Text 8883, 74 rader
Skriven 2007-12-26 15:25:33 av Roy Witt (1:397/22)
   Kommentar till text 8757 av Robert Bashe (2:2448/44)
Ärende: Cars here and there (was: Euro values)
==============================================
24 Dec 07 08:31, Robert Bashe wrote to Roy Witt:

 RB> Roy Witt wrote to Ward Dossche on Sunday December 23 2007 at 14:43:

 RW>> 95 and 98 octane are higher than our premium grades at 93 octane.
 RW>> Not very many people drive cars that require premium grade gasoline
 RW>> these days, and those who do, either drive an OLD car, or are
 RW>> wishful thinking. Even our mid-grade gasoline with 89 octane is more
 RW>> than they require. Modern cars will run all day long on 87 octane,
 RW>> at least they will here.

 RB> Which is a BIG difference from Europe, where the car manufacturers
 RB> try to get the absolute most out of the smallest displacement motors
 RB> possible. Small displacement motors require high compression,
 RB> computerized fuel injection and other goodies to get enough
 RB> horsepower out of them to run a car,

Nonsense. The Japanese, Koreans and the Chinese get better performance out
of their small displacement motors than anyone in the world. They don't
require premium gasoline to do it either. BTW, they were doing that with
carburators without computers a long time before the computer age of
automobiles.

 RB> whereas larger motors can lope along without pushing the limits and
 RB> easily power even a heavy car.

Bob, the difference between small motors and big motors is that the small
motor only  has half the cylinders to do the same job the big motor does.
It still takes the same RPM to maintain motion at any given speed.

 RB> So many or most European cars require very high octane gas, whereas
 RB> US cars are satisfied with less.

That's another silly assumption. Octane is the rate at which the fuel
burns...high compression ratios require high octane so that the flame
doesn't knock the engine to death. Newer fuel additives have reduced the
need for high octane (and lead). All of your exports run just fine on 87
octane here.

 RB> One of the reasons for this difference is the tax system: at least in
 RB> Germany, cars are taxed at least in part on the basis of the motor
 RB> displacement and there's a penalty on high displacement engines.

That was the way they taxed automobiles where I grew up, in Illinois.
Higher displacement engines are made up of more cylinders, which require
more fuel to operate. Even so, I've seen 300 cubic inch displacment V8
engines get nearly as good fuel mileage as a four banger. The reason they
do is because they make more torque than the four banger, thus keeping
their momentum.

 RB> The other is the environmental aspect: people in Europe are
 RB> absolutely freaked out on this and have singled out cars and the auto
 RB> industry as the "main culprits" in polluting the environment. As a
 RB> result, the industry and people in general want to reduce pollution
 RB> as far as possible, and that means small motors, low gas consumption,
 RB> exhaust cats and all the rest.

These are also mandated by the US government.

 RB> Except in California, this kind of mindset is still unusual in the
 RB> States.

Wrong again. It's been said that one can breath what comes out the exhaust
pipe of today's automobiles. I wouldn't suggest that you do, but that is
an indication that the emmissions of the auto in the US is lower than you
think.

                R\%/itt


"Mass Dinosaur Distinction?! The real truth is: Reptile Dysfunction!..."

--- Twit(t) Filter v2.1 (C) 2000
 * Origin: SATX Alamo Area Net * South * Texas, USA * (1:397/22)