Compressed-Air Cars: Still in the Future...But Coming?
Will we ever ride around in cars powered by compressed air? Since the days of Jules Verne, who envisioned air-powered trains in his 1863 book Paris in the 20th Century, it's been a dream. Compressed-air trams actually did ply the streets of Paris around 1900, but they made only short trips. The idea has usually been thwarted by the amount of energy required to compress the air, and the problem of effectively storing it to ensure decent range.
For almost 10 years, a French company named MDI, and its U.S. subsidiary Zero Pollution Motors, have made repeated attempts to get air cars delivered to customers. Now it's saying it intends to have 90-mph-capable FlowAIR vehicles, with the equivalent of 100 mpg fuel economy, for sale in 2010, and will start taking orders later this year. Some are skeptical.
But now MDI has competition. A California-based company, GIMM Inc., has stuffed compressed-air technology into a 1999 Porsche Boxster as a "proof of concept" vehicle.
According to CEO Glenn Bell, a former Hewlett Packard Asia-Pacific director, the test car has a range of 50 miles and can hit 65 mph. "We add energy to the system from the ambient environment," he said, "and that increases the amount of energy available in the air." GIMM's system, he says, was developed for power plants to control the temperature of flue gasses. According to press materials, it "uses compressed air multiple times for propulsion."
Like many would-be auto entrepreneurs, Bell would like to license his technology to an existing auto company. That's a long shot, so he's also warming to the idea of selling $20,000 conversion kits, Boxster extra.
Few U.S.-based journalists have actually driven anyone's air car. GIMM was to have put the Porsche (which it calls the MIIN-AER Car) through its paces last September at the AltCar Expo, but the idea was scrapped, Bell says, because of insurance considerations. The car became a static display instead. It's now apart, he said, awaiting a larger motor.
Most of the pictures of the air car models on Zero Pollution Motors' site are artists' conceptions. If the company, which has received financing from India's Tata Motors, is going to start taking orders this year, it may be time to start handing out keys to real cars.
GIMM Photo