Dunno if anyone has heard of Doug Pelmear and his claimed 100mpg(e) '87 5.0 Fox body Mustang, but he is due to enter a legit competition soon for practical; cars that are able to achieve fantastic mileage: Progressive Automotive X prize.
So whats the big deal?
Well, it is a 2850lb Fox body Mustang powered by what, essentially, is a 60's era 5.0 carb'd V8. and he claims:
*400hp
*500 feet torques
*180mph and 0-60 in 3 secs (depending on source)
and most importantly.
*100 (or 110) MPGe with the 'e' standing for equivalent as he runs E85.
He also claims his grandfather got the idea in the '40s.
You can read his site here. And visit his company Horsepowersales.net which seems to sell 'engine block girdles'.
Now, there seems to be a lot of people who've put their faith in this backyard mechanic, many news stations and newpapers have run features on him and but he hasn't given any clue as to what tech he has applied and the only 'tests' that have been made public is a small paper that was allowed to drive 100miles who claimed they saw 50mpg.
Now, I can see a 5.0 realistically getting respectable highway mileage if:
*Running a very tall ratio.
*Using very high compression (probable considering the E85 fuel) and long runner intake for maximum low down torque allowing him to cruise at near idle.
*Maybe some kind of cylinder deactivation (if it is multicarbed individual carbs could be shut down)
Doing this could net him quite respectable MPG for a 5.0, and my guess is that he has managed quite respectable numbers but is claiming utterly ridiculous numbers.
The site lists 3 awards for the car in 'show and shine' categories and the list of "achievements" includes:
* Identification of clear market need for larger horsepower engine with 100MPGe capability and lowest emissions that will not cause a complete change in the refueling and component part manufacturing infrastructures.
* In discussions with automotive OEMs on licensing or royalty contract.
* Letters of Intent secured from Specialty Car companies for purchase of the engines planned for our first 2 years of production.
* Mileage performance verification by cross country road test in October/November, 2008
* EPA testing validation by January, 2009
* IP filing and Trademark progress.
* RFQ’s have been submitted to approve manufacturing companies for a cost per unit production quote.
* Outsourced component part suppliers in place. All are U.S. companies.
* Competitor analysis undertaken to establish uniqueness of HP2G, LLC products.
* Vast media exposure achieved on NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN and PowerTV
* After-market customer base already established and growing.
* Development of Business Plan.
* Strategic Alliances for manufacturing in progress.
Well frankly most of the achievements are whoop-dee-doo.."Development of Business Plan"???Thats reassuring, as for the Vast media exposure, well lets not get into a discussion about the quality of news media in the States. I suspect the After-market customer base is the main reason we are all likely being trolled hard by this guy.
But I guess time will tell, the competition will be sure to examine the car more thoroughly than anyone so far has done and we'll learn if the girdle salesman has given people a lesson in credulity application or not.