The first week of Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE finals brought the competitive field from 15 vehicles at the start of the week to 11 vehicles by the end of the day on Friday 7/23. After a weekend away from the track, the remaining competitors have once again taken the track for the Dynamic Safety tests today. Teams demonstrated that they could meet requirements for 0 - 60mph acceleration, 60 - 0mph braking, and accident avoidance tests.
Two additional teams have been eliminated (preliminary) from the competition after today's events: Western Washington University and the Edison2 #95 car. The WWU Viking 45 vehicle did not pass the accident avoidance test within the 6 attempt limit (they did complete the course on attempt #9), and the Edison2 #95 car had mechanical troubles that prevented it from completing the day's tests.
This brings us to the exciting final day of the finals event. Nine vehicles remain: 2 Edison2 vehicles in the mainstream class, 2 X-Tracer vehicles in alternative tandem, and 5 competitors in the alternative side-by-side category (Aptera, Li-ion Motors, RaceAbout, Zap, and TW4XP). Teams will compete in a timed event called the "Combined Efficiency and Performance Test", in which they will travel a minimum of 100 miles for the alternative classes and 200 miles for the mainstream class. Teams may not exceed 70mph, but the total time to complete the course and MPGe will be important factors that will be considered when determining the winning vehicle for each class. Live telemetry and a webcast of the event will take place on Tuesday, 7/27, starting at 8am EDT. Please visit http://www.progressiveautoxprize.org/live to tune in for the action, and watch for updates on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr!



