I've read many threads on how to boost your Prius mpg. Most of them are well-advertised, common sense, and explained a hundred different ways, and measurable. I thought I'd have a little fun with this and start a thread where the object is to post your thoughts on a real life concept that affects the mpg of a Prius, but that is so far out there, bizarre, obscure or has an immeasurable effect. Remember, your post must describe a concept substantiated by real science. Here goes: It has been proven that photons of light actually emit an extremely small pressure upon striking a surface (remember that little black-and-white turn-around thingy in science class?). This concept will be put to test in the near future in outer space with solar sails. Based upon this, your mpg should be a tiny bit worse with your headlights on as compared to headlights off, all other things being equal. Immeasurable for all practical purposes, but probably a real effect. Just put high-beams in the rear of your car to boost your mpg!
Would your "photon effect" also come into play driving into and away from the sun? If so, it would be best to commute from east to west in the AM, and contrary- wise in the PM. Also, at night, tailgater's headlights push you forward. I'm thinking that gravitational attraction decreases --as an inverse cube function? -- with distance from the center of a celestial body, ie earth. As a result, given regen gliding at the same declivity at sea level and say 10,000 ft altitude, you'd get less speed, less regen, and finally less battery assist at the higher altitude. If true, my sympathies go out to the folks who live in Denver!
So I take it that, as with the little black-and-white turn-around thingy, you would want to paint your car in two different colors? As for the Denver theory, less gravity means less down force on the tires making them roll eaiser = less power requirements and thus canceling out any effects of less regen.
When you eject a CD from the CD player, there is an equal and opposite reaction force pushing the car forward. If you have the CD changer, you can take advantage of this 6 times before you will have to reload. :madgrin:
When you drive a Prius with an adult black bear strapped on the roof at highway speeds there is a negative impact on fuel economy. Bizarre enough?
What if the bear moves its arm in a swimming motion to push the air behind the Prius? Wouldn't that help? Or maybe the bear holds a container of HHO and feeds it into the intake manifold. You can't just make a sweeping statement that the bear will hurt fuel economy without providing complete details and conditions. :evil:
The bear's coat is black so it absorbs all photons. Make sure the bear keeps its mouth closed. On a side note, having a bear strapped to your roof would probably decrease your fuel economy in other ways. For example, everyone would stop to look at you and you could easily drive past them instead of getting stuck behind them. While that might seem good on the surface it probably puts you in the highway driving conditions where Prius fuel economy is not maximized.
Feed the bear lots of beans and point its nice person in the opposite direction you intend to travel. Wildkow
The Prius gains a slight boast in propulsion when the ICE is operating, due to the thrust of the ejected exhaust. Tom
I think the rotation of the Earth could also make a difference. You should only drive in the same direction as the Earth's rotation. If you could suspend your Prius (or any car) in the air with party balloons then you could forego using any gas whatsoever and just wait for your destination to show up while the Earth rotates under you. The balloon option would be more expensive for SUVs since they would need more balloons.
It would therefore be detrimental to FE/MPGs to install an aftermarket exhaust tip that redirected the exhaust downwards or to the side.
Use the restroom everytime right before you start a commute to decrease your weight. We all probably take advantage of that anyway :fear: Better yet, lose 30 pounds.
