Saturday, June 06, 2020
Stupid thought about stupid driving
Random convective "thought".
After looking at an interesting item about streetcars, I was thinking about the distinction between gas and electric motors. Gas motors need to be turning at a 'usable' speed before harnessing them to accelerate the vehicle, while electric motors can accelerate from zero.
The usual process of shifting a stick thus involves a Zeroth Gear, which we normally ignore. From dead stop, the Zero part of the curve is performed by the clutch, which gradually sends more power to the wheels as the wheels gain enough speed to match the engine's minimum requirement.
After the Zero gear, we run through the more familiar 1,2,3, etc, with the clutch again taking up the difference at each shift.
When I was an idiot teenager I often practiced clutchless driving. Ignore the clutch. Let the starter take care of Zeroth gear, then match the speed at 1,2,3 by careful manipulation of the throttle.
The practiced skill turned out to be useful later when my $100 Renault lost its clutch cable in icy weather. I was able to get around for a while until I could fix the cable. Unfortunately the process ruined the starter, so I had to fix the starter AND the clutch cable.
With a healthy battery, strong starter, and expert manipulation, clutchless driving could become normal.
Insight: Clutchless driving is HYBRID driving. The starter was doing what electric motors always do, giving full torque from zero RPM. I gained a limited experience with driving an electric car, at least for the first few seconds after a stopsign.
After the Zero gear, we run through the more familiar 1,2,3, etc, with the clutch again taking up the difference at each shift.
When I was an idiot teenager I often practiced clutchless driving. Ignore the clutch. Let the starter take care of Zeroth gear, then match the speed at 1,2,3 by careful manipulation of the throttle.
The practiced skill turned out to be useful later when my $100 Renault lost its clutch cable in icy weather. I was able to get around for a while until I could fix the cable. Unfortunately the process ruined the starter, so I had to fix the starter AND the clutch cable.
With a healthy battery, strong starter, and expert manipulation, clutchless driving could become normal.
Insight: Clutchless driving is HYBRID driving. The starter was doing what electric motors always do, giving full torque from zero RPM. I gained a limited experience with driving an electric car, at least for the first few seconds after a stopsign.Labels: Answered better than asked, Entertainment
¶ 7:19 AM
