energy management … in cars?!

one could save some gas if:

-charge the battery only if the car is in a ‘pushed’ state, e.g. rolling downhill with no foot on the accelerator

-run the A/C compressor s.above, have a bigger reservoir for the liquid coolant

– have a little electric motor run the water pump only really fast when necessary (got to run a little bit all the time to equalize temps)

– run the power steering only when necessary (speed adaptible, already done in some cars)

– replace DRL (daytime running lights) with CFL or LED, cause during the day it doesn’t matter so much where exactly the light goes, it’s just to increase the chances someone else sees you

– have a bigger battery to store electricity (in pushed state) to run the radio, fan etc off it

– have a solar panel, you need about 8 sqft for 100W, could be enough to replenish the battery to run a cooling fan before you start the car (=less A/C needed)

– have a remote that starts a fan (s.above) a few minutes before you get to the car, so it’s already cooler when you get there

– is it possible to run a little steam turbine on the exhaust heat, e.g. some working liquid that boils at a much lower temp than water?

– better  coating on the windows to keep infrared out = less heat to get rid off thru the A/C

– have a full flow radiator w/o a thermostat ( = less resistance for the pump ), and regulate the air flow into it, so if no air is needed there will be less drag