The University of Waterloo Alternative Fuels Team, commonly known as UWAFT, recieved a substantial financial contribution from General Motors towards the construction of their next competition vehicle.
On Thursday, September 22, GM representative Dan Mepham presented the UWAFT team with a cheque for $25,000 as seed money for the EcoCAR 2 challenge, the sequel to the EcoCAR The Next Challenge Competition. This new competition follows the original competition started by General Motors, the U.S. Department of Energy, and other government and industry leaders, will start with an initial concept and design phase where the team will prove that they understand the concepts and requirements before they get the new 2013 Malibu to start modifying.
This initial $25,000 will be matched by the University to support the team in the competition. The team’s next task is to decide what type of fuel they want to use for the new car, as their previous two vehicles both utilized hydrogen fuel cells, after which they can start designing the new vehicle. Following the ceremonial cheque presentation and a brief question period, attendees of the event were given the opportunity to take the original EcoCAR for a testdrive, showing off its design and technology to the public.
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