On 2007-12-22, Jon Elson wrote:

[ ... ]

Electric steering is already coming in, saves a Hp on the
steering pump.

And where does that energy come from to power the steering? If
you say "the battery", then the next obvious question is "where does the
energy come from to charge the battery" -- and the answer there must be
"the engine" for the most part -- though I guess that you could put
alternators inside the wheels so braking would partially come from
energy being transferred to the battery.

Or are you saying that electrical power steering is (or can be
made) more energy efficient than the hydraulic power steering found on
most cars these days?

Next is something in the auto trans to reduce
the demand of the hydraulic pump. They may already have gone to
variable-displacement pumps instead of fixed-displacement and a
pressure regulator in many newer transmissions. I think the
start/stop systems may use an electrical pump so the engine
doesn't need to pump up hydraulic pressure before the
transmission can engage.

But, these are all small tweaks. The Otto cycle needs to go,
and something more efficient at mid-throttle needs to replace
it. Diesel, of course, has been there for decades.

O.K. It will be interesting to see what happens over the next
few years.

Enjoy,
DoN.

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