The bodywork of this car is covered in tiny LEDs. As you speed up towards the national speed limit, you get the benefit of the red and yellow and white LEDs toward the front of the vehicle switching on in such a way as to make the front bumper and bonnet glow like a rocket on re-entry. Cool!
However, exceed the national speed limit, and the red white and yellow LEDs switch off, and the entire car starts flashing green, indicating to other motorists and the police (and reminding the driver) that they're wilfully exceeding the speed limit.
Nobody likes too much control. I'd rather post this idea in Car:Speed:Saving Lives, but the catagory doesn't exist. The truth is though that excessive speed does lead to a stupid number of premature deaths on the road, and I'm sure that plenty of people would dip back under 70mph if they their car started flashing "arrest me, arrest me".
And you'd see the fast ones coming!-- Fishrat, Feb 11 2004 Erik Staller's Lightmobile http://www.ericstal...20UFOs/LIGHTMOBILE/You probably had something a little less iconic than this in mind. [jurist, Oct 04 2004] Flashy Motor Economy Model http://the-light.com/lights.htmlDoesn't quite have the "Factory-Installed" look that Fishrat was promoting. Nonetheless popular at Christmas time. [jurist, Oct 04 2004] If I had such an led-equipped car, it'd display stripes or some other pattern/picture that moved across body at the same speed as the car.
The/a tricky bit is going to be powering them all.-- benjamin, Feb 11 2004 If I had a car like this, I'd sell it and get a different car.-- yabba do yabba dabba, Feb 11 2004 If I had a car like this, I'd unplug the green lights.-- Worldgineer, Feb 11 2004 Check the circuit. If you unplug the green lights, you never get the fun of the red and yellow lights. Take yer pick.-- Fishrat, Feb 11 2004 Well that's silly. I could just wire it to a resistor or put the green lights on the inside of my hood or paint them or replace them with yellow and red ones.-- Worldgineer, Feb 11 2004 Take away the whole flashing green bit and you've got my crissant.-- KLRico, Feb 11 2004 Anyone who would trade in a small freedom for temparory safety, doesn't deserve that safety. -Benjamin Franklin-- Space-Pope, Feb 11 2004 First half of the idea I think is absolutely GREAT. But I have a heavy right foot ... such emotions!-- Letsbuildafort, Feb 11 2004 reading the annos, I think you're right. Nobody is going to buy the second part of this idea. So how about rather than being draconian, we use the first part of the idea to encourage drivers to stay below the limit. Upto the national limit, you get the cool re-entry glow effects on the bumper and bonnet... over the limit, the lights simply switch off. Dip below 70mph to resume the fun. Better?-- Fishrat, Feb 11 2004 You're still assuming: 1. People would buy something that yells to the police "Look over here, I'm breaking the law!" 2. People can't modify their own equipment.
I'd adjust the thing to be at full re-entry mode at 70 and over.-- Worldgineer, Feb 11 2004 //You're still assuming: 1. People would buy something that yells to the police "Look over here, I'm breaking the law!"// - No, [world], I'm saying that I take your point and I'd drop that part of the idea. Read the above anno again.
//2. People can't modify their own equipment.// True, this is a flaw, but isn't it true with just about any measure designed to reduce speeding and death on the roads? People can ajust guv'nors, I've heard of sales reps taking the carpet out from under the accelorator so that they can squeeze an extra 10mph out of their car, and captian Gatzo continue to chainsaw through speed camera (huzzah for direct action).
I take your point, but at least this is now an incentive to stay below 70, at least for people less technically able than yourself.I'm the kind of guy who wouldn't fiddle with my LEDs because I'd probably make the exhaust fall off.-- Fishrat, Feb 12 2004 Wow... very tacky, even before the speed limit is exceeded.-- waugsqueke, Feb 12 2004 [Fish], if your lights turn off when you break the speed limit then you are announcing to the police that you are breaking the speed limit. People, including myself, would not pay for that feature. Just leave it as an interesting visual without the benevolent safety feature and it's kind of neat.-- Worldgineer, Feb 12 2004 Deal.-- Fishrat, Feb 12 2004 In that case, here is your crissant.-- KLRico, Feb 12 2004 random, halfbakery