The first step down Hubbert's Peak: downsizing and turbocharging.

FYI: if every LDV in the U.S. had a downsized and turbocharged engine (increase in fuel economy 20%) we would save 1.8 million gallons of gasoline per day. Assuming other forms of petrol conservation, 1.8mbpd would translate into 3.6mbpd of reduced crude oil demand (a ~18% reduction).

Great first step for gassers!

Direct injection + turbocharging = downsizing. However, am I alone in thinking that a 3.5 liter V6 is not exactly a "small" engine?

I will be more excited to see Ford fully exploit "downsizing" by using sub 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engines rather than big V6's.

This would provide more dramatic gains in efficiency!

If your need is for a five place personal car, how about a large format plug-in Li Ion battery and a simple constant-speed, light-weight, one liter genset?... and you wouldn't need to run the ICE at average commute distances. For normal everyday use turbos are just more weight. And, to be efficient the turbo needs an inter cooler...here comes the weight, space requirement and complications all over again.

Better idea: a simple plug-in BEV, and when you need distance tow the genset with a one wheel bumper attached trailer genset.

Best idea: a simple plug-in BEV with modular battery sections so you can add modules based on distance and finally add the genset trailer for distance trips. This would allow you to customize the car for the daily commute without carrying unnecessary weight.

Lad:

I would also like to see a PHEV equipped with a modular baterry systems. A potential for up to four plug-in battery modules (about 5 KWh each) would satisfy many buyers.

The on-board genset size should also be an option. The buyer should be able to select the size (genset-battery modules) combination best suited to his/her needs.

There are no reasons to lug around a heavy 150+ KW genset if a much smaller 20 KW unit (with more batteries) could to the job.

In order to further reduce liquid fuel comsumption, the priority must be given to more on-board batteries (+ supercaps option to capture more breaking energy + better accellerations and to extend batteries life) and much smaller/lighter genset.

Consider 1 in 10 cars are replaced every year and then imagine that 1 in 10 of those were PHEV (10% of all new car sales...very optimistic) after 10 years you have 1 in 10 cars a PHEV. (again, very optimistic)

Over the long term this helps, but if PHEV gets twice the mileage that would be a 5% reduction in fuel usage after 10 years. We use 1% more every year, so after 10 years, instead of using 10% more we use 5% more. You can count on new CAFE standards and alternative fuels, so let's say we break even.

I do not mean to be a downer, but when you add it up PHEVs will help, but not cut our oil imports all that much. Behavior, alternatives and technology will have to be combined to make significant reductions in oil imports in the short, medium and long terms.

To me reducing oil imports should be the main goal. It is an unstable situation with world oil supplies and any disruption can cause havoc. We get other benefits like trade balance and the environment, but if there is a major disruption in supply we are in trouble.

"However, am I alone in thinking that a 3.5 liter V6 is not exactly a 'small' engine?"

Compared to what goes in RWD cars and trucks right now a 3.5L V6 is small. Most V8s are 4.6L and bigger (mustang and F150) and ford also has the 6.8L V10 (superduty and expedition) which are all gasoline, so comparatively speaking it is quite small.

Towing a genset? Please.

It wouldn't sell, even if it were cost competitive.

The Tzero sports car from AC propulsion had a towed trailer with a 2 cylinder motorcycle engine genset. It was pretty sleek, color coordinated and I think the wheels even steered to make it easier to handle. A trailer and sports car did not seem to go together and I think market acceptance would be mixed at best.

People have enough trouble driving as is...if you give them a trailered genset you better have an autonomous driving system as well otherwise I see a lot of jackknifing and trailers hitting curbs (on right hand turns) in the near future for any type of trailered genset sold to the mass market.

FYI: if every LDV in the U.S. had a downsized and turbocharged engine (increase in fuel economy 20%) we would save 1.8 million gallons of gasoline per day.

Consider 1 in 10 cars are replaced every year

ET AL:
We should also factor in the emissions when we talk about ICEs; Smaller engines with turbos save fuel; BEVs also save air; I always wonder why people think they can burn chemicals in the atmosphere without consequences. So after dumping the toxins in the air, they spend just about as much as an engine cost to filter the emissions. With BEVs that all goes away and the cleanup can occur at the power plant or the power can be generated using solar energy with no cleanup necessary. We had better get with it and quit depending on fossil fuels else the late great "Earth" will be renamed "Waterworld."

Rather than say "consider" perhaps I should have used the word "if". Rather than parse worlds, infer meaning or pretend to know all the facts, I prefer to deal with concepts. The facts can be learned from the net, thinking is left to people that can.

@Reality Czech

Good catch. My bad.

The tow behind gen set is not that bad of an idea.

potential bias on my part because I had thought of doing this for a hybrid system test bed for challenge x hybrid competition testing.

This has advantages because you can decouple two or more functions:

Start with:
Basic minimalist vehicle design, light,down sized, up teched/efficiency, low power and/or short distance and add capacity with trailer for more power and/or distance

or just to a conventional vehicle

1) Decouple the genset from the main vehicle.
(All electric or hybrid car adds gen set trailer)

2) You can have a conventional vehicle towing battery electric motor combo for added power and regen.
Decouple the conventional or ultra light/downsized main vehicle from the added power and or range from the trailer backup power source, batteries,genset, air reservoir,

Now if most all people down size, either simply by downsizing to a standard smaller car. (Phase out your bigger vehicles in the family) regardless, add towing package to any and all vehicles from big truck to small PHEV.

Using the magical 80/20 rule 80% of the time we drive alone in our vehicles and 20% of the time we cary passengers. So we do not need extra power to drive alone to work each day. Assume the basic car will make a round trip to work and back with plenty of power for one person and acceptabale with passengers for basic commuting.

As an example imagine this weekend you and your family leave for a two week road trip.

On the way out you stop at a uhaul or penske rental yard and pickup a tow behind genset, or batterypack, fuel cell, airtank, genset-airtank, or genset + PV topped pop up camping trailer, even add some storage,

or your a motorcyclist...genset-motorcycle trailer. Load onto trailer hybrid air-gas desert motorcycle. Recharge air tank with genset at camp go out and hit the motocross track again.

Drive home, drop of trailer go back to routine.

Notice we have not given up any creature comforts just saved money, lowered carbon footprint and had fun.

Subsudize or no cost use for car poolers, and on smoggy days for others so as to use up all capacity on these days in local area.

Dream a little, innovate a lot.
:)

...Roger...over...

O and add a roll out a PV canopy, (soon to made by Konopa solar ?)

The tow behind gen set is not that bad of an idea.

potential bias on my part because I had thought of doing this for a hybrid system test bed for challenge x hybrid competition testing.

This has advantages because you can decouple two or more functions:

Start with:
Basic minimalist vehicle design, light,down sized, up teched/efficiency, low power and/or short distance and add capacity with trailer for more power and/or distance

or just to a conventional vehicle

1) Decouple the genset from the main vehicle.
(All electric or hybrid car adds gen set trailer)

2) You can have a conventional vehicle towing battery electric motor combo for added power and regen.
Decouple the conventional or ultra light/downsized main vehicle from the added power and or range from the trailer backup power source, batteries,genset, air reservoir,

Now if most all people down size, either simply by downsizing to a standard smaller car. (Phase out your bigger vehicles in the family) regardless, add towing package to any and all vehicles from big truck to small PHEV.

Using the magical 80/20 rule 80% of the time we drive alone in our vehicles and 20% of the time we cary passengers. So we do not need extra power to drive alone to work each day. Assume the basic car will make a round trip to work and back with plenty of power for one person and acceptabale with passengers for basic commuting.

As an example imagine this weekend you and your family leave for a two week road trip.

On the way out you stop at a uhaul or penske rental yard and pickup a tow behind genset, or batterypack, fuel cell, airtank, genset-airtank, or genset + PV topped pop up camping trailer, even add some storage,

or your a motorcyclist...genset-motorcycle trailer. Load onto trailer hybrid air-gas desert motorcycle. Recharge air tank with genset at camp go out and hit the motocross track again.

Drive home, drop of trailer go back to routine.

Notice we have not given up any creature comforts just saved money, lowered carbon footprint and had fun.

Subsudize or no cost use for car poolers, and on smoggy days for others so as to use up all capacity on these days in local area.

Dream a little, innovate a lot.
:)

...Roger...over...