Are there other technology beside the internal combustion engines & electric motors that can be used for cars?

Question

If there's an alternative to internal combustion engine and electric motors then how come we are not using it? Is it true that oil companies are preventing the invention of motors or engines that do not use fuel from crude oil?

Answer 1

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Electric motors are pretty hard to beat. Did you know electric motors are about 95% efficient? Compare this to internal combustion engines, which struggle to even reach 25% efficiency.
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The standard objection to electric vehicles has been inadequate battery technology. But a lot of battery research has happened in the last two decades. Take a look at what a modern electric car looks like:
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http://phoenixmotorcars.com/models/fleet.html
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The Phoenix electric pickup truck - using new, advanced Altairnano batteries (based on research from MIT) - can:

-Travel up to 250 miles per charge
-Carry 5 passengers plus cargo at 95mph.
-Charges batteries in as little as TEN MINUTES.
-Has batteries that last 250,000 miles (never need replacement.)
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Driving on electricity only costs about a penny per mile. And the superior efficiency of electric drive means much lower pollution, even if power plants burn dirty fuel.
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Put a solar panel on your garage roof, and drive for ZERO cents per mile, with ZERO pollution. Try to find something better if you like, but you can't beat ZERO.
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Answer 2

Yes there are other means of propelling a vehicle. Steam works but has major drawbacks. There is a sterling engine, which like the steam engine is an external combustion engine, but the rotary engine like that used in the Mazda is an internal combustion engine. Another engine that is popular in cars sold in Europe is the Diesel engine, but that is another internal combustion engine too. There are proponents for a flywheel to store kinetic energy, and when the flywheel looses its kinetic energy by slowing down you can spin it back up by plugging it in to an electrical outlet for a short time. There is talk of an engine that runs on compressed air. However if we can get the battery technology up to speed the plug in electric is the best solution on the horizon.

Answer 3

Electric motors are pretty damn efficient, most research done at the moment is about storeing energy, not using it.

The external combustion engine pops to mind, but it's even less efficient than the internal combustion engine.

I can't imagine that the oil companies are preventing such research, but are merely not funding it.

Answer 4

yep
and it is being used
the rotary engine is an EXTERNAL combustion engine. the steam engine is also EXTERNAL combustion. both were invented many moons ago