MovieChat Forums > Back to the Future Part III (1990) Discussion > Other ways to reach 88 MPH?

Other ways to reach 88 MPH?

posted a year ago by aavfreak (3322)
3 replies | jump to latest

I'm sure this has to have been discussed over the last 30+ years, but what other ways could Doc have tried to get to 88 MPH?

My idea would be to rig a rope and pulley at the ravine and drop a large, heavy object into the ravine at the end of the tracks. The falling object would pull the Delorean at the rate of the freefall.

According to online calculators, it would need about 4 seconds to reach 88 MPH in about 268ft. Of course, you'd have to account for friction/drag, but that wouldn't change the calculation that much. It seems like a much more feasible plan than the convoluted train hijacking and steam engine overclocking.

What else would you have tried?

[–] strntz (12254) a year ago

They had to leave in a hurry, so the plot required a "time is of the essence" deal where Doc would need to come up with a plan that didn't require a lot of time - such as setting up a crude oil refinery to make gasoline for the DeLorean which many have suggested. The rock drop scenario wouldn't take any longer to implement than the loco hijacking and maybe less time, so that's good.

The dropped rock certainly wouldn't have been any less far fetched than Doc's magic (and beautifully colored) presto heat logs, but a rock fall would mean the ravine would have to be 270 feet deep (was it?), and your calculation would assume the rock was in a free fall and not rolling down the ravine which would prevent the rock from reaching terminal velocity and meaning that the ravine would need to be much deeper than 270 if we needed a rolling boulder for our energy.

So what would I do? I don't know, but I guess the loco would be where I would try. In any case, Doc should have uncoupled the tender to save that weight as he only needed a little wood for the short trip and he has his technicolor presto logs to provide the heat.

[–] greenvelvet (167) 22 days ago

Crude oil refinery would not have been difficult to set up. You just need to slowly boil the oil and then collect the different fractions (compounds) as they come out, using a thermometer (which can be easily made using alcohol and a glass tube) to check which is which.

Getting the oil from the ground would have been the problem.

[–] strntz (12254) 22 days ago

Probably Doc's best option would have been to try distilling 190 proof moonshine. He would lose a lot of engine power and God knows the DeLorean wasn't blessed with a lot of surplus power to start with, but with the steel wheels on the track, that would have freed up a lot of the tire rolling resistance. With enough track, I think the DeLorean could have reached 88mph even on alcohol.

What's not known is whether the DeLorean's fuel injection could have properly metered the alcohol or if Doc could have properly adjusted the air fuel ratio - but at least it's technically possible.