How possible is it to engineer a car that gets the equivalent of nearly 82 miles per gallon? Quite, for a team of students from Virginia Tech University who won first place in a U.S. car contest
The team beat 15 other North American universities in the three-year "EcoCAR Challenge", co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and General Motors. It started with a GM-donated engine from a 2009 Chevy HHR and added a battery and electric motor. It made other tweaks, too, such as eliminating engine idle with stop/start.
Courtesy of the Department of Energy
"I definitely did not plan on first place. says Lynn Gantt, Virginia Tech's team leader who just finished his master's degree in mechanical engineering. He says the car can go 50 miles on its battery and another 155 on gasoline, including a 15% ethanol blend or E85. The redesigned car boosted the fuel achieving of the stock engine by 70%.
"The focus shown by the students of Virginia Tech in building this next-generation vehicle will help them launch careers as leaders in the eco field," Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in a statement Friday that announced the winners. DOE has sponsored university car challenges for 23 years, with a different theme and name every three or so years.
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