Homegrown 500-mile electric car
New electric car transmission is visible over the hood of a van.
(Credit: KOLR)KOLR, of Springfield, Missouri, reported on Daren Luedtke's new electric car, which runs for 150 miles on lead-acid batteries. Luedtke claims it would run for 500 miles on lithium ion batteries. Luedtke showed off a van and a motorcycle powered by his electric drive system at the Ozark International Raceway on October 1. The video and accompanying article are short on technical details, merely describing two electric propulsion systems developed by Luedtke as an "electromagnetic transmission" and a "variable speed belt-driven transmission." Both propulsion systems are being marketed to automakers by Luedtke's company, LEI Global.
Watching the video, we were a little skeptical about this system. It's remarkably noisy for an electric drive and also has a big wheel that spins even when the van isn't in motion. This big, spinning wheel would seem to use energy while the van is stationary, decreasing its potential range. Still, maybe Luedtke has discovered some way to use electricity more efficiently, rather than sending it straight to a drive motor from the batteries.
(Source: Slashdot)
