For the past 3 years 17 college engineering teams have competed in the Challenge X: Crossover to Sustainable Mobility competition, which was sponsored by General Motors Corporation and the Department of Energy.

For the second year in a row, Mississippi State University students won first place.

The Challenge X Competition

The competition is broken down into three years:

Year 1

Begins with the judging and evaluation of each school’s modeling, simulation and testing of the vehicle’s powertrain and subsystems. Teams that master these key aspects will receive a donated GM Equinox after the June 2005 competition.

Years 2 and 3

Teams have to develop and integrate their advanced powertrain and subsystems into their donated GM Equinox. Teams will then be extensively judged on the vehicle’s energy use, emissions, utility, performance, engineering and K-12 Education Outreach.

The teams are provided with technical support and mentoring from GM and other sponsors, and they receive $10,000 in seed money. They can also receive up to $25,000 in additional production part, software and hardware from GM and other sponsors.

The Winners

The Mississippi team won first place with their through-the-road parallel hybrid electric vehicle. It had a 1.9 L GM direct injection turbo diesel engine fueled by biodiesel, which helped it achieve a 38% increase in fuel economy over the original test vehicle.

Here’s a picture of the team:

And the winning vehicle:

Second place went to the student team from the University of Wisconsin, and third place went to Ohio State University.

You can read the entire press release here.

This is a great way for a huge car company like GM to get involved with college students and the green movement. It shows the dedication that both parties have in protecting the environment and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.