The 2016 Chevy Camaro
If you are the kind of purist who was upset by the speculation that General Motors might be developing an electric Corvette, you may be even more disturbed by this news out of Ohio. According to The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio State University’s EcoCar 3 team is in the process of converting a brand new 2016 Chevy Camaro 2LT into a plug-in hybrid.
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“Having an entirely silent Camaro is going to be pretty cool actually,” said M.J. Yatsko, the 23-year-old EcoCar team leader and a second-year mechanical engineering grad student, who doesn’t seem too worried that his work may be a sign of the end times. “When people see our Camaro, they’re going to be excited about it.”
The Camaro will be equipped with a nearly noiseless electric motor with a range of 40 miles. As a hybrid, the vehicle will also be able to switch to a gasoline engine that’s fueled by E-85, a mixture that is 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline.
OSU is competing against 16 other universities across the US and Canada, with teams from each school working to greatly improve the fuel efficiency of a brand new Camaro, while still retaining the classic car’s trademark sportiness. The students at Ohio State are hoping that once they’re done, their Camaro will achieve 60 mpg (a marked improvement over the car’s current 28 mpg highway rating).
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“We’re essentially trying to build a Volt in three months with a volunteer workforce,” said professor Shawn Midlam-Mohler, the team’s facult advisor. “That’s pretty aggressive.”
Winners of the competition will be announced in June of 2016.
News Source: The Columbus Dispatch
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