Avion (car)
| Company type | Private company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founded | 1986 |
| Founder | Craig Henderson Bill Green |
| Headquarters | Bellingham, Washington, United States |
| Products | Avion |
| Website | technology in car games |
The Avion is a prototype sports car that achieves over 100 miles per gallon driving on interstate highways in real world conditions.
The Avion car is based on a simple concept: fuel economy is largely determined by eliminating drag, reducing rolling resistance and matching gear rato to required horsepower to maintain speed. Aerodynamic drag, rolling resistance, matching engine horsepower and reduction of vehicle weight all contribute to fuel efficency. The Avion uses existing automotive components, an existing high-efficiency automotive diesel engine and marries them to a lightweight aluminum frame and highly aerodynamic composite body.
The Avion was an official contender in the Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize. After offical approval by the prize officals the Avion documented a drive from the Canadian Border to the southern border of Washington State, north of Portland, Oregon, averaging 113 miles per gallon at average speed of over 60 miles per gallon in over 250 miles. Unfortunately, the contest officals did not reconize the Avion as the first and only car to acheve the prize goals and did not award the prize of $10 Million to the Avion. Since the 2008 contest rules were written for battery cars, the Avion car was withdrawn from the contest.
In 2010, the Avion car was driven from the Canadian Border to the Mexico border without refuling. This was sponsored by Goodyear Tire Company. The Avion averaged 119.1 miles per gallon using 12.4 gallons of fuel for the entire trip. Thus reseting the 1986 Border to Border fuel economy World Record at 119.1 MPG real world fuel economy.
History
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The Avion was built by Craig Henderson and Bill Green after graduating from Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington where they had studied at the Vehicle Research Institute. The prototype was completed in 1984, and entered the Three Flags Econo Rally driving from Mexico border to the Canada border and was displayed in the Canada1986 Expo. During the contest the Avion set a Guinness World Records for fuel economy in 1986 at 103.7 mpg.[1] The record is in the 1987 print edition page 292.
When the car was designed the plan was to manufacture the Avion in limited quantities as a kit car and sell into the car enthusiast market. The reality of starting a company with essentially no capital, and limited experience, made the task too difficult to start production.
The car was used as a primary vehicle for many years, and participated in many parades and was always a big hit.
The car is now on display at the San Deigo Air and Space Museium as of October of 2023.
Although not a comercal sucess, the Avion proves the seemingly impossible is possible with fuel economy well over 100mpg.
Vehicle
The car was designed to be manufactured in small volume using existing automotive components as a kit car. It features a lightweight composite body of highly aerodynamic design with butterfly doors attached to an aluminum frame.
Notes
- ^ "Automotive X-Prize Profile: Avion Car Company". Futurecars.com. Archived from the original on 2009-02-17. Retrieved 2009-10-19.