Skateboard Sans Fuel Cells

[Jetta90GL]

I think modular parts would bring back the day of the Backyard Mechanic. Most of the cost or auto repairs is the mechanics labor to remove and replace the part that is bad. A lot of people that used to work on their own cars now won't touch them because of the complexity. If they could just remove a major part and bring it in for some work, it would save them a lot of money. I think I would want my repaired modular engine back, since it would probably be tweaked a little bit.

[theholycow]

Wait a minute....wouldn't a skateboard configuration be exactly the same as classic body-on-frame design?

[GasSavers_maximilian]

As long as some standards were added to the mix, I suppose so.

[GasSavers_bobski]

Originally Posted by theholycow

Wait a minute....wouldn't a skateboard configuration be exactly the same as classic body-on-frame design?

Kinda. Body-on-frame simply means there's a rail structure that everything bolts to. There's still open areas between the rails where various non-drivetrain components (such as footwells for the vehicle occupants) can be placed. All of the skateboard prototypes I've seen (admittedly, not many) have had the drivetrain components spread out across the board in an even layer... As if someone had thrown everything together, smashed it flat with some industrial rolling pin and then bolted suspension components to the corners. That approach doesn't leave spaces for footwells, which leads to the issue I was complaining about earlier - the footwells have to be built on top of the board and seats jacked up that much higher, resulting in every vehicle having the SUV or mini-van look.

[theholycow]

Yeah, I just was reminded of this thread when I was reading this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body-on-frame

Mounting a separate body to a rigid frame which supports the drivetrain was the original method of building automobiles, and its use continues to this day. [...]

In the USA the frequent changes in automobile design made it necessary to use a ladder frame rather than monocoque to make it possible to change the design without having to change the chassis, allowing frequent changes and improvements to the car's bodywork and interior (where they were most noticeable to customers) while leaving the chassis and driveline unchanged, and thus keeping cost down and design time short. It was also easy to use the same chassis and driveline for several very different cars. Especially in the days before computer-aided design, this was a big advantage. [1]

I don't know why I was reading it, I was kinda bored...nothing in there is news to me, I just hadn't thought of it that way.

[JanGeo]

Last I heard from a company that was working on the cooling system was that it required a whole lot of cooling to keep the fuel cell system from overheating to the tune of a couple of several thousand watt fan motors. Doesn't look like this idea is going to fly - too much wasted material - unibody is the most efficient form of body construction because the floor is also the outer skin - adding a few more layers to the floor just adds more weight.

[GasSavers_maximilian]

Seems making the floor part of the skateboard might work. May need temporary cross braces to remove the upper part, though.