Sorry Oliver!
We have to apologize to Oliver Kuttner, the founder of Edison2, the car that just won $5 million and the Progressive Automotive X Prize for getting the best gas mileage…but you have to admit Edison2 does resemble a giant bug.
To be more specific a giant black cockroach. Beauty is always in the eye of the beholder but in our opinion this car won’t be flying off the dealer lot even if it gets 200 MPG.
Of course Edison2 was designed to get the winning 102.5 MPG so it must be very aerodynamic, light and of course fuel efficient. In fact three X prize cars shared the $10 million X prize for building a car capable of getting over 100 MPG.
Today’s press release about the winners states:
$5 Million Mainstream Class Winner:
- Edison2 “Very Light Car #98” (Charlottesville, VA)
- Economy: 102.5 MPGe
- Fuel: E85 ethanol
- Boasting the lowest drag coefficient of any car with four wheels tested in the GM wind tunnel and at the Chrysler Proving Grounds, this vehicle demonstrated over 100 MPGe on the test track, and verified in the lab, under stringent testing conditions using a highly innovative small displacement engine. Its low weight of just 830 pounds is a tribute to its use of light weight materials, reduced engine displacement and a host of other weight-saving innovations.
The other winning cars included:
$2.5 Million Alternative Side-by-Side Class Winner:
- Li-ion Motors Corp “Wave II” (Mooresville, NC)
- Economy: 187 MPGe
- Fuel: Battery Electric
- This side-by-side two-seat battery electric car was built on a lightweight aluminum chassis and weighs in at only 2,176 pounds, despite the weight of its powerful lithium ion batteries. The Wave II demonstrated outstanding
- low mechanical and aerodynamic drag that resulted in 187 MPGe in combined on-track and laboratory efficiency testing, a 14.7s zero-to-60 mph acceleration time, and over 100 miles range over a real-world driving cycle.
$2.5 Million Alternative Tandem Class Winner:
- X-Tracer Team Switzerland “E-Tracer #79” (Winterthur, Switzerland)
- Economy: 205.3 MPGe
- Fuel: Battery Electric
- This tandem two-seat vehicle combines the best of motorcycles and automobiles. This clever design has two extra outrigger wheels that deploy at low speed to stabilize the vehicle. At 1436 pounds, the E-Tracer is able to deliver over 100 miles in range, led the competition with over 200 MPGe in combined on-track and laboratory fuel efficiency and achieved a zero-to- 60 mph acceleration time of just 6.6 seconds.
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