One, Two and Three

"BarryDanger" (dbarry102) 04/29/2019 at 19:06 • Filed to: None

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I’m approaching the first year anniversary for the 300 ZX , 2nd year for the MR2 and the third year for the Tundra. Traffic enabled all three to be parked within a single shot today (blurry android phone camera) so I ran out in to the middle of the road and nabbed this.

That’s all :) 

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > BarryDanger 04/29/2019 at 23:15

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That MR2 sure is purty.

every time I see one, it irritates me that no automaker is replicating that formula today... with the abundance of FWD drivetrains that could be relocated to the back... including hybrid options.

BarryDanger > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. 04/30/2019 at 14:42

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Ha! That’s the only one with rust, no clear coat and cracks in the dash. But I agree, I love the way it rotates, transfers weight and hooks up - it’s the best color too. Toyota is talking about bringing it back , don’t worry.

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > BarryDanger 04/30/2019 at 22:08

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A 4th generation MR2 is what the FT86 project should have been.

an affordable alternative to i8, with a 1.6T gas engine, Hybrid Synergy Drive in a PHEV role, with a full-speed electric mode for 30 miles or so, and a gas-powered cruise mode that regenerates electricity, with a combined output sport mode. A bit higher output on the ICE, and a bit higher output electric motor, and programming for performance.

With that, in a steel, aluminum, and plastic, instead of an expensive carbon fiber chassis, and I think it could be an affordable bridge between the the performance and hybrid lineups.

Nauraushaun > BarryDanger 05/01/2019 at 07:23

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I also had a Z31 and currently have an SW20!

BROTHERS

BarryDanger > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. 05/01/2019 at 19:38

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I would love that. I just test drove an range extender I3 and thought about how much fun a manual all ev drivetrain would be in the SW20.

The I3 has a carbon/polymer tub, rear engine, rwd - It’s perfect. 

BarryDanger > Nauraushaun 05/01/2019 at 19:40

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Hahaha YES! Yours is a much nicer color I must say. 

Nauraushaun > BarryDanger 05/01/2019 at 19:45

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Yours is more interesting! Where I park collects endless dust, the dark green always looks dirty. I think yours would be better in that regard ;)

I sort of resent the dull colors people choose these days - silvers, greys, blacks. I think my dark green sort of fits that bucket. Weird pale blue is cooler.

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > BarryDanger 05/01/2019 at 23:30

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You had me until “manual all EV drivetrain”... because battery EVs don’t usually have gearboxes at all, at least not more than about 2 gears.... and really could probably use a narrow-range, high-torque CVT. Electric motors don’t have a torque issue like combustion engines have a non-flat torque curve.

Electric motors have an issue that providing their torque output at high RPMs requires high amperage, which drains batteries fast, and creates high heat, which are both enemies to batteries and electronics. gradually reducing the ratio of motor RPMs to tire RPMs might keep an electric motor cooler, and drawing less amperage at cruising speeds.

There isn’t really any shifting to an electric drivetrain, other than trying to make an electric car seem more like a traditional ICE driving experience, which is mostly what manual gearboxes in ICE cars are now all about, and that is a significant thing. I LOVE shifting gears, b ut departing from that tradition to a BEV, means departing from the tradition of rowing gears as part of the deal.

The other down-side to BEV, is range and charging time. Not too much of an issue in an urban or sub-urban, temperate climate area. But once you go rural, and the driving distances get much farther, and in higher latitudes and land-locked areas, the seasonal climate effects get more pronounced (high heat and humidity in the summer, requiring significant battery cooling even at rest , and cabin AC demand to prevent heat illness , and sub-zero temperatures in the winter, requiring battery heating even at rest, and electrically generated cabin heat to prevent frostbite.) Those take a huge hit on the battery, both in battery efficiency, and much higher electrical demand.

plus the fact that it takes significant portions of time to recharge, if you aren’t regenerating electricity while underway. Plug-in Hybrid EVs can operate in electric-only mode like a BEV, for ease of use and fuel saving , but also series-hybrid for stop-and-go traffic power-efficiency with the engine as a peak-efficiency generator, and parallel-hybrid cruise mode to combine ICE direct drive with electric output and coasting/braking regeneration, as well as combined-output burst performance.

A PHEV is more complex than a BEV, and does still require a bit more machine maintenance, but it also isn’t range limited, or quite as battery-dependent, or heavy . There is a reason that even though i3 dropped it’s range extender ICE to go entirely BEV , i8 did not.

BarryDanger > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. 05/02/2019 at 10:11

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While I do agree with you about current battery offerings and charging infrastructure, my hope is that the tech can catch up to modern standards. I wouldn’t really ever need more than 30 0 miles of range for a fun canyon car but I would expect my battery to recharge faster than current 240V chargers.

As for shifting - Did you open the EV West link I included? The electric motor mounts to the stock 5 speed and clutch. Not sure how that works but seems like something OEM engineers could manage if EV west was able to do it.