X-Prize Final Round
The stakes are higher as only a handful of teams have reached the final round of the Progressive Automotive X-Prize Competition. 10 teams remain competing for $10 million dollars in prize money.
To quote the Automotive X-Prize mission statement
“Our goal is to stimulate automotive technology, manufacturing and marketing breakthroughs that:
- Radically reduce oil consumption and harmful emissions
- Result in a new generation of super-efficient and desirable mainstream vehicles that people want to buy”
The key phrase is “that people want to buy” Teams from around the world have engineered super efficient vehicles that not only meet emission and performance requirements but are production capable too. So you may in the not too distant future see an X-Prize winner parked out front at your local AutoStar Superstore!
100mpg Is The X-Prize Goal
Teams are competing in 3 classes:
- Mainstream – 4 seats plus luggage space
- Alternative – tandem
- Alternative – side by side.
The teams are using all electric, hybrid gas/electric and internal combustion engine technologies to meet the X-Prize goal of 100mpg (or equivalent) for their vehicles. The single remaining team in the mainstream class are Oliver Kuttner’s Edison2 team with two Very Light Cars powered by an engine using an ethanol/gas mix. The vehicle weighs just over 700 pounds, much lighter than a typical compact car, and goes from 0-60 in 7 seconds.
Edison2 X-Prize Mainstream Class Contender
Aptera 2e X-Prize Tandem Class Contender
A vehicle in with a chance for the X-Prize in the Tandem side by side class is the Aptera 2e. Typical cars on the road spend 50% of their energy pushing air out of the way. The Aptera 2e’s signature design element is its super efficient aerodynamics. An all electric vehicle it weighs in at 1700 pounds and can go from 0-60 in under 10 seconds.
Whichever team wins the X-Prize the eventual winner is most definitely the consumer. Now if only an enterprising team could design one George Jetson style which wraps up neatly into a briefcase!
