Since Popular Mechanics and NBC's Today Show have bought into the air car as legitimate, are you guys trying to say they are in on the scam?

OK, I printed off the spec sheet on it. The "minivan" model has an urban range of 37 miles. That means it is running on pure air. The compact has an urban range of 62 miles. Because the car is a sort of hybrid, having a fuel-driven air compressor, the non-urban range is significantly more. The minivan can go 800 miles and the compact 500 miles.

If anyone has question they can call (917) 847-3851 or email sv@zeropollutionmotors.us

Given a fuel-driven compressor, the 'zeropollutionmotors' address is a bit of a stretch.

I don't think it's an out-and-out scam. I'm sure it can work in some fashion. But I do think the claims being made for it are far out of proportion to anything that's actually being demonstrated. With more modest claims I could see it as one useful small piece of a much larger strategy. But the whole ignorant 'runs on fresh air, zero pollution, totally free' hype is basically false.

Well that is marketing and business. Just like Spenda tastes like sugar because it is made from sugar.

A 100cc motor at 100 psi could do it then! I didn't find any specifics. Did you? I would like to know the size of the motor and the regulated pressure and the weight of the vehicle. Do you have that data Shane?

mel

The minivan:
Weight: 1,874 lbs
Engine: 41P06
Power: 75 CV

Compact:
Weight: 838 lbs
Engine: 41P08
Power: 22 CV

Yeah, I still have a few questions - the compact is under 400 kilos and my calculation above showed that the compressed air in a full tank adds another 125 kg (bout 270 lb) to that.

Again, not saying it can't work, just saying it's a long way from prime time... and selling it with lies won't help it get there.

Why not email the company with some questions?

Not to dis your subtle reasearch, Bravus, but rather to concur with it...it did seem a bit far fetched to me as well. My understanding was that it also had a piston or two in the system and the air pressure powered that pistion. While I sadly feel that this is a bit far fetched, I am still open to other possible motors/propulsion mechanisms that might power a vehicle using a smaller volume. For example, while the piston is the prime mover of the engine, that energy must be transfered thru the engine, thru the transmission and to the wheel. My understanding is that for each transferance, there is loss of energy to move the vehicle....

Perhaps the piston is directly attached to each wheel, with no transmission...? This would allow more energy of the pressurized piston to reach where it needs to go without kinectic energy loss...Hence, less power for the same amount of movement.

But then again, I am no scientist...nor a mechanical engineer...

According to one article I read the air car has no transmission. I am sure an email with the right questions could get a lot of answers.