The Most interesting thing happened on my way to Detroit to attend an International Training event for a new Business I am beginning in Telecommunications.
Maybe it was the Date, September 11th, that had the Customs and Border Guards on the Detroit side of the Windsor-Detroit Tunnel entrance on edge. Maybe it was the unusual look of the 'Incongnito' AeroCap Project on my 2008 Dodge Dakota Pickup that caused the Border Guard to be a bit suspicious!
In any event of crossing the Border from Ontario, Canada, into the U.S.A. previously - the Border Guards had asked me to open the Tailgate so they could inspect inside, but this time I was asked to turn off my truck and hand the keys over to the Customs Officer, and stay in the vehicle while he inspected the contents of the pickup box under the AeroCap.
After Opening the Tailgate, he banged and thumped the AeroCap. I guess he wanted to see if it would reveal or release some illicit cargo!
After that, he closed the tailgate of the pickup and returned the keys to me, stepped inside his booth, made some notes in his system, and returned our documents (Passports - yes even Canadians need them now to enter the States, as well as returning Americans), and sent us on out way.
AeroCap at Customs - Passed (Again!)
Friday, September 11, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Aerodynamics Gets Noticed - Again!
August 26th, 2009: Next-gen trailer aerodynamics project gets $500,000!
New York State has made available nearly $500,000 to ATDynamics to continue development of next-generation trailer aerodynamics, the company has announced.
The Article - In Fleet Owner - goes on to say the the money was awarded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority - NYSERDA - which is a 50% Cost Share Match with ATDynamics.
Also on August 26th, 2009, was announced by cnet News - Green Tech: Hummer gets better than 100 mpg?
"The plug-in hybrid Hummer H3E by Raser Technologies actually gets better mileage than originally estimated."
"It plans to reduce the size of the battery pack so that the SUV gets the original target of all-electricity for the first 40 miles. By doing that, the company can reduce vehicle weight and make the SUV available to customers for a cheaper price, according to Raser."
On August 29, 2009, Autospies got a report out about:
The BMW That Will Change The Way Alt. Energy Vehicles Are Perceived: Vision EfficientDynamics
Down in the article - not quite 1/3rd the way down - comes the Headline of reference:
Aerodynamic qualities reflecting BMW’s Motorsport experience.
"BMW Vision EfficientDynamics also takes a new approach in its design and streamlining, the body and the interior clearly expressing the unique combination of supreme efficiency and the sporting performance of the brand. Following BMW’s design language, this concept car visualizes both highly efficient aerodynamics and intelligent lightweight construction."
All of the above is to say that Vehicle Aerodynamics are becoming more focused, and that the AeroCap Project is travelling along a path that is becoming more considered, and promoted by the Major Auto makers. Even General Motors admitted that they needed to clean up the aerodynamics of the Volt Prototype to get the desired 40 Miles per Charge thwy wanted!
New York State has made available nearly $500,000 to ATDynamics to continue development of next-generation trailer aerodynamics, the company has announced.
The Article - In Fleet Owner - goes on to say the the money was awarded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority - NYSERDA - which is a 50% Cost Share Match with ATDynamics.
Also on August 26th, 2009, was announced by cnet News - Green Tech: Hummer gets better than 100 mpg?
"The plug-in hybrid Hummer H3E by Raser Technologies actually gets better mileage than originally estimated."
"It plans to reduce the size of the battery pack so that the SUV gets the original target of all-electricity for the first 40 miles. By doing that, the company can reduce vehicle weight and make the SUV available to customers for a cheaper price, according to Raser."
On August 29, 2009, Autospies got a report out about:
The BMW That Will Change The Way Alt. Energy Vehicles Are Perceived: Vision EfficientDynamics
Down in the article - not quite 1/3rd the way down - comes the Headline of reference:
Aerodynamic qualities reflecting BMW’s Motorsport experience.
"BMW Vision EfficientDynamics also takes a new approach in its design and streamlining, the body and the interior clearly expressing the unique combination of supreme efficiency and the sporting performance of the brand. Following BMW’s design language, this concept car visualizes both highly efficient aerodynamics and intelligent lightweight construction."
All of the above is to say that Vehicle Aerodynamics are becoming more focused, and that the AeroCap Project is travelling along a path that is becoming more considered, and promoted by the Major Auto makers. Even General Motors admitted that they needed to clean up the aerodynamics of the Volt Prototype to get the desired 40 Miles per Charge thwy wanted!
Gas Mileage Update
Gas Mileage Figures from July 16th, 2009 to August 5th, 2009 on The Dodge Dakota with Aerocap (Mostly) on and one trip with it off.
The image shows the Average Fuel Efficency per Tank of Gas at refueling time. This includes any and all construction events over a course of 300 - over 600 Kms per tank, and of course hills, dips, trucks (Semi's), and other traffic issues. Also things like - stops for eating, detouring to a Berry Farm for Blueberries, and overnight sleeps, etc.
It should also be noted that the box was pretty filled with Camping Gear - Air Bed, Tent, Extra Camping Gear, Clothing, Booster Battery, Suitcases, etc.
The Chart shows that the fuel efficiency values varied more with the short Trip up to the Barrie Area with the Cap Off, than they did on the whole trip through Windsor, Detroit, on to Chicago, and up to Oshkosh with a return the same way.
The Best Mileage was from the Pilot Travel Center in Michigan, to Toronto and then up the 404 to Richmond Hill, Ontario at 9.52 Litres per 100 Kms (LHK)!
The Figures for the leg from Benton Harbour to Oshkosh would likely have been lower as an all Highway travel figure, but it included about 4 days of camping, and driving back and forth about 10 minutes to the Travel Plaza for Breakfast, and again for Supper each day. Since the city performance is more weight related than aerodynamics, this skewed the figures lower than they would have been if I filled up at the travel plaza on arriving in Oshkosh on the 28th of July. Still they managed to be at 10.96 LHK for that run.
The Generally worst leg, for some reason, was from Windsor Sunoco, trough Detroit (Parked at the Wayne County Airport for a week) and on to Benton Harbour, Michigan, at 12.29 LHK! Whereas, the leg from the Barrie Area on the weekend of the 18th of July, to Toronto was 10.70 LHK, and the leg from Oshkosh back to the Pilot Travel Center, in Battle Creek, Michigan got 10.74 LHK.
The Second Best Efficiency was from Toronto to Windsor with 10.35 LHK as the result.
The image shows the Average Fuel Efficency per Tank of Gas at refueling time. This includes any and all construction events over a course of 300 - over 600 Kms per tank, and of course hills, dips, trucks (Semi's), and other traffic issues. Also things like - stops for eating, detouring to a Berry Farm for Blueberries, and overnight sleeps, etc.
It should also be noted that the box was pretty filled with Camping Gear - Air Bed, Tent, Extra Camping Gear, Clothing, Booster Battery, Suitcases, etc.
The Chart shows that the fuel efficiency values varied more with the short Trip up to the Barrie Area with the Cap Off, than they did on the whole trip through Windsor, Detroit, on to Chicago, and up to Oshkosh with a return the same way.
The Best Mileage was from the Pilot Travel Center in Michigan, to Toronto and then up the 404 to Richmond Hill, Ontario at 9.52 Litres per 100 Kms (LHK)!
The Figures for the leg from Benton Harbour to Oshkosh would likely have been lower as an all Highway travel figure, but it included about 4 days of camping, and driving back and forth about 10 minutes to the Travel Plaza for Breakfast, and again for Supper each day. Since the city performance is more weight related than aerodynamics, this skewed the figures lower than they would have been if I filled up at the travel plaza on arriving in Oshkosh on the 28th of July. Still they managed to be at 10.96 LHK for that run.
The Generally worst leg, for some reason, was from Windsor Sunoco, trough Detroit (Parked at the Wayne County Airport for a week) and on to Benton Harbour, Michigan, at 12.29 LHK! Whereas, the leg from the Barrie Area on the weekend of the 18th of July, to Toronto was 10.70 LHK, and the leg from Oshkosh back to the Pilot Travel Center, in Battle Creek, Michigan got 10.74 LHK.
The Second Best Efficiency was from Toronto to Windsor with 10.35 LHK as the result.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
AeroCap Travels to Oshkosh, Wisconsin (Incognito) & Gets over 30 Mpg!
Because of the Delays in working on the Extruded Polystyrene foam, the sun bakes it and it starts to powder - so I covered it so as to last the time in the sun and make the trip to Oshkosh Wisonsin - about 1,000+ kms each way. I used a Green Tarp, and we simply taped it over the pink foam with Packing Tape.!
Preliminary figures suggest good performance even with the un-even covering of the tarp over the foam! This first image of the Scangauge - taken while Driving shows 85 kph (about 52 mph) with the TPS (Throttle Position Sensor, as I understand it) showing just 17 - or very light on the throttle, delivering 7.2 Litres per 100 Kms fuel efficiency! That is like a little to mid-sized car - driven well! This is about 31.8 - 32 Mpg!
Here is a shot that shows just 9.0 Litres per 100 Km, while driving at 95 Kph, (about 57 Mph), with the TP"S - Throttle Position Sensor showing a reading of just 19 - or very light on the Throttle - fuel burn of just 8.6 Litres per Hour! (Now if the Ultralights could get that...!) This is 26.1 Mpg! That's as good as a Chevy Malibu Hybrid! (See the link - bottom of the article!)When I can I will put together a Video of the ScanGuage display as I drive and post it. I need to make up some kind of steady hand bracket to hold the camera at the right place so I can just set it on record and drive. (Or - maybe convince somone to sit in the little jumps seats in the back and hold down a tripod with the camera on it!)
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Fuel Efficiency Numbers for 2,600 Km Trip
Starting my Trip with a full Tank, Filled up at the local Shell Station - Dufferin & Wilson, at an Odometer reading of 11,276 Kms, I headed out at 13:02 - just after 1 PM on the 25th of June, 2009, and my next stop for fuel was at BFS Foods, in Morgantown WV - 387 miles or 619 Kms at 22:10 (10:10 PM). That leg got me 9.62 LHK (Litres per 100 Kilometers), or 24.56 mpg.
The Next leg took me to Kangaroo Express in Wytheville, VA - 260 miles or 416 Kms at 4:17 AM, for 10.7 LHK, or 22.08 mpg. I made it into Charlotte, NC at about 9:30 AM for another 197 Kms, and drove around town over the course of the Weekend on this tank some additional 230 Kms.
June 29, 2009 - Monday, I left by way of Concord, NC and filled up there at Pantry Gas Station at 12:40 PM, with a trip distance into Charlotte and around town of 288.4 miles or 461 kms, and a fuel efficency of 13 LHK, or 22.18 mpg.
Nothbound I did my first stop at WilcoHess in Wytheville, VA at 16:07 (4:07 PM) for a trip of 145.6 miles or 232.9 Kms, and got 10.76 LHK or 21.96 mpg.
The next stop was at Country Fair Gas Station in Grove City, PA at 23:37 (11:37 PM) for 405 miles or 648 kms, and it got 10.15 LHK or 23.27 mpg. My last US fuel stop, at the Angola Service Center at 5:16 AM, was another 138.3 miles or 221.3 Kms, and got 9.4 LHK or 25.14 Mpg.
I filled up back home with a trip distance of 210.8 Kms, or 131.75 miles, and a short trip of local driving, to end up with an Odometer of 14,087 and a fuel efficiency of 9.97 LHK or 23.7 Mpg.
For Reference - the Dodge Dakota has a Canadian Government Rating of
9.8 LHK Highway!
This Means that over the course of this 2,600 Km Trip, I never exceeded the rating by more than 1 litre per 100 Kms, and in a couple instances bested it by 0.2 - 0.4 Litres per 100 Km!
The Next leg took me to Kangaroo Express in Wytheville, VA - 260 miles or 416 Kms at 4:17 AM, for 10.7 LHK, or 22.08 mpg. I made it into Charlotte, NC at about 9:30 AM for another 197 Kms, and drove around town over the course of the Weekend on this tank some additional 230 Kms.
June 29, 2009 - Monday, I left by way of Concord, NC and filled up there at Pantry Gas Station at 12:40 PM, with a trip distance into Charlotte and around town of 288.4 miles or 461 kms, and a fuel efficency of 13 LHK, or 22.18 mpg.
Nothbound I did my first stop at WilcoHess in Wytheville, VA at 16:07 (4:07 PM) for a trip of 145.6 miles or 232.9 Kms, and got 10.76 LHK or 21.96 mpg.
The next stop was at Country Fair Gas Station in Grove City, PA at 23:37 (11:37 PM) for 405 miles or 648 kms, and it got 10.15 LHK or 23.27 mpg. My last US fuel stop, at the Angola Service Center at 5:16 AM, was another 138.3 miles or 221.3 Kms, and got 9.4 LHK or 25.14 Mpg.
I filled up back home with a trip distance of 210.8 Kms, or 131.75 miles, and a short trip of local driving, to end up with an Odometer of 14,087 and a fuel efficiency of 9.97 LHK or 23.7 Mpg.
For Reference - the Dodge Dakota has a Canadian Government Rating of
9.8 LHK Highway!
This Means that over the course of this 2,600 Km Trip, I never exceeded the rating by more than 1 litre per 100 Kms, and in a couple instances bested it by 0.2 - 0.4 Litres per 100 Km!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
AeroCap enjoys a trip of over 2,600 Kms!
Wow! Having had the AeroCap test piece on the truck for a Drive from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, all the way to Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.A. and back was an interesting experience.
If you saw the truck in traffic along the way - I'd be happy to see some of your comments posted on this blog! (I will get a few pics posted on the web page shortly!)
First - Just before I left home on Thursday, June 25, 2009, I had a Vinyl sign made for the tailgate of the truck and put the new domain name on it - I chose - www.aerocaps.info - in white letters for a high contrast with the blue truck colors. I set that home page up so that it redirects to this blog for now - as I have been busy and not able to put some core content in it yet.
My wife & I drove this route: Highway 401 West from Dufferin Street, to Highway 427 South to the QEW, and through to Buffalo, N.Y., and West on I-90 to Erie, P.A. Where we headed south on I-79 past Pittsburgh, P.A. To Morgantown, and then took US-19 to Beckly and picked up I-64S/I-77S there. We continued on I-77S until Charlotte, and picked up I-85N toward Greensboro N.C. until our exit for our Hotel, about five minutes up the road! About 1,230 Kms, (according to Google Maps) but it seemed a lot longer!!
Around Charlotte, we drove about 230 Kms over the weekend, and took I-85 up to Concord on Monday to see some facilities we were interested in, before leaving that area after lunch.
We drove up I-85 a bit more and then headed up the 601 until about I-40 and then zipped back over to I-77 for the drive back north. This time - we skipped the detour on US-19 and drove through Charleston back to I-79! Nice City!
We got back home Yesterday - June 30th, Just before 8 AM! I had to take an emergency sleep at the Angola N.Y. Service Center on I-90!
I will report on the Fuel consumption numbers in a later post. As many people who live along this route know - there are some areas with a lot of hills, mountains, and twisty roads, and some construction along the way too. Some of these things take a hit on best fuel efficiency results, but I tried to keep that under control.
As I said above, If you have seen a Blue Dodge Dakota Truck with a Pink Canopy on it, and the white lettered website - www.aerocaps.info on the tailgate, and been redirected here when you checked out that web site - I would be happy to have your comments here!
If you saw the truck in traffic along the way - I'd be happy to see some of your comments posted on this blog! (I will get a few pics posted on the web page shortly!)
First - Just before I left home on Thursday, June 25, 2009, I had a Vinyl sign made for the tailgate of the truck and put the new domain name on it - I chose - www.aerocaps.info - in white letters for a high contrast with the blue truck colors. I set that home page up so that it redirects to this blog for now - as I have been busy and not able to put some core content in it yet.
My wife & I drove this route: Highway 401 West from Dufferin Street, to Highway 427 South to the QEW, and through to Buffalo, N.Y., and West on I-90 to Erie, P.A. Where we headed south on I-79 past Pittsburgh, P.A. To Morgantown, and then took US-19 to Beckly and picked up I-64S/I-77S there. We continued on I-77S until Charlotte, and picked up I-85N toward Greensboro N.C. until our exit for our Hotel, about five minutes up the road! About 1,230 Kms, (according to Google Maps) but it seemed a lot longer!!
Around Charlotte, we drove about 230 Kms over the weekend, and took I-85 up to Concord on Monday to see some facilities we were interested in, before leaving that area after lunch.
We drove up I-85 a bit more and then headed up the 601 until about I-40 and then zipped back over to I-77 for the drive back north. This time - we skipped the detour on US-19 and drove through Charleston back to I-79! Nice City!
We got back home Yesterday - June 30th, Just before 8 AM! I had to take an emergency sleep at the Angola N.Y. Service Center on I-90!
I will report on the Fuel consumption numbers in a later post. As many people who live along this route know - there are some areas with a lot of hills, mountains, and twisty roads, and some construction along the way too. Some of these things take a hit on best fuel efficiency results, but I tried to keep that under control.
As I said above, If you have seen a Blue Dodge Dakota Truck with a Pink Canopy on it, and the white lettered website - www.aerocaps.info on the tailgate, and been redirected here when you checked out that web site - I would be happy to have your comments here!
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