University of Wisconsin Students Win 2003 FutureTruck Competition

              Engineering Students Re-design SUV, Improving
                   Fuel Economy and Lowering Emissions

A team of students from the University of Wisconsin took top honors at this year's FutureTruck challenge by re-engineering a base 2002 Ford Explorer to achieve a 35 percent increase in on-road fuel economy while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 39 percent. The winning vehicle, which implemented lightweight components such as aluminum, ran on a mixture of bio- diesel fuel.

The FutureTruck competition attracted 15 engineering teams from universities across North America. The second place vehicle design, re- engineered by students at University of California - Davis was a parallel plug-in hybrid system and was fueled by ethanol.

The goal of the annual FutureTruck challenge is to lower emissions and achieve a 25 percent increase in over-the-road fuel economy of SUVs while maintaining the safety, performance and comfort levels that consumers demand. The U.S. Department of Energy and Ford Motor Company were the title sponsors for this year's competition, which took place at Ford's Michigan Proving Grounds in Romeo -- just in time for the company's 100th anniversary celebration.

"The FutureTruck program is just one way the government, industry, and academic worlds are working together to find approaches and solutions to improving vehicle fuel economy," said Department of Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham. "Better fuel economy for all vehicles -- including popular SUVs -- will help reduce America's petroleum needs, decreasing dependence on foreign oil and boosting our economy."

The competing teams employ creative approaches to achieve both short- and long-term solutions to improving the fuel efficiency and environmental impact of SUVs.

"This is not only a victory for the University of Wisconsin, but a promising contribution to the future of light-duty vehicle design," said Glenn Bower, the teams facility advisor. "We were pleased to be a part of the FutureTruck challenge once again."

FutureTruck competition began on June 2 at Ford's Michigan Proving Ground in Romeo and the Allen Park Test Lab in Allen Park, Mich. Teams participated in ten days of intense vehicle testing that measured criteria such as acceleration and off-road performance.

"This competition fosters tomorrow's engineers by encouraging them to explore clean, fuel-efficient automotive technologies," said Al Kammerer, Ford's executive director of sport utility vehicles and body on frame. "FutureTruck's goals parallel Ford's research on advanced propulsion vehicles and its attempts to make SUVs more fuel efficient while maintaining consumer acceptability."

Other teams participating in the 2003 challenge included: California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo; Cornell University; Georgia Tech; Michigan Technological University; The Ohio State University; Pennsylvania State University; Texas Tech University; University of Alberta; University of Idaho; University of Maryland; University of Tennessee; Virginia Tech; and West Virginia University.

Ford Motor Company and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) are the headline sponsors for the 2003 FutureTruck competition. Argonne National laboratory, a DOE R&D facility, provides competition management, technical and logistical support. Other major sponsors included the National Science Foundation; Cisco Systems; ArvinMeritor; Delphi; National Instruments; Natural Resources Canada; The MathWorks; The Aluminum Association; Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; Renewable Fuels Association; Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company; Ricardo Inc.; BP; and Dana Corporation.

Additional information about FutureTruck is available on the Web at http://www.futuretruck.org/.