previously on the road to houston... three-time winnersteam alã©rion supermileage from quebec overcamea shattered engine... ...and the harsh canadian winter. that's a big problem for us becausewe can't test the car outside. in greensboro, north carolina,the dudley panthers have found driving their vehicles a challenge. oh my goodness! but with advice from the pros,they've turned things around.
that's what i want, right there. - you got it, yeah!- come on! in brazil, team e3 survivedsheared crankshafts, warring team captainsand torrential flooding. unbelievable, unbelievable. with texas in sight, there's noturning back for these three teams... ...on the road to houston. shell eco-marathon americas 2013is gearing up, and team alã©rion supermileagefrom canada
is one of the first to arrive. the team have wonthe gasoline prototype category three years in a row, and their record of 3,168 mpg,from 2011, still stands. but their winning streak was brokenlast year when their engine wouldn't start and the car never crossedthe start line. this year, the pressure is onto win back their title. we want to be the first to pass the inspection
and be the first on the tracks. team e3 from brazilfinished 7th last year in the same gasoline prototypecategory as the canadians. this year, they've builta completely new car from scratch, and are aiming for 3,000 mpgand a top 3 finish. their ambitious new designincludes electronic fuel injection which could improve mileageby up to 30 per cent. i'll just have to finish something- the steering system. then i'll have to do all the mappingof the fuel injection.
with the fuel injectionwe can go further. if they don't manage to map the engine for the fuel injection, their car will actually usemore gas. but it means working throughthe night to be ready in time. something very big in our project,we spent a lot of money, we put a lot of effort in this.it's time to make it work. the dudley panthers leavetheir arrival in texas until the last minute,and for many of them, it's the first time they've flown.
before the flight,i was very, very scared. they first competed in houstontwo years ago but both their previous attemptsended in failure. this year, it's all aboutcrossing the finish line. the panthers have broughttwo cars to texas: an urban concept and a prototype, both inthe battery electric category. built entirely from junk,it's an ambitious undertaking. we've got little problems herenot really, really bad;
some little things i'm going to isolate. it's vital both cars passtechnical inspection, otherwise they will not be allowedto compete. technical inspection isa series of safety checks that each vehicle must completesuccessfully. and universitã© laval is ready for it. we have some fine tuning to do thisevening, but everything will be fine. the team passes all the safety checks but their biggest concernis the weigh-in.
the average car weighs 120 pounds, but team alã©rion supermileage needa far lighter car than that if they are going to win. we put in a lot of componentsthat are a lot more reliable but are a little bit - slightly - heavier. ninety-seven pounds. we'rea little bit heavier than last year, but this is not a problem. incredibly, at 97 pounds, the carstill weighs less than their driver. and as one of the first teamsto pass technical inspection,
they can now test their caron the track. for the dudley panthers,it's a different story. still worried abouttheir prototype's brakes, they head to technical inspection. i just really, really hopeit's going to pass because we've worked really hard. at first, everything goes well. you passed it! you're good. but then it's the brake test.
let go. - alright- ready? the brakes must hold the caron the slope. you're going to have to squeeze, man. with both hands! - let's try the rear- alright - yes, it's not working. alright?- ok they fail. it's back to base to fix the brakes.
they didn't pass. that's not good. outside on the track,team alã©rion supermileage are ready fortheir first practice run. last year laval didn't even getover the start line. another failure is unthinkable. it's a huge relief.the engine starts first time. that's cool. it works.finally it works. team e3 from brazilhave been struggling with their new fuel injection system,
and the clock is ticking. we have half an hour to passthe technical inspection otherwise we won't run tonight,we won't run tomorrow morning. with time almost up, they decideto enter technical inspection without theirhigh-tech fuel injection system. we always leave things to doin the last minute. technical inspection closes at 5.30and it's like 5.30 right now. they make it, but yet againthere are problems. the starter isn't working.i don't know why.
chief engineer pimba has just minutesto fix the starter motor. if he can't, they'll lose another dayon the track. thank god! those are the stickerswe've been waiting for. technical inspection approved.safety inspection approved. we're good to go. on track, canadian driver audreyis going well. like many of the teams,laval has a run/kill strategy to help conserve fuel.
this involves killing the engine... ...and allowing the car to glideso as not to burn valuable fuel. but it's a tactic that has risks. starting and stopping the enginedrains power... ...and this battery has run flat. the team thinks it's a simple caseof changing it. i am putting in the best batterywe have, so hopefully it does well. but even with a new battery,the car won't start, and no-one knows why.
i worry a little bit about the factthat i don't know exactly what's happening with our engineright now. for the moment, i've no clue. the team works long into the night totry and find the problem and fix it. next morning,after only three hours' sleep, the exhausted canadians get in linefor the first run of the day. it turns out the battery terminalhad shaken loose, and damaged the engine timing. we stayed up till 4 in the morningto get the car ready.
it's going to pay off, for sure. now on the track, vehicle 77from laval university. with their problem seeminglybehind them, the team is flying,and with 10 laps complete, audrey pulls intothe measuring station. everything went well,but we have to have the numbers. the amount of fuel used overthe 10 laps is measured, and miles per gallon computed. our best score of 2 years agoused 8 millilitres of fuel.
we just used 6 point something. the team have achievedan astonishing 3,000 mpg, a new shell eco-marathon americasrecord. that's awesome! the brazilian team is also usinga run/kill strategy. last year, they achieved 969 mpg to take 7th place withtheir gasoline prototype. this year, they want a top 3 finish but without their new fuel injection system
that seems unlikely. we were hoping for good mileage,not the best but... our first run, so we could feelthe car and see how it's going. with all the problems they've had, they just want to getthe full 10 laps under their belt. driver cristina crossesthe start line... ...and already there's trouble. the rear body panel isdangerously loose. carry on, keep going!
despite the rear panel falling off,the engine seems to be running well. but when she gets tothe third corner, disaster strikes. the run/kill strategy has failed.the engine has stalled, leaving cristina on the trackas other competitors pass her. back at the finish line, the team waits anxiously. the car is nowhere to be seen. there's a collision, but due to thesafety rules, cristina is unhurt. people just told me that some otherteam hit us. that's not good at all. the car might have been damagedin ways we can't repair.
as the car finally returnson the tow truck, their worst fears are realised. it's over. the front left wheel has been shearedoff during the collision. suddenly a car came really fast fromthe left and smashed our wheel. the first left, yes,that's really disappointing. the team is devastated. after months of hard workand sleepless nights, it looks like their competition is over.
after two days of working ontheir prototype, james b. dudley highhave fixed the brakes and passed tech inspection. now, with new driver hahnbehind the wheel, they're finally on the track. the guys have worked really hardover the weekend, trying to get out here, - and all the work they've done backat school - just for this moment. in their two previous yearsof competing,
this team has never completedthe course. good luck! our goal right now is actuallyto finish the 10 laps. we're nervous right about now.my baby's beginning to walk. but he's right on schedule, he's at 2 minutes and 29 seconds, so he's actually runninga really good time. the car is doing well, pacinga good 15 miles per hour average. it's exciting. it's good. lap 6, man, lap 6.
feeling very confident. but they're not there yet. lap 8, man. just two more laps to go, and theywill have made dudley high history. - nine, nine- that's nine. they've done it. yes! yes! first time ever finishing 10 laps, and not only did he finish itconsistently,
he finished it in style. that's what i'm talking about! - good job guys!- ok! meanwhile, the panthers' other car,the urban concept, is still struggling to passtech inspection. team e3 from brazil haven't given up and think they've found a wayto re-attach the wheel that was ripped off during theon-track collision. they're off shopping to buynew materials to repair the car.
they work through the night to repairboth the steering system and weld the broken piecesback together, improvising with the few toolsthey have at hand. it's the last day of competition, and, finally, the dudley panthers'urban concept car is ready to race. but they're still having problems. the light is not working. we're trying to get the radioworking before we get started. but we've got to positionourselves now.
with time running out, they must get to the start line. excited! i'm ready to go. a little nervous. you have the start line to go. and so their second car hits the track. it's vital the team are in constantcommunication with muzdalifa to give her feedbackon her lap times. she's not respondingto what i'm saying. race rules state she must run 10 laps within 24 minutes and 45 seconds.
it's probably a close onebecause if she's at 14 minutes now, she's got 5 laps,we need to do 24 minutes. if she doesn't speed up, the, uh... ...pick up the door! they're going to stop her. they're probably going to make herget off the track. we two were told to speak so loudthat she can understand us, she has to pick up the door. if she doesn't adjust the door soon,she'll be forced to retire.
we got it, yes! she's done it, but time's almost up. we need one more lapto finish the race. she's got to speed up. i think that basicallyshe'll finish about 25 or 24. she's made it - just. looking good! they might not have won,but for the dudley panthers, it's a huge achievement.
awesome! it's the last prototype run ofshell eco-marathon americas 2013 and against all the odds, team e3 from brazil have made it backon to the start line. everything's fine, you know, it wasa miracle. the guys did a great job. most of the teamswould have given up, but we didn't. but yet again, there are problemswith the engine. go, go! it keeps cutting out, and cristina limps across the start line.
in order to record a valid run, theteam needs to complete 10 full laps but the car is still struggling,and this now looks unlikely. the shell eco-marathon will closeat 2.15. after three laps, and the endof the session looming, the brazilians pull the caroff the track in a desperate attempt to getthe engine running consistently. step on it, step on it! the prototype starting cue for the third and final session will close in 15 minutes.
meanwhile, team alã©rion supermileageare back out on the track again and aiming to beat their own record. i hope we're going to get a good run.let's go! i think it will be our best car. if we can lower our fuel consumptiona few per cent, i'm pretty sure we can do it. time is running outfor the brazilians, as pimba struggles to resolvethe engine problem. the prototype queue is now closed.
all teams that are on the trackare the final ones on the track. team e3 has failed to recorda single result in 2013. we were very unlucky.so many problems, so many issues we weren't expecting. it's disappointing. it's...it's just bad. next year the shell eco-marathon 2014is waiting for us. it's a very different storyfor the canadians. audrey is settingconsistent lap times.
she's right on time, so that's good. she crosses the line and is confidentthey've broken their record. for me, i have a good feelingbut we'll wait for the result. they used 6.9 millilitres of fuelin 2011, setting their all-americas recordof 3,168 miles per gallon. it's got to be better than 6.9,right? - yep- ok 5.8 on the nose. universitã© laval has smashedthe all-americas record
for a gasoline prototypewith an incredible 3,600 mpg. less than one and a half gallonsin this car would take you from houston, texas to the next shell eco-marathon eventin rotterdam, the netherlands. laval university withtheir vehicle number 77. after last year's disappointment,team alã©rion supermileage from quebec, canadahave put their demons to rest. they are crownedshell eco-marathon americas gasoline prototype champions 2013.
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