Automotive X Prize winner, Li-Ion Motors, splits $2.5M prize with losers

Three vehicles emerged as class winners at the Automotive X-Prize. One, the Li-Ion Motors Wave II, captured victory after a grueling 100-mile Combined Performance and Efficiency Test was completed. Five vehicles in the Alternative Side-by-Side Class competed in this tiebreaker event and, by less than two-tenths of a second, the Wave II emerged as the champ. Li-Ion Motors was presented with a $2.5 million award for winning its class, and the other four teams, those that competed in the tiebreaker but lost, received nothing. Or so we thought.

Now comes word that on the day of the tiebreaker event, four out of the five teams signed an agreement stating that the winning group would share the prize purse with the losers following an agreed-to formula. Automotive X-Prize spokeswoman, Carrie Fox, revealed to GreenWire that the teams had entered an agreement, stating:

They all helped each other out. They all realized in helping each other out that it made sense to split the purse. It really speaks to the camaraderie of the competition.

So, the losers walk away as winners. The German team of TW4XP walks out with $400,000, while Aptera and ZAP each pocket $200,000. The other team in the tiebreaker event, RaceAbout Association, did not sign the agreement and, therefore, walks away empty-handed. Hat tip to Neil!

[Source: Green Car Advisor]