the trunk (if it has one). And it might not get top scores in government crash tests. But maybe these will be much more practical and affordable five or ten years down the road.



With Venturi's Astrolab, solar cars have moved beyond the plaything of engineering students and tech geeks into the hands of ordinary consumers.

The manufacturer claims the two-seater Astrolab can reach top cruising speeds of 75 mph and has a potential driving range of 68 miles. Along with no gas bills, the car aims at the simple but revolutionary math of zero fossil fuel consumption and zero carbon dioxide emissions. That is news to make the heart of the tightwad or the environmentalist grow warm.

The car works by combining four key pieces of technology: an ultra-light auto body constructed from carbon monocoque, a sleek aerodynamic shape to minimize wind resistance, photovoltaic cells coated by a film of nano-prisms to concentrate solar energy, and rechargeable NiMH batteries. The price tag for this technological wonder? Approximate manufactures' suggested retail price is a cool $117,000.

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