Isn't 100+ mpg a goal of the PHEV Prius?

I'm sure we'll be real lucky to see even anything close to 70 mpg by the average driver.

Depends on how much you want to "count" the plug-in part. The electricity isn't free in either cost or environmental terms, though it may be better on both respects than the ICE.

This prize is for 100mpg on gasoline only.

Since the generally accepted "Real World" average for the Prius is about 45mpg, I'd still call 70mpg a win. Insight owners might sneer, but your average driver will be miles ahead (pun intended).

I think that's for "real" 100+ mpg, pluging in to "fill your tank for 'free'" doesn't count.

The byproducts of electricity from the grid are factored in so there isn't a free ride.

When gas was $3 per gallon (remember back then?) the Prius drove fifteen miles for a dollar. When gas is $10 per gallon a 100-mpg car will drive ten miles for a dollar.

A 100-mpg car won't help much. We've got to get away from gas.

Hi Daniel!
The X Prize is for 100 miles per gallon gasoline equivalent. All fuels are allowed, including all electric. The energy consumption pump/plug to wheel, and CO2 emissions well to wheel of the competing cars will be calculated compared to a theoretical 100 mpg gasoline car.

In my estimation, this would probably favor electric cars rather than gasoline cars.

Thanks for the information, Fred. This changes my opinion of the prize.

However, I think that at the present time, it would be more useful to offer a prize for a low-cost, high-energy-density battery, than for an extremely efficient car.

Gas engines are very inefficient. Thus there is theoretically a lot of room for improvement, and a big prize could stimulate innovation. But as I said, with oil running out, it's a losing game.

On the EV front, however, the issues are different: Electric motors are very efficient. So to improve the efficiency of an electric car means making the car lighter and reducing drag from wind and rolling resistance. But these things are already very highly developed. EVs in the 100-mile range can be easily built today, and the 200-mile range is achievable, but at a greater cost than most people are willing to pay. So what's really needed, and what a big prize might do something to stimulate, is an energy storage system that could make EVs the substitute for today's family cars.

The prize should be awarded for a commercializable battery technology capable of storing X number of KWH in Y amount of weight, capable of being recharged in Z minutes and costing W dollars per KWH of storage capacity.