Daily Archives: October 23, 2012

Will a flywheel hybrid, replace the battery-powered version of the Audi R8? 1

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Will a flywheel hybrid, replace the battery-powered version of the Audi R8?

+Car and Driver Magazine is reporting that new +Audi International R&D boss Wolfgang Dürheimer has paused the development of the battery-powered R8 e-tron and may kill it entirely. 

Apparently the cost of the batteries needed to provide the combination of range and performance needed for the R8 remains way too high. 

I wouldn't be surprised to see the R8 BEV scuttled and instead replaced with an R8 e-tron quattro using the same flywheel hybrid system that served Audi so well this year in winning at Le Mans. Dürheimer was still in charge of R&D at Porsche when they developed the 911 GT3R hybrid with the flywheel system in 2010. http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/alternative-fuel/hybrids/porsche-911-gt3r-hybrid-flywheel

Since the original 911 raced in 2010, the flywheel unit has been shrunk to half it's original size and weight and it could easily fit into the front luggage compartment along with the motors that drive the front wheels. In the hybrid 911 racer, fuel efficiency was boosted by 30%. 

In the 911, the flywheel could provide 163 hp of boost. Imagine combining that with the 350 hp, 4.2-liter diesel V8 from the A8 sedan and you could have a really high performance sports car that is also very efficient, and much more practical than a battery powered version would have been. 

Audi R8 e-tron Program on Hold, Could be Killed
For a car that debuted just three years ago and still isn’t available for public consumption, Audi’s R8 e-tron has a bit of history. Launched as the e-tron concept at the 2009 Frankfurt auto show, we …

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Frankly the hybrid "fusion drive" for the new iMac was the most interesting… 2

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Frankly the hybrid "fusion drive" for the new iMac was the most interesting part of the Apple announcement today.

I have no interest in iPads of any size since I just don't care for iOS.  However, I could go for storage that combines the speed of flash with the capacity of rotating magnetic media. The downside of course will be the price.  

OCZ already sells its RevoDrive hybrids and the 128GB/1TB version clocks in at a steep $399 on Newegg, compared to well under $100 for conventional 1 TB drives. Apple notably neglected to mention pricing for these optional drives for the iMac but I would be surprised to see it come in at closer to $1,000.

Apple adds new ‘fusion drive’ to iMac and Mac mini, combines SSD and standard hard drive
As part of its radically-redesigned new iMac, Apple announced a new hybrid “fusion drive” for both the iMac and Mac mini. This drive combines a 128GB flash storage drive with a 1TB or 3TB HDD, and…

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Otto Blopnik digs deep into the Lincoln design center story

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Just in case there is any doubt, I am not Otto Blopnik. I don't know who Otto really is, although I have my suspicions and clearly he or she is someone that is almost certainly a current automotive journalist that knows everyone in this business.

Lincoln opens new design studio
Ford Motor Company announced the opening of a new design studio exclusively for the Lincoln division, which it hopes will help with the turnaround of the ailing luxury brand. “We’ve spe…

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The dreaded "moose test" first came to prominence outside of Sweden in…

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The dreaded "moose test" first came to prominence outside of Sweden in the late 1990s when the original Smart ForTwo and Mercedes-Benz A-Class failed it miserably. Since then automakers have generally paid a lot more attention to make sure that their vehicles could pass this emergency evasive maneuver.

+TOYOTA is apparently not so concerned when it comes to the new GT-86 (sold here as the +Scion FR-S )

Watch A Scion FR-S Fail The ‘Moose Test’
When the Jeep Grand Cherokee failed the Moose Test, a minor scandal arose. This time, a recreation of the famous Swedish road maneuver trial with a Toyota GT-86/Scion FR-S is actually funny. Look out …

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And this is the "intellectual" face of the modern Republican party 14

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And this is the "intellectual" face of the modern Republican party

Ryan: ‘I just don’t understand’ what ‘horses and bayonets’ means | The Raw Story
Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan says that he can’t figure out what President Barack Obama meant when he mocked Mitt Romney’s complaint about the Navy’s smaller fleet of ships by sayin…

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Nah, I don't see the connection 6

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Nah, I don't see the connection

Reshared post from +Mike Elgan

I wonder if this Chinese Android phone was influenced in any way by the iPhone 5.

The 233.90 Goophone I5 MTK6577 is an Android phone made in China that may have been influenced to some degree by the Apple iPhone 5.

http://www.priceangels.com/Goophone-I5-MTK6577-Dual-Core-1-0GHz-Android-4-0-Smartphone-Dual-SIM-Dual-Standby-Quad-Band-with-4–Touch-Screen-and-GPS–Black–s796360.html

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There is still a long, long way to go, but it's great to see the US Patent and…

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There is still a long, long way to go, but it's great to see the US Patent and Trademark Office finally showing some signs of sanity by invalidating this patent. Unfortunately there are still many hundreds of thousands of patents that should probably be quashed as well. 

Reshared post from +Android Central

USPTO invalidates Apple rubber-band scrolling patent used in Samsung trial | Android Central
Good news for Samsung this morning, as a preliminary U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) ruling has declared that Apple’s “rubber band” scrolling patents invalid.


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