Eco Factor: Fuel-efficient, lightweight car.
Taking fuel-efficiency to its utmost limits, some students have designed a new fuel-efficient car dubbed the Maritime Mileage Machine. The car comes with a lightweight body made of Kevlar, an aerodynamic design and three racing wheels. Topped up by a 35cc engine, the car will compete in the 2009 Shell Eco-marathon Americas scheduled to take place on April 15. Currently the car does 430 kilometers on a single liter of unleaded gas, but the team is now hoping to set a new record of 1445 kilometers per liter or more 3000 miles per gallon of fuel. If the team is successful in getting anywhere near to the target, we might see bulletproof cars made of Kevlar in the very near future.
The Dark Side:
Even if the students reach the impossible target of 3000 mpg, there is little chance that any technology from the car will ever be brought into mainstream production.
Via: ScientificBlogging
