Now that we have completed the Shakedown stage and are back in our Lynchburg shop, here are a few thoughts about the Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize.
No one said this would be easy and it is not. As Oliver noted, if it was easy the big auto manufacturers would have already done it. But the X Prize competition is exciting and important and we are very glad to be part of it.
By now we have seen many of the other teams and cars. The overall standard of our competitors is high. Everyone has put their heart and soul into this and it shows. There are a lot of different approaches to this problem of extreme efficiency, and some real surprises. Who would have thought the Illumnati Seven car would be the fastest through the lane change test, or that the Aptera would need 40 tries?
The competition is demanding but fair. The X Prize has an impressive array of experts and it is rigorous, as it should be. Just as making a 100mpg car is new to all of the teams, running this efficiency competition is new to the X Prize folks. They are doing a good job of expecting a lot yet being reasonable, and the process is a good one.
The Very Light Car turns heads, and on a closer look impresses people: stunning is the word that automotive writer Ronald Ahrens used. We feel very good about the approach we have taken and where we are. All four of our cars move on to the Knockout stage. At the Shakedown we did almost 85 mpg (on the EPA cycle that reduced the Prius from 60 to 45) and we can improve this with better mapping and better launches: we have yet to finalize gearing and clutches. We see 100+ MPG as clearly obtainable.
The Knockout stage starts June 20. Follow us on this blog and our Edison2 facebook page.
