European university wins global Ford Model T competition

A century after the Model T put the world on wheels, the Ford Motor Company has announced the winners of a four-month competition that challenged five universities from around the world to create a revolutionary vehicle concept for modern times.

The only European university to take part - the Ika (Institute of Automotive Engineering Aachen) at Aachen University, Germany - has won the challenge and $25,000 (€19,600) in scholarship funds for delivering an innovative concept that embodied the spirit of the Model T and best met the criteria of the challenge.

The core team at the Ika, consisting of eight students and engineers, developed a concept that had to meet certain requirements set by Ford: the vehicle had to be simple, lightweight, practical, and durable, offering a range of at least 200 km and be able to accommodate a minimum of two passengers.

Perhaps the most challenging criterion was that the base target price should not exceed $7,000 (€5,500).

The result is a modular vehicle concept - the Model T for the year 2015 - with an estimated base price of $6,780 (€5,300).

The base model is a mini-size pick-up version of a three-seater, where the passengers are accommodated next to each other. With the driver's seat centrally located, there are no extra costs for right-hand drive or left-hand drive versions.

Additional weight and costs can also be saved by making only the driver's seat adjustable. The basic vehicle weighs just 800 kg without occupants. That weight increases if the petrol engine is combined with an electric motor to become a hybrid vehicle, or when it is converted into a pure battery electric-driven car.

The simple flexibility of the frame structure allows for new derivatives to be developed without high investment.

Aachen University and the Ika work closely with Ford Research Centre in Aachen, the only Ford research facility outside the US.

The Ford jury named Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia, as runner-up