Holy Cow! Japan’s Manure-Powered Cars

Could this be The Future of Green Driving?

Get a whiff of this! Japan’s newest automotive innovation is biomethane engines. Oh yes, I kid you not. We are indeed talking about cars effectively powered by manure and other assorted plant stuff. And if you think this idea smells funny, take it up with the likes of Toyota, Nissan, and Suzuki. 

Holy Cow! Are we going to trade milk for mileage? Well, let me explain everything, and we’ll also explore what other alternatives to petrol, diesel, and even electrons might be out there!

So, imagine driving a car powered by cow dung and crop residue. Don’t turn your nose up at that thought, because it’s actually happening. Japan has been taking a cautious approach to EVs, and smartly, they have been ruminating over alternative options for motive power. 

Betting on Biomethane

Some car companies are now betting on biomethane. For instance, Suzuki plans to showcase its biomethane-powered WagonR at an upcoming car show in Japan. Just picture going to a burger joint drive-in with a car powered by cow poo! Now, that’s what I call a moo-ving experience.

Now unlike China, which has gone all-in in a big way on electric vehicles, Japan has been more reserved. This is despite having led the way with hybrid vehicles. 

“Japan has been taking a cautious approach to EVs and exploring alternative options for motive power.”

For example, Takahiro Fujimoto, a professor of business at Waseda University, believes electric vehicles are a key solution for reducing emissions. However, they still have weak points, such as the large amounts of emissions produced while making lithium-ion batteries, a chief component of them of course. 

And he says: “At the very least, I believe the proliferation of and innovations in BEVs are definitely needed. But that argument is logically not the same as saying that all we need are BEVs,” a very fair point that I’ve also been echoing.

“Electric cars are definitely one part of the answer to our future mobility needs, but we should never put all our eggs in one basket.”

Plus, Japan has an excellent and efficient public transportation system. So the urgency for personal electric vehicles isn’t perhaps as high as it is in countries where public transport isn’t as developed. Which means that Japan can afford to sit back a little, take a pause, and think things through. Smartly, they have been ruminating over alternative options for motive power. And as a result, some car companies there are betting on biomethane.

This green fuel is derived from organic waste, such as animal manure and agricultural leftovers. And it’s not just theory. Suzuki, for instance, plans to showcase its biomethane-powered WagonR at an upcoming car show in Japan. They’re working with local dairy farmers to turn cow patties into clean energy. Imagine going to a burger joint drive-in in a car powered by cows’ poo. Now, that’s what I would call a moo-ving experience. 

“Initial trials showed that these vehicles can cover more than 500km on a single tank of biomethane.”

Will it stink?

But I know what you’re really thinking. Poo-powered cars could mean smelly streets. Actually, no! Because the purification process ensures a stink-free ride! Now these engines are designed to perform just as well as traditional gasoline engines, with significantly lower emissions – they’re comparable to the economy of a diesel engine, in fact – which isn’t bad really, is it? In fact, initial trials showed that these vehicles can cover more than 500km on a single tank of biomethane – that’s over 300 miles.

Toyota aims to launch its first biomethane car by 2026, collaborating with biogas suppliers to ensure a steady fuel supply. Meanwhile, Nissan is investing heavily in this technology and aiming to roll out their versions of these environmentally friendly vehicles soon too.

But while brown power might be cool for the BrownCarGuy – c’mon, as I always say, brown is profound! Anyway, though, poo-power isn’t the only future alternative to both traditional petrol and diesel cars, as well as EVs and hybrids – other possibilities are also being explored.

Hydrogen and Atomic Batteries

Car companies in Japan and elsewhere haven’t quite given up on hydrogen. Despite some setbacks, it’s still a viable option. Hydrogen fuel cells produce only water as a byproduct, making them an incredibly clean energy source. And you can even convert regular combustion engines to run on hydrogen as Toyota has proven. The challenge, however, has been in making hydrogen production and storage safe and efficient. But you know the Japanese – they’re always up for an engineering challenge.

What else is out there, or in the pipeline, so to speak? How about atomic batteries to power your car? I’ve mentioned these before, and people have thought I’m talking about made-up Star Trek technology like Dilithium crystals. But actually, atomic diamond batteries are a real thing and not far off the concept of Dilithium crystals. 

Scientists are currently working on developing a nuclear diamond battery which produces power from the radioactive decay of leftover nuclear power station material and encased in diamond to make the radiation safe. This diamond battery, like all nuclear batteries, produces power proportionally to the half-life of the radioactive source – in other words, it lasts a long time. A very long time.

“Just think, one day your descendants might be driving a vehicle powered by the same technology that powers space probes.”

These diamond batteries are still a ways off, but tritium betavoltaics – which offer similar benefits—are already in use. And you know the Voyager space probes we’ve been sending into space for decades also use nuclear batteries. So these batteries demonstrate tremendous opportunity for repurposing existing nuclear waste while offering a long-term, steady flow of electricity. 

However, they’re not particularly practical for cars at the moment, they don’t put out enough power. Maybe with further development, we might see them powering more significant applications, and possible future vehicles of some kind, in the future. Just think, one day your descendants might be driving a vehicle that’s powered by the same technology that powers space probes. Now that’s out of this world.

What about engines powered by water? Well, hydrogen fuel cells essentially use water in a chemical process to generate energy. There is even such a thing as the ‘Toyota Water Engine’. 

Water-fuelled cars have been the subject of numerous international patents, newspaper and popular science magazine articles, however, thus far, sadly, the claims for these devices have been found to be pseudoscience and some were found to be tied to investment frauds. So maybe not then – sorry, Keanu Reeves from the 1996 Chain Reaction movie – it’s all not quite realistic, I’m afraid. But who knows?

“Sometimes the best fuel for future cars could be right under our noses!”

Who really knows about anything? I mean going back to Star Trek – remember they have anti-matter drives. While we’re still a long way from harnessing anti-matter for practical use (and there is such a thing), the theoretical energy output that you’d get would be astronomical. Imagine a future where you could fuel your car with a pinch of anti-matter and travel halfway across the galaxy. Hey, we can dream a little, right?

Anyway, whether it’s manure under the bonnet or diamond batteries in the boot, there is hope. And it’s not just all about electric dreams – there are always possibilities. Along with EVs, we already have e-fuels, bio-fuels, now potentially biomethane, and who knows what’s to come or be discovered. Electric cars are definitely one part of the answer to our future mobility needs, but we should never put all our eggs in one basket – that’s just short-sighted.

So remember, sometimes the best fuel for future cars could be right under our noses! Let me know what you think in the comments below and I’ll catch you next time.

---

Follow all my channels https://linktr.ee/browncarguy

Get my book! https://amzn.eu/d/adFimgB

If you enjoyed this review sponsor my content from as little as £3 at
https://ko-fi.com/browncarguy

Big Thanks to my Supporters!

CraftLab (https://www.CraftLab.my)
Collecting Motors (https://collectingmotors.com)
Design5IT
Tom Conway-Gordon (https://www.instagram.com/anycoloursolongasits_black/)
And others! 🙏🏽☺️