Green! Super green! Biodiesel hits Lincroft, NJ

[kathainbowen]

Did you go to either High Technology High School or Brookdale Community College?

Do you recall the Commons?

Are you into biodiesel?

If so, http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080124/COMMUNITY/801240324/-1/LOCAL02apps check this out! HTHS students are converting a ride on mower to biodiesel.... using grease.... from the Commons.... and not as a pathetic excuse of food! Awesome students making great steps to a better world, and definitely worth a glance if you're interested in biodiesel.

 

[Hawkeye]

I thought Dr. Emmett Brown in 1985 invented it....I think instead of a bus he put one in a DeLorean...

although I think that required some plutonium too.

 

[MikeNapoli]

I thought Dr. Emmett Brown in 1985 invented it....I think instead of a bus he put one in a DeLorean...

although I think that required some plutonium too.

Gonna go back in tiiime.

 

[GregW]

We really need to wake up and start looking forward with things like this since we are never going to stop driving as much as we do. My 2001 pickup gets about 17 mpg. You know what else did? A 1910 Model T.

 

[kathainbowen]

I thought Dr. Emmett Brown in 1985 invented it....I think instead of a bus he put one in a DeLorean...

although I think that required some plutonium too.

It did, until Doc pimped it out with a Mr. Fusion for increased milleage and a hover conversion. Say what you will, though, about the quality and design of the DeLorean, I still think it's an awesome car. Put biodiesel on that, and I think my head would just exploded.... in a good way, I assure you. ;D

We really need to wake up and start looking forward with things like this since we are never going to stop driving as much as we do. My 2001 pickup gets about 17 mpg. You know what else did? A 1910 Model T.

.... seriously? That's terrible. I miss my 1992 Nissan Sentra. Sure, it was the ugliest vehicle on the planet, but it got phenomenal gas mileage (ah the joys of a teeny tiny, four cylinder car).

I really think biodiesel is the way to go for an alternative fuel source since not only are we a nation addicted to the motor vehicle but also to fried and fatty foods.

 

[MadReefer]

In December there was a Discovery Channel special about alternative fuel sources. They claim that every car on the road today can be converted to use 100% ethanol for a cost of $100 to $300 max. Why the country isn't doing it? Probably because the gas company's are stopping it. As I am sure they will try stop any alternative fuel source.

 

[kathainbowen]

In December there was a Discovery Channel special about alternative fuel sources. They claim that every car on the road today can be converted to use 100% ethanol for a cost of $100 to $300 max. Why the country isn't doing it? Probably because the gas company's are stopping it. As I am sure they will try stop any alternative fuel source.

There's actually a lot of talk of this in regards to General Motor's EV-1, its failure, and the subsequent almost-covert scuttling of the project, especially since the documentary Who Killed the Electric Car? arrived on the scene. I must agree that something seems strange about the situation (what car company refuses a check for $1.6 million for a car that they're going to destroy or render inoperable anyway). While the documentary was fairly even handing in how it placed the blame of the EV-1s failure in the oil industry, car and auto parts manufacturers, the SUV, poor advertising campaigns, the battery (which affected both range and speed), the government, the hydrogen car, AND consumers, it did seem to put a bit of a bias towards a conspiracy regarding electric vehicles. However, I think there are some really interesting points to be made for people who are curious about why alternative powered cars haven't been as highly sought out in the US.

As per why biodiesel and ethanol aren't taking off in the US, I can only make relatively educated speculations. For one, I must agree with WKTEC?'s blaming of the consumers, as not too many people are familiar with these alternative fuel sources. I believe Creative Loafing did an article on one of the first biodiesel cars (a mid 80s Mercedes Benz, as I recall) in the Metro Atlanta, which featured on the street interviews showing that average people honestly had no clue what biodiesel was, where it came for, or why it's such an exciting possibility for fuel resources. Economic reasons can also be a factor, as the cost to convert to an alternative fuel source isn't readily advertised (kind of like how not people are aware that certain states offer tax breaks and refunds if you install solar panels on your home). For another, people are creatures of habit and opportunism, seeing the convenience of gas stations and the security in it that, should they ever run out, there are gas stations all over America. The current concerns of being able to find fuel for a hydrogen car apply to a biodiesel or ethanol car when it comes to quick, easy fill-up anywhere in the nation. And, as a final clincher to it, biodiesel often yields a car that smells like fried foods when you drive around (although, I see this as a plus, because I love french fries and the smell).

Again, that truly is just the best and most even handed explanations based on what I've seen.

*crosses fingers* While I am still currently driving a gas vehicle, I truly hope to move to either a biodiesel or hybrid car as soon as these become an option for me (I have no place to process/store biodiesel at the moment, and not enough money for a hybrid). Until then, I can the best to stick to cars that are as fuel efficient as possible and try to maintain the fuel economy of my car through care.