I'm really sorry if this topic offends anyone, but my curiosity has gotten the better of me and I am wondering - if you ran a hose from the tailpipe into the passenger compartment, would it kill you, or are the emissions so low that it wouldn't matter?
That would depend. Are you parked in the privacy of your garage or toodling down the highway with an ostentatious hose connecting your tailpipe and your passenger compartment? If you're in your garage, forget it. Remember....the car starts in electric. The gas doesn't kick in until it's going 8 mph. At least if I understand it right. So you'll have to suck exhaust at 65 mph. How much? I don't know. How long would it take? Well, as they say...the fall will kill you. Eventually you'll pass out and crash and die before breathing in enough to kill you. If you really want to die by Prius...why not pop the hood and start playing with the orange cables. You'll eventually find one to light you up like a Christmas tree. Expedite the process by standing barefoot in a water puddle. Make sure you use both hands. Lick them first. Grisly enough?
Ouch! I blame recent viewings of Better Off Dead and Office Space, compounded by application of Bailey's. :silly: I read somewhere that the carbon monoxide emissions from the tailpipe were below detectible levels, but wasn't sure if that's the only thing that'll getcha.
Bizarre question... but when you turn it on the engine will eventually start even if you're in park to warm up the catalytic converter. And while the Prius burns only about 1/2 or 2/3 the gas of most cars, it still makes carbon monoxide from the gas it burns. There's no way around it. Driving a Prius doesn't save the earth - it just trashes it a bit less.
If you just want to die in your Prius from sucking exhaust, open your vents and draft uphill behind a Hummer.
Back when the new generation Prius first came out several of us batted about the idea of using it as a vehicle (sic) for suicide. We decided that in a completely sealed environment that you'd likely die of suffocation before you'd die of CO poisoning. After a very long time you might get enough CO produced in a tightly sealed room (not completely sealed) to get sick, but it seems highly improbable that you could 'off' yourself. Perhaps with a combination of running the AC or defrosters on full, force charging (brake depressed and accelerator depressed) it would run frequently enough to create some CO, but almost assuredly never enough to kill you. But...no testing of this idea by our techno geeks please!!
Ha! I had the same question! I didn't dare post it for fear of being ridiculed. I secretly concluded that a person would die of dehydration first. Nate
Turn of TC, jack up the front wheels, close garage door, windows open and brick on Gas, that shoud do it. But if you really want to use the car to top yourself, , uncover the HV compnents, switch on car and grab those HT electrics. Wet hands probably best! :flame:
It's a wonderful concept for The Simpsons: Homer decides to commit suicide, decides to go via CO, and uses a new Prius "'cause it's got a TV in the front seat!"
Yes, I promise! I realized this morning that people might think this was a cry for help, and it's really really not. I am just blessed with the curiosity of the Elephant's Child. :mrgreen: Glad to see I am not the only one who was wondering, though. [] BTW, even though I just made the downpayment yesterday, it has seemed like an eternity and I am not sure how I will wait until the middle of the week before I get my baby. I can't imagine how miserable some of you folks are who were/are on waiting lists for months.
We really come up with some weird threads on this forum. This has to be one of the more bizarre. 120 volts kills more people in the USA than any other voltage. Supposedly HVAC control voltages of 24/30 volts is below the usual threshold to kill, but I had an instructor of many years experience tell me of a time in damp conditions where he couldn't turn loose of 30 volt control voltage and had to cry out for the other tech to turn off the control voltage supply. 240 volts runs most North American home HVAC applications, compressors, heat strips, blower motors, but few HVAC techs die from electrocution, but the 240 volt experience is either a "wake up on the far side of the room" or "arm broken from yanking it back". A friend, retired industrial electrician, told me that with 400 plus volts the rule was to work with one hand in the pocket. He nearly died once when he couldn't get 440 to let go of him in a factory. The warnings about those high voltage cables are serious ones. The school rule is that it takes one amp pushed by one volt to kill. Take that seriously.
Naah, check out a thread on Fred's IHOP "your thoughts on gay marriage". Its 21 pages long and features tons of anguished frustration and discourse from a bunch of "regulars", a thread where all and sundry carry on about a topic that none of us can affect much, if any.
No sh** Sherlock! That’s like saying most people are killed in automobile accidents on roads or highways. 120 is the most common, most accessible voltage to the average joe in North America. But what contributes the most to the dangers of 120 is the 60Hz frequency. Most victims of electrocution die because of heart stoppage. The 60 Hz frequency is close to the heart's own electrical signal (Doc Evan???) and does more damage than an equal voltage of DC or high frequency AC. They really couldn’t have picked a worse frequency for household power when it comes to human survival after electrocution. 120 household power would be quite a bit safer as direct current (DC) or 400Hz (AC), like aircraft power, but there would be economic and technical difficulties using either. Even though lightning is 10 to 120 million volts, people often survive a hit because it is DC and of very short duration. If it were AC people would pop. How’s that for grisly?
Robert: In industrial process control applications, 24 VDC with 4-20 mA range is most common. There are many warnings about damp areas and the technician becoming part of the control loop. Unless the particular control loop has Intrinsic Safety (Required in explosive environments) it's remarkably easy to stop your heart. Most control loops have a 5-10 amp fuse. As far as frequency, there really isn't any technical reason why 120 Hz couldn't be used instead of 60 Hz. Jay
