Zero-emission driving may be more than just a bunch of hot air. Actually, to be technical, it is a load of cold air. Guy Negre, director of Motor Development International (MDI), has found the answer that economists and environmentalists have been looking for. After a career of designing formula one engines, Negre theorized that by heating and expanding super-cooled compressed air, he could power a nonpolluting car. Eight years and five prototypes later, it would appear he has done it.
Negre has invented what he calls the Compressed Air Technology (CAT) car by combining a lightweight automobile body with a new type of small rear-mounted engine. The 1,500-pound frame is made from aluminum and fiberglass with four very light steel-reinforced thermoplastic air tanks attached to the undercarriage. The engine measures only one foot square and weighs just 70 pounds.
On the MDI website,
www.theaircar.com, it is explained that, in the tanks, the air is both cooled to minus 100 degrees Centigrade and compressed to 4,500 pounds per square inch. Then it is injected into a small chamber between the tanks and pistons, where it is heated by ambient outside air, forcing it to expand into a larger chamber situated between the small chamber and the pistons. That heat exchange between the two chambers creates the propulsion that drives the up and down strokes of the engine's four pistons. Finally, the air is passed through carbon filters and is expelled as pollutant-free exhaust.
So far MDI has produced prototypes of five different models: the taxi, van, family car, pickup, and a mini-CAT. The advantages that the Air Cars have over the combustion engine is are that they have more efficient energy consumption, give off next to no pollution, and are more affordable for consumers. The Air Car can go from zero to 50 mph in seven seconds. It has a top speed of 65 mph and it can go 60 to 180 miles before having to refill the tanks with more air (top speed yields the low end of the scale).
Refilling the tanks on the car is also fairly easy. It takes four hours using an electric outlet at home. Any three-prong outlet will do the job. The car has its own onboard compressor and anyone can simply plug it in and leave it over night. An even easier method can refill the tanks in three minutes by using a special compressed air station. MDI makes these and already has plans to sell and distribute them to commercial filling stations. The price tag for the cars will be between $8,000 and $14,000, and Negre foresees that in the future, once commercial production booms, those prices could be cut in half.
How does the Air Car compare with all of the other alternative energy vehicles getting attention these days? It blows them away. The new Ford Think (
www.thinkmobolity.com) costs some 50% more and offers far less cubic area inside. The popular City El (
www.cityel.com) costs roughly half as much as the Air Car, but is basically a one-seater with half the speed and range. Meanwhile, the two-seater Twike (
www.twike.com), with speed and range comparable to the Air Car, costs twice as much. When it comes to costs for fuel, the Air Car has the best cost advantage over all of them. The energy needed to compress enough air for a whole tank costs less than $2, and the air is, of course, free. While electric cars have similar costs on average per mile, their batteries have to be replaced at some point, and that can be costly.
The car's environmental advantage over fossil burning cars is obvious; the only thing that comes out of the exhaust is breathable air. In fact, as the FAQ section of their website points out: "In order for the air to be pressurized, it must be filtered previously, to remove all possible impurities that could damage the compressor(...)This factor is truly revolutionary in the automotive world; for the first time an engine produces negative contamination(...)it eliminates and reduces already existent pollution..." Later the filters can be decontaminated and recycled.
Because of its size, acceleration, top speed, and physical design, MDI is trying to market this car heavily to urban areas. The Mexican government has plans to retire its aging taxi service and replace it with MDI taxis. Rather than mass-produce and distribute from one point, MDI is currently selling factory licenses. Thus far, MDI has issued 400 factory licenses in over 20 countries such as South Africa, Mexico, Spain and Australia. All of the equipment, designs and necessary resources are sent to the franchise location and that location handles all other aspects of operations.
Most industrialized nations have already purchased multiple licenses, including Mexico with ten. MDI has plans and is aggressively seeking to issue 50 licenses to be sold in the US and 8 in Canada. Italy has already begun mass-producing a special MDI model for a mail truck that will begin servicing next year. Unfortunately, nobody in the US or Canada has officially stepped forward to embrace this new technology and front the capital needed to begin manufacturing.
With all the advantages of the Air Car, do not expect to be seeing students cruising Hilltop Circle in one of these cars anytime soon. If this is the first time you have heard about this modern technological wonder, it is because many automotive manufacturing industries and the politicians that represent them will be and are fighting to keep this technology out of the media gaze and off the streets. Arguments will be made that the Air Car cannot go fast enough for highway travel, and that their lightweight designs will never meet American automotive crash standards. In addition, tariffs and quotes might be passed to slow sales and defer consumer business. No doubt, with a price tag of $8,000 and the eco-friendly design, the American automobile industry will take a huge hit. Massive economic devastation and fallout will follow, from the richest oil executive to the poorest auto mechanic.
