A few months ago I rented a Chevrolet Equinox crossover (small SUV) for a family road trip and, although I’ve never liked GM vehiciles, I found the car surprisingly enjoyable and comfortable to drive, a real solid, quality vehicle. I liked it so much I thought I might buy one next time I was in the market for a vehicle - until I stopped to fill the tank and realized it got fairly lousy gas mileage. So I’m quite interested in following Challenge X, a competition sponsored by General Motors Corp., the federal government and 17 universities to develop alternatives to the gasoline-fueled internal combustion engine that powers most of the vehicles on the road in America today.
The Los Angeles Times reports on the competition from Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, where teams from the various universities this week showed the entries they have been working on for three years.
The challenge: re-engineer an Equinox to increase fuel economy and reduce emissions while retaining its “consumer appeal.” GM supplied the vehicles, tech support and some funding. The Energy Department’s Argonne National Laboratory provided expertise and advice. The competition, which ends in May, is a chance for engineering students to get experience designing and using propulsion technologies that go beyond what is available in many engineering schools: biodiesels, plug-in hybrids, hydrogen fuel cells, E85 ethanol and various combinations thereof.
The winner will be announced in May, and then GM will launch a new competition, EcoCar: The NeXt Challenge, in the fall of 2008. It will focus on pollution control and fuel economy. Students will be asked to re-engineer a GM vehicle to meet California’s zero-emissions requirements.
