100 MPG Plus: Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE Contender Hopes to Set New World Record for Fuel Economy in Drive From Canada to Oregon

Avion, the Lightweight Sports Car From Bellingham, WA, Holds Guinness World Record of 103.7 MPG

On Saturday, October 11, Craig Henderson will attempt to set a new world record in fuel economy when he drives his lightweight and aerodynamic automobile -- the Avion -- from the Canadian border to the Oregon border.

Henderson, a native of Bellingham, WA, completed the first Avion prototype in 1984 and drove into the Guinness Book of World Records in 1986 after a border-to-border trip that averaged 103.7 miles per gallon. In that record-setting trip, he drove along the West Coast from Mexico to Canada. This time, he plans to start at the Canadian border on the morning of October 11 and end at the Oregon border later that afternoon, stopping in Vancouver and Seattle along the way.

Henderson is a contender in the $10 million Progressive Insurance Automotive X PRIZE. He is among more than 120 teams from 28 states and 17 countries who signed a letter of intent to compete for their share of a $10 million prize purse, which will be awarded to those that can design and build production-capable, 100 MPGe (miles per gallon energy equivalent) vehicles that people will want to buy and that meet market needs for price, size, capability, safety and performance.

Once registration closes at the end of this year, and the field of competition is in place, qualified competitors will begin preparing for a rigorous cross country stage race that will combine speed, distance, urban driving and overall performance. The race is set to kick off in New York City in September 2009, and will continue in up to nine other major markets throughout the U.S. Progressive Automotive X PRIZE organizers are in discussions with city and state officials in Portland and Seattle with the hope of bringing a stage of the race to the Pacific Northwest in 2010.

Since setting his first world record in 1986, Henderson and his co-designer Bill Green, a professor at Virginia Tech University, have found ways to manufacture their fuel-efficient cars -- which run on diesel gasoline -- in limited production, using standard engine parts and drive-trains that are innovative only when teamed with the lightweight, aerodynamic Avion chassis and body.

"The Avion is fun to drive, and it gets great mileage," says Henderson with understated pride. "Our test car has achieved 80 mpg at 70 mph, and we've reached 114 mpg at 55 mph driving on public roads from Eugene to Portland, Oregon. That's pretty amazing, especially considering we designed it over twenty years ago."

The Avion is among six Washington state teams who hope to win the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE. Other teams from the Pacific Northwest who have signed letters of intent to compete include Western Washington University of Bellingham, WA; Commuter Cars of Spokane, WA; and Kinetic Vehicles of Creswell, OR. Additional competitors include India's Tata Motors, TTW of Turin, Italy, Tesla Motors of San Carlos, CA and Cornell University of Ithaca, NY.

About the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE Competition:

The goal of the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE is to inspire a new generation of viable, super fuel-efficient vehicles that offer more consumer choices. Ten million dollars in prizes will be awarded to the teams that win a stage race for clean, production-capable vehicles that exceed 100 MPGe.

The Progressive Automotive X PRIZE will place a major focus on affordability, safety, and the environment. It is about developing real, production-capable cars that consumers want to buy, not science projects or concept cars. This progress is needed because today's oil consumption is unsustainable and because automotive emissions significantly contribute to global warming and climate change.

For more information about the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE, please visit www.progressiveautoxprize.org or email progressiveautopress@xprize.org.