ive (2+ passengers, no requirement on number of wheels).
Winning vehicles must exceed 100 miles per gallon or its equivalent, while also meeting rigorous emission requirements. On top of that, though, the AXP organizers want to be sure that vehicles entered in the contest, which will compete in races in 2009 to determine the winner, are commercially viable. Entries must be feasible for production, and not just one-off concept vehicles. Additionally, each team must prepare a business plan for producing at least 10,000 of the vehicles at a cost comparable to that of currently available cars.
Before it began publicizing a draft of the rules for the competition, the foundation had fielded inquiries from more than 1,000 potential contestants and institutions willing to participate. Several major automakers have also expressed interest in monitoring the contest, including some that are considering competing themselves.
The competition guidelines include the following major provisions:
- The AXP will be open to viable cars capable of reaching the marketplace, not concept cars or science projects.
- The international, independent competition will be open to multiple fuels and technologies.
- The guidelines introduce a new yardstick to replace the outdated MPG. The new standard is miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe), which takes into account energy equivalence, no matter what the energy source.
So, the race will soon be on to develop a commercially viable car that can travel 100 miles on a gallon of gasoline. Ideally, the top teams would see their designs purchased and used in some form by automakers. However, no major automotive company has yet determined its level of participation in the contest. I assume that several will pay close attention to it before committing. Viability for mass production will probably prove as important as demonstrating the technologies for capturing the attention and interest of the major automakers.
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