Musk as possible mastermind of Ferrari patent
A Ferrari patent filed in July 2021 provides a detailed look at the Italian automaker’s plans to develop a turbine-powered car model. Considerations for the development of a car with rocket jet propulsion were already made by Tesla boss in 2018 Elon Musk in connection with the Tesla Roadster on Twitter. According to Musk’s plans, the turbines are to be operated with compressed air and are intended to improve the driving capabilities of the cars and possibly make them airworthy. A Ferrari patent filed in July 2021, which only recently made the news, now offers a glimpse of the Italian automaker’s plans to design a similar model.
Pulse jet engine as an alternative to Tesla plans
Although the turbine-powered car approach outlined in Ferrari’s patent is very similar to Musk’s plans, there are a few key differences. The patent describes in great detail, including sketches, how the jet engine is supposed to work. There are up to five different positions on the car for the nozzles (front, rear, side, roof and under). The nozzles are intended to improve the vehicle’s general driving capabilities.
The patent presents two types of turbine propulsion that are fundamentally different from Musk’s plans. First, Ferrari envisages a compressor connected to the car’s two axles, designed to absorb braking kinetic energy and use it to compress air, which is then used in the turbines. The second alternative does not provide for the use of compressed air to operate the nozzles, but rather the drive with so-called pulse jet engines. A pulse jet engine is a simplified form of a turbine jet engine traditionally used in aviation. The mechanism burns fuel to generate high-pressure gas. According to Ferrari’s plans, the same fuel should be used for the turbines as is used for the vehicles’ internal combustion engines.
Ferrari also relies on electric drive in the long term
By driving the turbines with fuel, it becomes clear that Ferrari is also pursuing innovative ideas in the field of conventional vehicles with combustion engines. The trend reversal towards electromobility does not stop at Ferrari either. The Strategic Plan recently published at the Ferrari Capital Markets Day 2022 shows where the traditional Italian car manufacturer sees the future in the long term. The first all-electric Ferrari is set to be unveiled in 2025. By the end of the decade, Ferrari plans to have a broad lineup of its vehicles in all powertrain categories. In 2030, 20 percent of the vehicles on offer will still be powered by combustion engines, 40 percent with hybrid drives and 40 percent will be fully electric.
C. Kusche / Editor finanzen.net
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