Fred Thompson: there are no hybrids in NASCAR
Actor and presidential hopeful Fred Thompson made a joke about Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney that included a reference to hybrids and NASCAR. At first, Fred made a joke equating Democrats to NASCAR (because they only turn left) and commented America was not ready to "turn over the keys" to the "most left-wing part of the left-wing party." Fred then had a suggestion for the good people of Northeastern Iowa;
Now, when Rudy and Mitt come down here from New York and Massachusetts, I want you to be nice to them. And the first thing I want you to do is explain to them what NASCAR is. ... It's not a hybrid automobile.
Iowa is "down here" meaning the south? Iowa is above the Mason–Dixon Line, in the Midwest and at the same latitude as New York. Anyway, while a lot of auto racing has gone green and many of the fastest cars in the world are electric, the idea that NASCAR will go hybrid is a joke.
Related:
[Source: ABC News]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
TG 4:05PM (11/21/2007)
Hmmmm Linton,
Do I detect a left lean?
With no axe to grind from Canada here, you are fortunate to have good people like Thompson running for office. We could use more like him in Ottawa.
Although I appreciate Obama*s green tendencies too. = TG
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ME 4:11PM (11/21/2007)
"many of the fastest cars in the world are electric"
Huh?
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Lascelles Linton 5:30PM (11/21/2007)
ME,
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/08/27/wireds-top-10-fastest-green-cars-one-goes-just-30-mph/
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Green-Money 5:34PM (11/21/2007)
Anyone know of any studies that show how utterly wasteful and environmentally destructive NASCAR racing is? Thousands of tires wasted, thousands of gallons of gasoline...
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Joe 7:37PM (11/21/2007)
Ever been to Iowa? It's the Mississippi of the Midwest. I know, I had the misfortune to live there for 4 long, long, boring undiverse years.
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kballs 7:56PM (11/21/2007)
Hybrids wouldn't really do much to save fuel in NASCAR anyway because they don't do a lot of accelerating once the race starts... it's a constant open-throttle drone, the load on the engine being almost entirely air drag.
About all you could hope for with a NASCAR hybrid is a series hybrid, and that maybe the efficiency of the ICE->electric->wheel-motor conversion might be ever so slightly more efficient than the ICE->transmission->rear differential power transfer, and maybe they could use a small turbine to power the electric generator (better power/weight ratio than a piston engine).
But this is NASCAR, nobody (especially fans) will accept anything but a V8.
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BlackbirdHighway 8:34PM (11/21/2007)
Top NASCAR coach reveals winning strategy: 'Drive Fast'
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/nascar_coach_reveals_winning
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SCOTT 9:42PM (11/21/2007)
WHY CANT THE CANADATES LEAVE NASCAR ALONE
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rob 10:56PM (11/21/2007)
Hybrids?
Heck, NASCAR just started using unleaded fuel. Fuel injectors, oxygen sensors, variable valve timing, direct injection... Let's not rush them into expensive, new-fangled, un-proven territory. ;)
To be fair, NASCAR realizes it is entertainment & advertising, not a technology showcase. And they do the job they've chosen very well.
If you want innovation, watch the LeMans series.
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Dave 11:24PM (11/21/2007)
@1:
Dear Canada,
Please feel free to pass a law saying all American actors can run for elected off in your country. We won't mind.
Sincerely,
America
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Ted Kennedy Is My Chauffer 11:26PM (11/21/2007)
NASCAR teams waste almost as much fuel as environmental messiahs do traversing the country repeatedly in private jets or holding concerts around the globe that require huge amounts energy consumption while emitting vast amounts of CO2. Not as much CO2 as the oceans and lakes do, but still quite a lot.
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Registered Independent 5:55AM (11/22/2007)
"....America was not ready to "turn over the keys" to the "most left-wing part of the left-wing party."
There's a left wing party in America? Who knew? I wa under the impression there was only right and righter.
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BlackbirdHighway 8:05AM (11/22/2007)
When he said "most left-wing part of the left-wing party",
I think he was talking about these guys:
http://www.cpusa.org/
or maybe these guys:
http://www.usmjparty.com/
I don't think he was talking about the Democrats.
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jim 11:56AM (11/22/2007)
Given that today is Thanksgiving, people can be forgiven if they confuse the Thompson presidential campaign with a turkey.
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psarhjinian 12:45PM (11/22/2007)
There's an American left wing? Since when?
I'm a left winger (and a Canadian), and outside of fringe parties in the US, the mainstream American left would qualify as an moderate to solid right-wing organization just about anywhere else in the world.
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TG 6:09PM (11/22/2007)
Dear Dave of America, [10]
Why the hell did you fail to send Reagan up here then?
The only mistake Reagan made was failure to crush Hizbullah who bombed our peace-guarding marines in Lebanon and that was really his school buddy, Wineburger*s interventionist mistake. = TG
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Rick 10:02PM (11/22/2007)
As opposed to keeping the keys in the right most part of the right wing party? No thanks. We see where going right gets us.
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steven 9:06AM (11/23/2007)
@1: I hear Fred Thompson is thinking about pulling out of the race for fear he might get type-cast as a politician
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