OK kids, a few days ago I promised you some exciting news on the first air car I
blogged on, (Air Cars 05/01/2008), by the next day. My bad, my apologies, but I
wanted some confirmation on it. Got it – here’s the scoop.

The French company MDI (Moteur Development International), has licensed ZPM (Zero
Pollution Motors) of New Paltz, N.Y., to produce the air powered car for North
America by early 2010. ZPM will build the first of several plants in the Northeast
(U.S.) for production of up to 10,000 Air Cars a year.

The retail price will be $17,800.00 (U.S.). (See me smiling?!)

ZPM wants the first production model to be a modified version of MDI’s CityCat.

Using compressed air to run it’s pistons, the Air Car has a supplemental energy
source of gas, ethanol, or biofuel in an 8 gallon tank that kicks in above 35
mph. To fuel a custom heat chamber which heats the air increasing the car’s volume
and thereby it’s range and speed and to run the on-board air compressor.

Safety:

The Air Car will follow the same safety rules and regulations of all approved cars
driven in the United States. The car’s tubular body provides increased resistance in
the event of a crash. The air tank(s), located under the floor, is carbon fiber with a
thermoplastic lining. If damaged upon impact, it cracks and the air simply escapes
without any explosion, as there is no metal. Aerospace giant Air Bus industries will
manufacture the tanks for MDI.

The Air Car comes equipped with Air Bags and ABS braking.

Vehicle Specifications:

Length – 13.4 ft
Width – 5.97 ft
Height – 5.74 ft
Seating – 6 seats
Trunk volume – 35 cubic ft
Weight – 1874 lbs
Engine – 6 Cyl.
Power – 75 hp
Max Speed – 96 mph*
Mileage – 106 mpg*
Range – 848 miles (8 gal tank) *
Co2 – 0.141 lbs/mile (at speeds >35mph; zero emissions at <35mph)

* estimated performance and subject to change

Standard Features will include:

Computer based screen display of vehicle control parameters
Full CFC-free A/C
Airbags
Fully reclining driver’s seat
Power windows, door locks and mirrors
Deluxe AM/FM stereo with cassette and cd player, optional GPS
Rear window defogger
Concealed spare tire
All season 13-inch radial tires
A cold weather package will be available

Engine and Transmission Characteristics include:

Horsepower: 75
Power source: Electronically injected compressed air
Oil volume and oil change interval: 0.8 liter at 50,000 miles
Engine mount: Rear
Transmission: Automatic, Continually Variable Transmission. Rear wheel drive.
Suspension: Front coil spring, rear pneumatic.
Steering mechanism: Rack and pinion.
Chassis and body materials: Aluminum and fiber glass.
Tanks: Thermoplastic lining and carbon fiber.

Fuel Characteristics:

Compressed Air: 3200 ft3 @ 4500 psi
Charger: On board 5.5 kwh 110/220 v compressor generating 812 ft3 /hr.

ZPM said it would start taking reservations in early 2008, with delivery being
in early 2010. since it is now mid 2008, I have signed up for updates, so as
soon as I know, so will you.

Back 0n May 2nd I wrote a blog called Air Car #2, about a guy (Angelo Di Pietro)
in Australia that invented an engine that runs on compressed air, the rotary
piston engine so light you can literally hold it in your hands. Well, I finally
found their site. Below is an excerpt. But, while I’ve got your attention, be
sure to tune in for tomorrow’s blog because there is going to be some exciting
news on the first air car I wrote about.

The Di Pietro Motor (Rotary Air Engine)

Motor speed and torque are simply controlled by throttling the amount or pressure of
air into the motor. The Di Pietro motor gives instant torque at zero RPM and can be
precisely controlled to give soft start and acceleration control.

Angelo Di Pietro Director of R & D said:

“There is no other motor as good as ours, years of research and analysing other motors
around the world gave me the confidence and obligation to say so. Obligation in the
sense that people have been waiting for ages in relation to efficiency in order to
take care of our environmental situation.

100% more efficiency than our competitor is a very serious claim and should not be
confused with some kind of publicity stunt were the interest is purely to try and make
money out of some ridiculous claim.

The invention has a long list of important improvements over other motors.
The concept has the capability to change the method we use for transportation, apart
from the benefits of energy saving in stationary applications.

* We have verification of its performance
* We have patents issued
* It has outstanding efficiency
* It has constant high torque
* It has low parts count
* It has low number of moving parts
* It is compact and light
* It has virtually no friction
* It has virtually no vibration
* It has smooth speed control characteristics
* Only 1 PSI of pressure is needed to overcame the friction

THAT’S CORRECT ONLY 1 PSI !!

I have written Angelo several times without a response back but maybe you will have
some luck…. here is his website. http://www.engineair.com.au

give it a try!

Inventor Angelo Dipletro in Melbourne, Australia is about to blow conventional power
vehicles right out of the water!

Right now, he has converted a form of a trolley (powered cart) that is being used at
Commerical Wholesale Markets. It takes 2 or 3 minutes to fill it with compressed air
and runs for about 2 hours. The remarkable thing about this engine is that it weighs
just 13 kgms (28 lbs). You can literally hold the engine in your hands. It is an
ingenious design that does not play off the piston powered engine of the air powered
car in France (see last blog), or the internal combustion engine. In this one, the
compressed air moves a single rotorary piston around to power the central drive shaft.

The beauty of the design is that the engine parts hardly touch. A layer of air
cushions the rotation of the piston. Which means, there is very little loss of energy
to friction, so very little lost of power.

In a normal car, much of the engine power output can be lost running the engine itself
and things like the transmission.

Angelo’s rotorary engine will be much more efficient because there is no transmission,
few moving parts, and the engine is incredibly light. So most of the power goes
straight to the wheels. It’s size to power ratio is outstanding.

Plans for an engine that weighs only 6 kgm (13 lbs) are in the works. Less that half
of the original.

The engine works in boats, cars, and is powerful enough to pull heavy loads. When it
is ready for the market, it will be easy to refill and no more dangerous fumes.

I really like this one! Uh OH! There goes those goose bumps again!