The Very Light Car is a prototype design for 2- and 4-passenger automobiles powered by small (250cc) one-cylinder E85-gasohol-fueled internal combustion engines. It was developed by the Edison2 team in the Automotive X Prize competition. Two such 4-passenger cars were the only qualifiers in the finals of the "mainstream" division of the competition, and one of them won the 2010 division prize of $5 million with a fuel economy of 100.3 MPGe[1] (approximately 69 MPG) despite suffering a catastrophic engine failure before validation.[2] Edison2 was allowed to provide independent third-party validation reports instead of undergoing the same validation testing as other finalist teams.[3]
The design emphasizes mainstream rather than exotic materials, and extreme low weight (less than 450 kg (1000 lbs)) and very low aerodynamic drag (coefficient of drag <0.15) for achieving the prize's requirement of 100 MPGe or higher fuel economy. Significant design innovations included in-wheel suspension and safety design derived from endurance auto racing.
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Edison2 was founded by Oliver Kuttner, a Virginia entrepreneur and auto enthusiast, and is headquartered in Lynchburg, Virginia. The VLC development involved over 100 of its own and other companies' employees.
In addition to its entries in the X Prize "mainstream" division, the team also entered one additional vehicle in each of the two "alternative" (2-passenger) divisions.