43 Teams Advance in Automotive X PRIZE

The Automotive X PRIZE this week announced that 43 teams have moved to the next stage of competition for a $10 million dollar award.

Teams representing 18 states, 10 countries and 6 fuel types have
passed the competition’s Design Judging phase and will move into performance and safety testing.

The Automotive X PRIZE–sponsored by progressive insurance–aims to inspire a new generation of viable, super fuel-efficient vehicles.

Teams that have passed this most recent phase of judging have proven to the competition’s automotive and technical experts that their vehicles will be available in time for formal vehicle challenges next spring, will be production capable, and can plausibly meet or exceed the competition requirements.

There are a total of 53 vehicles moving forward in the competition with 28 represented in the Mainstream Class and 25 represented in the Alternative Class.

“The teams and vehicles represented in this group are the most viable in our competition and we believe that together they are positioned to make a huge impact on the automotive marketplace,” said Peter Diamandis, X PRIZE CEO and Chairman.

The competition features teams from around the world that can design, build and bring to market 100 MPG or energy equivalent (MPGe) vehicles that people want to buy and that meet market needs for price, size, capability, safety and performance. Performance testing will begin in spring 2010 and winners will be announced in September 2010.

A complete list of qualified teams, along with fuel types, photos of their vehicles and team information is available at the link below.

The competition also formally opened registration for a national high school contest, funded by a U.S. Department of Energy grant. The contest, called DASH+, challenges students to develop new gauges, instruments and interfaces to create the “Dashboard of the Future” which will support behavior change to help drivers maximize fuel efficiency and reduce environmental impact.

DASH+ teams must include two to five U.S. students enrolled in 9th through 12th grade, aged 14 or older, in fall 2009 and have an adult mentor.

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