Rose Parade very ungreen.

[SByer]

Was watching the parade this morning, and a float broke down (We saw a float break down when we were there 8 years ago - it's not uncommon). It struck me that gosh, a short route at low speeds and a need for reliability for moving big heavy floats - why the heck are these things still engine driven? It seems like an incredible mis-application of that technology. A quick google search turned up:

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/dec/31/local/la-me-parade-green-20101231

My favorite 'idiot by ignorance' quote from the article:

Seated on a workbench with his right foot resting on one of his trusty V-8 engines, Tim Estes, president of Fiesta floats, said: "I think it's great to use this new Honda technology. And if Honda wants to donate hybrid engines to us, fine. But in order to make them fit our chassis, we'll also need new transmissions, drive shafts, radiators, motor mounts, spare parts and technological expertise."

Psst, buddy, go all electric and you don't need most of that stuff.

 

[stopcrazypp]

It is the same reason why most taxis/police cars are still Crown Victorias with V8s. They are very reliable, parts are cheap, and mechanics have been fixing them for years. Unless the vehicle reaches end of life, they aren't going to spend extra money to replace it. Also because of the short nature of the parade, switching to all electric will have minimal impact on the environment and will generate minimal operation savings. This is unlike other fleets that operate throughout the whole year.

 

[vfx]

About a week from now all those floats will be rotting (literally) as they dismantel them keeping the good stuff for the next year's usage. Like Sbuyer I see electric versions being cleaner quieter and easier to engineer. It's the batteries that are the question. maybe someone could donate 20 lead acids but what happens a week later?

 

[TEG]

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pot-o-Gold-Ride-able-Electric-Parade-Float/

 

[SByer]

What started my web search was the unreliability of the current engines and transmissions. A parade float drive train breaks down quite frequently, apparently, given the interview with the tow truck driver (there are 20 tow trucks stationed along the parade route for quick response). The mechanics like what's there because it's what they know. It's a completely different application than police cars, and quite mis-matched for engines.

While switching would have nearly zero environmental impact, electric drive trains would be much more reliable, and you don't need new batteries - weight and range aren't that sensitive in this application, torque and good speed control are. Skim the best of the used batteries headed for recycling - I bet there's enough good capacity in enough batteries to cover a few floats.

 

[domenick]

They should call up the guy who supplies Disney with many of their floats. Electric power and reliable. If they need a float to go fast, he can help them with that as well.

 

[doug]

Of course those Disney floats get a lot more regular use and tend to be in a warmer climates.