It’s Alternative Energy Thursday at Automopedia – though we bring this week’s news to you with a heavy heart. Just yesterday three execs from Tesla Motor Group were killed in a small plane crash outside Palo Alto, CA. – “A twin-engine Cessna piloted by a Tesla manager crashed into an East Palo Alto neighborhood today killing the pilot and two other Tesla employees on board.” Our condolences go out the those involved in the accident and their loved ones.

But we must press on, and start off Alt. Energy Thurs. with a look at the Tesla EYE concept. This 2+2 concept was constructed digitally at first, by a group of eleven L ‘Istituto Europeo di Design of Turin students studying for their Master of Arts in Transportation Design. EYE features some of the key points Tesla is always trying to push, a “2+2 type everyday sports car, high levels of comfort, youthfulness and digital-age compliance.” Tesla’s final product has been produced as a full-scale model for exhibition at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show.

Now to some non-auto related modes of transit. Engineers at BERU in Norfolk, England have created the “world’s first bike designed and hand built by Formula one engineers.” The lightweight Factor 001 is built using carbon monocoque frame completely customized to the owner’s physical measurements. In fact, the bicycle can be transformed to a specific frame shape and comes with added engravings on the handlebars. The Factor 001 bicycle has a starting price of £22,000! And you thought a Cannondale frame was pricey.

According to BERU, built into the frame are “highly sophisticated load sensors, wiring, batteries, control cables and lines for its hydraulic braking system.” With additional electronics, the bike collects data on ergonometrics, biometrics, physical forces, and environmental factors. Data is displayed on the included LCD touch screen, but can also be downloaded onto a computer for analysis. Sounds pretty fantastic! But will it blend?

Sources: Jalop / WCF

Solar powered cars? Yaaawwwnnn… Corn the future of automotive fuel? Yeah, right. Here at Automopedia we have tracked down the best in future petrol alternatives – your own urine. That’s right kids, don’t flush that pee down the toilet, wiz it right into a fuel intake. Garardine Botte, who spends a lot of time surrounded by jars of pee-pee, has invented a electrolyzer to extract hydrogen from the bodily fluid. It uses “a nickel-based electrode to extract hydrogen from urea (NH2)2CO, the main component in urine” according to Wired Magazine. Hydrogen molecules in urea are bounded less tightly then in water, making them more easily accessible.

Unfortunately, this is not as easy as going to the bathroom in your gas tank each time mom stops at Sheetz. One of hydrogen’s biggest hassles to use as fuel is the amount of energy needed during production. And then, of course, you have to distribute it. Mz. Botte’s invention eliminates problems of size and spacing normal hydrogen-fuel cell units take up. Honda’s Clarity has a huge tank located in the rear to convert hydrogen into electric power. Botte’s creation is about the size of a CD case. And you never really need to worry about running out of “gas” – “your body produces two to three liters of it each day, and it is the most abundant form of waste on the planet.” Botte also speculated pee-powered autos could be capable of a 60 mile per gallon range, based on current alt-fuel technology.

“The electrolyzer would have to pull energy from a power source like a battery in order to produce hydrogen for a fuel cell.” One idea bouncing around would be connecting it to roof-top solar panels, similar to the 2010 Toyota Prius. This could power up to 40% of the pee-fuel energy transformation process. Garardine has been working with Department of Defense R&D to develop electrolyzer technology for military use. Because all new technologies are used primarily in war and pornography…we’ll leave that final thought open to our reader’s interpretations.

Source: Wired (Thanks Haley!)

Like any decent geek out there, we LOVE Steampunk modes of transit. So, when one of our bloggers spotted this Steampunk Segway on Boingboing we just HAD to tell everyone about it.

The Legway, a human-powered and completely green version of the Segway, is built from old iron and copper plumbing. Remember that scene in The Sopranos, where the boys were dismantling Newark crack houses for the valuable copper and bronze piping? It’s kinda like that, except making a Legway won’t result in your body ending up in the back of a Cadillac by the hands of some guy who smells of garlic & basil. Of course those guys always knew what to do with piping:

But I digress…once your Legway is complete, simply mount and peddle away. Perhaps we are witnessing the latest fad of city transportation?

Breaker, breaker good buddy – we got the smokey on our tail and we’re eastbound & down in our gas-free, “world’s largest battery-electric powered truck” from UK based Smith Electric Vehicles. That’s a 10-4! Get it? It’s trucker lingo.

Smith EV already has their Newton EV Trucks roaming delivery routes in the UK – and will open their first US based plant in Kansas City next year. The Newton can reach a top speed of 50 mph, carries up to 8 tons and can last up to 150 miles on a single charge. The Newton has a turning radius of 14.15 meters, allowing it to make tight squeezes in and around narrow urban street settings.

The Kansas City location was achieved after a $3 million dollar tax incentive for Smith was offered from the state of Missouri. In return, company officials said the new facility would create 200 green collar jobs within three years – we recommend you ‘Shout!’ the green out before washing. Thanks to Gas2.org for the tip!

Many believe the future is now – but people in the 1850′s thought this as well. We’ve only really begun to strike at the heart of alternative energy. In the years to come we shall see the introduction of fully electric vehicles, hydrogen powered cars and perhaps even vessels powered by electromagnetic waves. Anything is possible, as long as these automotive companies get the funds to produce results.

Lincoln C Concept

Lincoln hopes to corner a market with smaller, high quality and eco-friendly vehicles that still produce a good amount of horse power. This Ford product will contain a 1.6-liter Ford EcoBoost engine along with a dual-clutch PowerShift six-speed transmission. The Lincoln C is expected to reach 180 horsepower and 180 ft.-lbs. of torque.

2+1 Seated Cars

Acura’s 2+1 concept doesn’t bother with all that silly 7 passenger seating rubbish, cutting down your occupant capacity to only three – a driver and copilot in the front, with a buddy in the rear. Other vehicles, like the SMART Car, have only room for two, and just enough speed and safety to get you between New York and Philadelphia. These smaller cars may become the new urban vehicle, taking a hint from the vehicles of European cities.

Honda Hydrogen Vehicles

Honda’s FCX Clarity has already grabbed headlines as the first consumer ready hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. For $600/a month per lease you better be packing some serious poundage in your wallet. The boys at Top Gear have said this vehicle is the most important car for the next 100 years, but is the same chemical that powered Zeppelins really a viable car fuel?

Renault Alpine Concept

Smaller engine sports cars with better gas mileage are a logical approach if we are to continue heading down the road of gasoline powered vehicles. Future Renault roadsters will contain small turbo engines rather than a large V6 block, cutting down on weight and emissions.

Pagani Zonda R

The new bodywork of automobiles, like the Pagani Zonda, is (aside from Toyota’s Prius) one of the most aerodynamic vehicle designs. Now cars can offer elevated down force, even in low speed corners. According to World Car Fans, “The longer front bonnet with flaps, closed under body and the rear overhang with the adjustable rear wing and race derived diffuser translate into shattering aerodynamic efficiency and will let you experience cornering speeds beyond imagination.”

“Volt” Electric Vehicles

General Motors is hoping to pick up where Tesla left off, after bankruptcy that is. Chevrolet teased their Volt electric car for weeks before it was finally unveiled. Electric cars seem to be the easiest transition for the general public to make, and electric recharge stations have already popped up throughout Southern California. Electric cars provide us with an easily accessible, renewable form of energy, but at what cost? You can charge at home, but be afraid when the bill comes in. Also, tons of coal is burned in order to produce the electricity in our homes. Until windmill electric becomes standard the coal mines and smoke stacks will continue billowing much into our atmosphere.

“Soft” Vehicles

What if the car you drive one day drives itself, connected by a satellite network? In theory, the automobile accident will become extinct, as the idea of human error will no longer be viable. How trustworthy is a car without a human behind the wheel? Do we really want a car controlled by the same satellites that broadcast Opie & Anthony or Ron & Fez (Noon till Three)? With car collisions an event of the past “Soft” vehicles, made of foam and completely customizable, may become commonplace.

Sky Cars

Where is my flying car? We are one spin around the Sun closer to 2015 – and if Doc Brown can have a flying DeLoreon than we want a flying vehicle to work. This does bring up a few issues. First off, the state of New Jersey would need to stop handing out licenses to every single person who walks into the DMV. And we see how people in drive all over the world, it’s probably not a good idea to start flying lessons. It is reasonable to believe ground travel will become a thing of the past – so get your helmets on people.