Guy and Cyril N?gre of MDI stand with the AirPod. () -- As electric cars begin breaking into the short-distance vehicle market, one French company thinks that it has an alternative to the electric vehicle: a car that runs on compressed air. Motor Development International (MDI), located near Nice, France, unveiled its bubbly-looking AirPod last year, and has ambitious plans to begin manufacturing the car by early 2010. But some of its critics think that's a bold claim that will be extremely difficult to realize, especially considering that the company has yet to bring a car to market despite several past attempts. The AirPod is the creation of father-son team Guy and Cyril Nčgre, the president and R&D coordinator of MDI, respectively. At 220 kilograms, the vehicle runs on 80 kilograms of air compressed to 350 bars (or 350 times the atmospheric pressure at sea level). It has a top speed of 28 mph (45 kph) and an estimated range of 137 miles (220 km). According to the company, it takes about three minutes to fill the tank, using just 1.5 euros of electricity.

The driver steers the car with a joystick, and two passengers can sit in the back seat, facing backward. The only direct exhaust from the car is very cold air. The Nčgres have been working on pneumatic-propelled engines since the early '90s, when they formed MDI. The latest generation of this technology uses a simpler engine than its predecessors, and the company got a boost in 2007, when Tata Motors bought the Indian rights to MDI's technology. microlux 7 stage uv ion air purifier reviewBut MDI's efforts to bring a short-distance sedan to market turned in a different direction in January 2008, when the mayor of Paris announced plans to purchase thousands of city cars to be rented out by the hour. winix freshome p150 hepa air purifier reviewsMDI created the small AirPod to compete with the electric and other vehicles in the contest to become the city car of Paris.delonghi air purifier dap700e

The Nčgres think that the AirPod has certain advantages over electric vehicles in the city car market, including its short fueling time and its long-lasting carbon fiber pressure tank, in contrast to expensive batteries that eventually wear out and need to be replaced. MDI estimates that the AirPod will cost about €6000 ($9,000). However, not everyone agrees that the AirPod will live up to these expectations. MDI sent their performance specs to IEEE Spectrum, which had some concerns with the company's claims. In their analysis, IEEE Spectrum estimated that the AirPod's range could be less than a third of what MDI has claimed, due to energy being wasted in the process of expanding the air before it is sent to the engine. Some automotive engineers think that compressed air is simply not a practical power source for vehicles due to the laws of thermodynamics. They point out that the AirPod's 200-liter tank doesn't carry much more energy than one liter of gasoline. In the IEEE Spectrum, two engineers, Denis Clodic of the Ecole des Mines de Paris and Pascal Higelin of the University of Orléans, said that pneumatic hybrids (vehicles that combine compressed air and fuel combustion) are promising.

But they worry that, if MDI's AirPod fails, the entire concept of compressed air might suffer from the negative experience. For the time being, MDI is looking forward to getting the AirPod to market. In early 2010, the company plans to begin producing one AirPod per hour at its first assembly line at Carros, France, and working toward setting up three more assembly plants. The company also hopes that the city of Nice may be interested in using AirPods in a rental car program similar to the one planned for Paris, and possibly in other crowded European and Asian cities. Video: Swine flu health tipsThanks to Bruce Brown of the GS Twins list for putting together this first version of the GS Twin FAQ. It will be expanded as we get more feedback from people on the list. Suzuki GS Twins FAQ v1 (03/17/98) compiled by Bruce Brown (91 GS500) I enjoy my GS500 and the GS Twins list so with Michael Moore's consent this is an attempt at a FAQ section for the GS Twins. of the information for this section is coming directly from the

posts to the GS Twins list. This is just a version of the FAQ and with everyone's input it will get better and more complete over I believe the GS line of twins began life in 1976 with the GS400, from which descended the GS425, GS450, and the latest model theThese twins were essentially the middle half of the larger GS 4 cylinder line of models. They are all air cooled with two cams controlling a total of 2 valves per cylinder (some countries did receive engines with 4 valves per cylinder). The newest GS model from Suzuki was introduced in 1989 and is currently on the market with minor changes from its introduction. Caption from the Motorcycle Online database) A vertical-twin engine with a broad, mellow powerband keeps the GS500E slim, light and easyWide, upright handlebars, a flat seat and lots of legroom make it comfortable. More experienced pilots will appreciate the engine's six-speed gearbox and high-rpm redline - not

to mention the rigid box-section frame, single-shock rear suspension and hard-stopping front disc brake. All of which make this Suzuki a Note: most of the specifications for the 400-450 are pretty much the same. I've left cells blank where I'm unsure of exact numbers, but if you see a blank cell for a model, and the data to either side are the same, you can assume the info is probably the same for the blank cell. Note the change of stroke between the GS425 and 450, when they went from a roller bearing big end to plain bearing rods. From 'Cycle' magazine's 400cc four stroke comparison - Honda CB360T, Kawasaki KZ400D, Suzuki GS400, Yamaha XS400D(05/77): They say the GS400 has a bore/stroke of 65x60mm, which contradicts some other numbers I've gotten. I'll resolve that when I can get numbers from a factory manual. The Suzuki was picked as the best handler, second fastest, and overall choice. Power source: AC generator, 225 watts Charge control: Solid-state voltage regulator

Headlight beams (high/low): 60/55 watts Includes: Speedometer, odometer, tripmeter, tachometer with 11,000-rpm redline, indicator lights for oil pressure, high beam, turn signals, neutral Speedometer error: 30 mph indicated actual 28.2 mph, 60 mph indicated actual 56.9 mph Fuel consumption: 49 to 59 mpg, 53.9 mpg average Average 200-yd. Acceleration from 50 mph, terminal speed: 6th gear, 69.2 mph; 5th gear, 72.3 mph Corrected best quarter-mile acceleration: 13.60 sec. @ 93.17 mph Measured top speed: 108 mph Maximum (theoretical) speed in gears @ 11,000 rpm: GS500 - For an oil and filter change the shop manual suggests a SAE 10W/40 (min of SE or SF grade) oil, capacity of 3.1 quarts (2.9The listers suggest a variety of weights and brands of oil, read the archives for more details. If you plan on a motor rebuild looking for more power Michael Moore has had GS450 motor built for one of his road race projects that makes at least mid 60's on the dyno.

Megacycle has cams/springs for the GS motor and Michael can recommend his friend Craig to do the head porting, big valves, twin plugs, etc. as well as lightened crankshaft rebalanced to eliminate the balance shaft. suggested that those who rebuild their motors without a balance shaft have the crank rebalanced so the engine vibrations will be There have been a few racers who have experimented with 4-valve heads using the inner two cylinders from GSXR motors. the archives for more details. General items to inspect and/or replace are fuel lines, hoses, carb gaskets, and also check the intake boot between the carbs and One reoccurring item of annoyance on the GS500 is the fuel petcock. Many emails talk about a fuel starvation problem which was remedied by placing the fuel petcock in the reserve or prime position. folks have replaced the stock petcock with a dry brake quickHowever both of these remedies leave you without a

Replacing the stock air filter with a Uni-filter or K&N filter is popular among the GS Twins listers. The K&N pod filters are considered to restrictive by the engine builders of this group forAlso the K&N filter that fits in the stock air box should be lightly oiled not saturated with oil. Vance & Hines and Yoshimura both make aftermarket exhaust systemsOne racer installed the Yoshimura exhaust and reported the pipe required some grinding on the oil pan fins and passenger peg bracket in order to fit. The pipe also has to be removed to replace the oil filter. Remember the bike will need to be rejetted when a non-stock filter and/or exhaust system is installed. In the archives there are many posts describing different carb set-ups. The front end is considered too soft even for riding on the street. Progressive Suspension and Race Tech both make aftermarket fork springs to fit the GS500. Many of the listers have installed

straight rate springs (like the type from Race Tech) and reportRace Tech also sells a gadget called an Emulator which when installed in the forks allows the rider to tune rebound and compression damping independently. The shop manual calls for 10-weight fork oil although many of the posts mention using 15-20 Those who have replaced the rear shock of the GS500 usually find a used stock GSXR shock because they can be had for $50-$150. go to the archives and read the details about making this kind of Although the stock front brake on the GS500 is good additional feel and performance can be achieved by installing after market brake pads with a steel braided brake line. EBC green sport formula pads are a good choice and Russell makes a brake line kit. the brake fluid at least every two years since the fluid will absorb water as time passes. Racers report that after a season on the track the front rotor willEBC makes a replacement rotor for about $190.

Read the archives for owners who have installed front ends from larger sport bikes and other modifications. For the older GS models the Avon Roadrunners or Super Venoms are For the GS500 Metzeler, Bridgestone, and Dunlop make good sport rubber that will fit the stock rims. The racers who use Metzeler's recommend the ME-33 Comp-K 110/80-17 for the front and the ME-1 Comp-K 130/80-17 for rear. The stock rear wheel can accept the 140/80-17 size and some listers recommend this size. the 591's series or the Bridgestone BT-39 Battlleax are also The 89 GS500 came stock with clip-ons that attached to top tripleAll models since then have a wide upright tubular handle bar that also attaches to the top triple clamp. The cheapest and easiest way to lower the riding position is to replace the upright tubular bar with tubular clubman bar, cost about If you want to install a set of clip-ons you will need to modify theOne option is to raise the fork tops up in the triple clamps