Sunday, May 18, 2008

Honda's Sci-Fi 4WD in the Acura RL/Legend Fast Cars - Now

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Honda has come up with the most amazing 4-wheel-drive system, not for off-roaders but to improve the handling and stability of fast cars. It is being used first in the new Acura RL (Honda Legend).

Why is it so advanced? This SH-AWD system has the potential to increase cornering power and cornering safety by leaps and bounds. It will be ideal for supercars as well as luxury coupes.(More information about supercars at http://www.fast-autos.com/supercars.html )

First, it allows the amount of power sent to the wheels to be varied from 30% front and 70% rear to 70% front and 30% rear. True, some other systems get near that, but this allows the system to adjust itself to completely different conditions. On top of that, it can alter the torque from zero to 100% to the left or right rear wheel.

In other words, all the power can one to the right wheel one minute, and if necessary can be reversed so that all the power goes to the other wheel in an instant. This might be needed in slushy or snowy conditions, where there was a patch of bare road for a bit on one side offering good grip, but a bit later on a bare patch on the other side.

In addition to those features, the outer rear wheel can be speeded up so that it goes faster than the inside wheel! All done continuously depending on conditions. A few years ago this would have considered desirable, but science fiction.

More power to the rear wheel for acceleration

Confused? Well, let's start with the front-to-rear power. When you accelerate, the weight of the car is thrown on to the back wheels by the force of acceleration, so you want more power to go to the back wheels - if it all goes to the front you get wheelspin. When cornering, you generally want as much or more power to the rear wheels. SH-AWD does that.

On the other hand, when you are cruising along, you want more power to the front wheels as this increases stability. SH-AWD also does that.

More power to outer rear wheel for better cornering

The side-to-side variation in power is used to improve cornering power and stability. For example, when you accelerate through a corner, extra power through the outer rear wheel counteracts understeer, letting the car corner on rails. In fact, stability control systems used on many cars now do this by reducing the amount of torque sent to the inner wheel - this means that you actually corner slower than you could do. SH-AWD lets you corner faster.

On the over-run, you don't need that, and less power is sent through the outer wheel for optimum stability. But that isn't enough because when a car corners, the outer wheels have to travel further than the inner ones - by 5-10% on very tight corners, so the outer wheel normally goes slower.

Honda overcomes this with some gears in the back axle gear set which actually drive the outer wheel faster when cornering! This improves maneuverability and cornering at low speeds.

Electro-magnetic multi-plate clutches

All this is accomplished by multi-plate clutches operated electro-magnetically - a world first - and the gear/clutch set used for acceleration. In fact, these gears also serve as the rear differential.

An advantage of the electro-magnetic clutches is that the electronic controller does not need to control a hydraulic actuation system as used normally but an electric actuator - this reduces cost and weight.

Is this the best thing since sliced bread? For the person who wants to have stability and control, and doesn't want to know what is happening to the car -yes. Such a system is bound to reduce the input the driver gets from the road.

He will be less aware of whether the surface is slippery, or whether the car is understeering more than usual because the SH-AWD system is correcting things all the time.

John Hartley is editor of http://www.fast-autos.com an online magazine devoted to fast cars and supercars. He has written from many of the world's top auto magazines, and has written about 10 books about cars and the auto industry, including 'Suspension and Steering Q&A' and 'The Electronics Revolution in the Motor Industry'. He has been writing about fast cars and testing them for over 20 years, and has been involved in race car design, and has also raced cars.

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posted by 4110 @ 3:46 PM 0 comments

The Characteristics of Antique Cars

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There are some people that believe antique cars should no longer be driven on our open roads. The reason they think this way is because these old vehicles are considered relics of the past that just cannot match the larger and efficient vehicles on the market today.

On the contrary, there are a lot of vintage collectors of these roadsters. People do this as a hobby or to hopefully get a return of investment later when the market value of these cars go up again.

A car is considered an antique if it is already 25 years old. There are not that many modern vehicles that are able to survive this long which makes the early models very unique. In fact, the price of these rare machines goes up because of the historical value each of these have.

There are those who believe that the term antiquated should only be given to machines that were made prior to the Second World War. These machines served as the pioneers of today's vehicles since the technology back then paved the way for power steering, safety belts and other features that are required in all automobiles.

Are antique cars simple to preserve? The response is no. This is due to car manufacturers no longer assembling these vehicles and the parts making these both difficult to locate and costly.

Can the antique car be used daily? This really depends on the condition of the engine and since these are quite old, there is a possibility that these could breakdown. The brakes on the vehicle can also be a problem so checks must be done regularly.

Will it be a good idea to get insurance for the car? The answer is yes. These machines are rare and are not equipped with an alarm system which makes it easy for anyone to hot wire and drive off.

Where can a person buy an antique car? These vehicles can be purchased in a dealership. There are just a few around so the seeker can also try searching in the Internet and in the classified ads of the paper and automobile magazines.

Those who do not understand that much about cars ought to be accompanied by a knowledgeable mechanic. A trained technician should be qualified to look over the inside of the automobile and decide if it is in fact worth buying at that cost. The individual should also take the automobile for a test drive to get the experience of remaining behind the wheel.

Can the antique car be assembled by a person? The answer is yes. In fact, there are some associations who do this as a hobby and help the members find the missing parts in order to finish the vehicle. This can only be done if the individual is a skilled mechanic who knows everything about the car.

Will the person make a lot of profit assembling and selling the antique car? The response is no. In reality, more money is used up putting the entire vehicle together than finding somebody to buy it.

There are numerous antique cars to choose from. The person should look around and check if there is a model that is worth bringing home.

Antique cars represent a moment in history where traffic did not exist and people can take a trip on the country road. By doing some research and saving some money, the individual will be able to buy that dreamed roadster.

John Purdy operates sites offering resources and information on antique cars (http://www.antique-cars-for-sale.net) and mapping systems for your car (http://www.gps-receivers.net). Visit each of his sites today to find great deals on antique cars and GPS systems.

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posted by 4110 @ 5:13 AM 0 comments

Hybrid Cars

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A regular car uses an internal combustion engine with a fuel-air mixture powering it. A hybrid car on the other hand powers itself not only using the conventional means but it also uses a variety of alternate means like fuel-cells and solar-energy to turn the wheels. That makes it more environment friendly and increases its mileage.

Some people think that hybrid cars are the cars of the future. They say it is what we will be driving in a ten years time. It is true that hybrid cars have many advantages. But we must not forget the shortcomings of the hybrid car.

Gas and oil are non renewable sources of energy. They also cause much damage to the environment. There is a danger they might soon also be depleted from the earth. On the other hand, hybrid cars are environment friendly. They source of energy they use is renewable and therefore they pose much less threat to the world. Hybrid cars are efficient and save money on fueling.

Performance wise, hybrid cars are rubbish. At the stage they currently are, they are more than likely to break down after traveling every few miles. If you buy a hybrid car, leave for office an hour earlier than you used to before, because hybrid cars are much slower than normal cars. Because they have very less energy to run with, they are made with as light bodies as possible. We want to protect the environment to protect our children. But if you're planning to buy them a hybrid car to do so, the chances of them being flattened by some bigger car are far more. So if you want to keep your children safe, why not buy them a Land Rover instead? And then there's the matter of power again. With the amount of power a hybrid can provide, imagine the trouble and time it would take for you to reach a high altitude point with a fairly steep road, that is, if you would ever manage to get up there on that car.

Whether hybrid cars will be the future of the car industry, one cannot say for sure. But one thing is certain, where it stands today is quite for from a point where it will replace the petrol or gas powered cars.

Jonathon Hardcastle writes articles for http://worldofautomotives.com/ - In addition, Jonathon also writes articles for http://supershoppingtips.com/ and http://sportsoftheworld.net/

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posted by 4110 @ 3:02 AM 0 comments