High economy, was Fuel injection plugs

[Gary Derian]

With a CVT, you need a map of power and BSFC vs rpm and throttle.  Then you
operate the engine only at the highest BSFC values for a given power
requirement.  It is not so simple as WOT all the time but pretty close.
When power requirements are low, the engine would operate at very low rpm
but nearly WOT.

Years ago (20) I achieved 61 mpg on a Vega at a fuel economy rally using
economy techniques.  I set the carb for lean WOT and lugged the engine in
high gear only from 20 mph to 40 mph.  At that speed I turned off the engine
and coasted.  At 20 mph, I engaged the engine again and lugged up to 40 mph.
It really surprised all the guys in VW Rabbit Diesels.  I had the car
ballasted to 3800 lb  to maximize the ton-miles per gallon and still got 61
mpg.  This was on a 100 mile loop.

Van Dorne has built a CVT for the Williams F1 car that could handle 700 hp.

Electric or hydraulic drive allows the engine to operate more efficiently
but the drive train loses efficiency compared to a direct mechanical drive.
Mechanical to electric to mechanical is at best 75%.  Hydraulic has high
losses at high speeds.  The one advantage for electric with a small battery
and small engine is regenerative braking and the ability to turn off the
engine for short periods of driving.

Gary Derian <gderian at oh.verio.com>