Darkstar's warp ramming page - an idea

[Praeothmin]

Impulse engines are implied to be something akin to thrusters, yet we see no exhaust even at high impulse. So it might be that nacelles generate some sort of mass lightening field, helping impulse engines to do the work, but warp drive isn't power efficient enough to propel ship at STL on its own.

A far fetched explanation, IMO...
If Warp Drive is power efficient enough to get from low Warp to high Warp, then why can it not be efficient enough to go to STL speeds?
No, Impulse engines are used at STL because they're what's needed to move in "normal space", and Warp Drive is used only to move at FTL because of it's space altering capability...
Also, no time dilation would be mentioned when on high Impulse if there was a Warp bubble at STL...

[Picard]

I said "implied", and I got it from Memory Alpha, so it might or might not be true. Is there any data from episodes? Only things I do remember imply that warp and impulse operate on same or similar principles.

[Lucky]

Impulse engines are implied to be something akin to thrusters, yet we see no exhaust even at high impulse. So it might be that nacelles generate some sort of mass lightening field, helping impulse engines to do the work, but warp drive isn't power efficient enough to propel ship at STL on its own.

A far fetched explanation, IMO...
If Warp Drive is power efficient enough to get from low Warp to high Warp, then why can it not be efficient enough to go to STL speeds?
No, Impulse engines are used at STL because they're what's needed to move in "normal space", and Warp Drive is used only to move at FTL because of it's space altering capability...
Also, no time dilation would be mentioned when on high Impulse if there was a Warp bubble at STL...

Phoenix cockpit]

LAFORGE: Plasma injectors are on-line. Everything's looking good. I think we're ready.
RIKER: They should be out there right now. We better break the warp barrier in the next five minutes if we're going to get their attention.
LAFORGE: Main cells are charged and ready.
RIKER: Let's do it.
COCHRANE: Engage.
LAFORGE: Warp field is looking good. Structural integrity is holding.
RIKER: Speed, twenty thousand kilometres per second.
COCHRANE: Sweet Jesus!
(Cochrane has spotted the Enterprise in orbit)
RIKER: Relax, Doctor. I'm sure they're just here to give us a send-off.

A little while later
[Phoenix cockpit]

RIKER: Thirty seconds to warp threshold. ...Approaching light-speed.
COCHRANE: We're at critical velocity.

In order to go to warp you need to reach a certain speed or threshold even if the warp fields are on.