Newbie looking at purchase and vehicles

Looks like such energy recovery systems are available, but they use ultracaps not batteries. Capacitors are probably a better option, there’s not that much energy involved, but the short term power flow is relatively high.


Elevator

I think the reason a light bulb would work for an elevator is because the weights are pretty well balanced so there is very little energy wasted either going up or down.

I ran the numbers and one of our rigs weighing around 9000 lbs is going to produce around 10kwh of energy going down a 3000 ft mountain. A practical EV that could tow a trailer a reasonable distance would need around 200 kWh of batteries anyway so that’s only 5% of battery capacity. Pretty easy just to only charge to 90-95% to have enough headroom.

Assuming 60 mph on a typical 6% freeway grade you would take 10 minutes to make that descent so you would need a 60kw light bulb or car heater if you did it that way. You would either be blinded or cooked alive I think

OTOH all the new EV trucks will have upwards of 400-500 hp (300-400 kw) motor/generators so no problem for them to suck up 60kw.

I assume the the starter is the conventional ring gear system that most internal combustion engines have, but maybe they hid squirrels in there.  I really don't know.

Our F-150 turns off and on at stops in traffic, such as a traffic light.  It is so quiet in that fuel saving feature that we hardly notice it when it turns off or starts up again.  

The difference between having a power inverter on a conventional ICE and having one on a hybrid is a big one. On a hybrid the inverter can operate from the battery pack allowing the ICE to cycle on an off as needed, reducing noise, fuel use, and wear and tear. On the conventional drivetrain the engine has to run continuously.

For example if I leave my Prius on with it’s a/c (which is electric not belt driven) running the engine cycles on and off but the a/c continues to run. I’ve used that feature often to keep my dogs from overheating while parked at a store or restaurant. Much better than having to leave your engine idle for long periods, at least for me.

The article I read on the Ford Pro Power inverter is that it does run from the high voltage hybrid battery pack and will allow the ICE to cycle off at output levels below 2.4kw.(there are 120V 2.4kw and a 240V 7.2 kw versions). For loads above that the engine stays on. But 2.4kw ought to be fine for an RPod, although you might still need an Easystart on the a/c to keep its startup load low enough that the ICE doesn’t startup every time the a/c compressor starts. One of the things it would be interesting to find out.

Another is just how noisy is the engine operating cycle in the F150 hybrid. In a Prius you barely notice the engine starting and operating (the big electric motor kicks it on instantly, there is no conventional starter and ring gear engagement noise) so if the F150 Hybrid is similarly quiet so could avoid annoying your camping neighbors and running afoul of campground quiet hour rules. Apparently the F150 hybrid still has a starter motor which is on a belt drive, which seems weird and unnecessary considering there is a 35kw motor in there but might be fine. Some of this kind of stuff you just have to see and hear for yourself.