^ thats great!

I some some idiot once come to see it and his freakin GF leaned on the wing asking about the car and I asked her to get off it, its kinda expesive...she just looked at me weird, then I told her the wing was 10k....she got off it fast
THEN, the idiot asked
"what kinda Ferrari is that?"
*sigh*
I said its not a Ferrari, its a Lamborghini
he said "wow, a Ferrari Lamborghini"
*SIGH!!!*
I said so, its a Lamborghini DIABLO, not a Ferrari!!!
he said, "wow, a real Ferrari to his gf"
idiots

yes, the same TD. Didn't want to mention his full name since he prefers to fly under the radar here.

Turn Any Car into a Plug-In Hybrid for $3,300

Toyota (Prius) and GM (the Volt and the Vue) seem to be in a race as to who will provide the first mass-produced plug-in-hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). The backfit market is building, with options coming to market for plug-in conversions for existing hybrids. But what about the 10s of millions of normal, internal combustion engines out there? Is there any hope for them?

If Poulsen Hydrid is to be believed, the answer is a resounding YES. The Poulsen Hybrid Power Assist System "creats a PHEV by retrofitting electric motors, DC motor controllers, storage batteries and an on-board charger to a conventional new or used automobile." The electric system would be used for maintaining speed, after acceleration.

The development is based on the observation that only 10-15 horsepower is required to propel a compact or mid-size automobile along a level road at a steady 60-70 mph. leading to the conclusion that this relatively small amount of electric power would be able to cope with 70-85% of normal driving, only aided by the combustion engine during start up and when extra energy is required for acceleration and hill climbing.

The systems puts hybrid electric motors on the outside of the rear wheels with an onboard charger. The system is expected to debut on the market next month. $3300 for purchase and $600 for "professional installation".

Mark me intrigued but questioning. For example,

* This system doesn't have regenerative braking, thus one is simply trading the cost of gasoline for electricity. At $4000, a break even point comes well after saving 1000 gallons of gasoline. Thus, how much gasoline is really saved as this system basically moves the ICE to idling while the electricity handles acceleration.
* The addition of this system outside the car will increase wind drag. A meaningful amount? Don't know.
* Also, some basic safety questions must arise. What are the implications for adding these systems outside the car?

But we're still pretty intrigued with this ingenious approach to tackling the challenges of the huge existing fleet of internal combustion engine vehicles and moving miles from gasoline to electricity.

Widespread adoption of PHEVs can reduce GHG emissions from vehicles by more than 450 million metric tons annually in 2050 – equivalent to removing 82.5 million passenger cars from the road.

There is an abundant supply of electricity for transportation; a 60% U.S. market share for PHEVs would use 7 percent to 8 percent of grid-supplied electricity in 2050. PHEVs can improve nationwide air quality and reduce petroleum consumption by 3 million to 4 million barrels per day in 2050.

But do we have 43 years to do this? Why not start with today's automobiles.

PASADENA, California — After three auto show appearances and the occasional spy photo and video from Germany's high-speed Nürburgring test circuit, it's no secret that the Lexus LF-A supercar concept is headed for production. With an estimated 500 horsepower coming from the LF-A's 5.0-liter V10, we didn't expect the Lexus to come cheap, but Inside Line has learned that the car will carry a price tag over $200,000.

Ben Mitchell, corporate product planning manager for Lexus, confirmed that the price of the carbon-fiber supercar "will begin with a two." And another Lexus source in Japan told Inside Line the price may be as high as $225,000.

Shown in both coupe and roadster forms, the LF-A will first launch as a coupe. Roadster versions will be priced even higher. Both body styles are approximately 2 inches shorter and an inch narrower than the 483-hp Ferrari F430, with a similarly sized wheelbase. A 2007 Ferrari F430 Spider costs $211,525.

Although final specifications have not yet been released, Lexus says the LF-A will reach a top speed over 200 mph.