Clean Green Cars: HP2G acrimoniously drops out of Auto X Prize

HP2G acrimoniously drops out of Auto X Prize

January was a simpler time for the relationship between Doug Pelmear/Horse Power Sales (makers of the HP2G engine that was in the Mustang we saw in Detroit a few months ago) and the Automotive X Prize. Back then, the two were happy neighbors in the NAIAS basement (the smelly, smelly basement). No longer.

Yesterday, Horse Power Sales issued a statement (read it after the jump) that said they had “officially withdrawn their team and their 1987 Mustang, powered by the revolutionary, 110MPG, V-8, HP2g engine, from the upcoming Progressive Automotive X PRIZE Competition, effective June 4, 2009″ because the team “no longer feels it is in the company’s best interests to compete in or be associated with the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE competition.” Horse Power Sales also had a problem with a change of schedule, the change in prize purse amount, and what they saw as a conflict of interest in the way the rules were designed.

Here’s the thing, though, Horse Power Sales never made the jump from a Letter of Intent LOI) team to registered participant. Their name is not on the list of 111 official teams that the AXP released in April. We got some clarification from the Auto X Prize that says that Pelmear’s criticism of the rule process is baseless and that every LOI team had a chance to give advice. The AXP said that, “no teams were involved in decisions about rules and procedures. It’s very important to note that none of the teams are part of the judging panels for the upcoming Design Judging Phase of the competition nor were any teams part of a competitor evaluation process in the past” (read the rest of the AXP’s comments after the break).

Also, in this week’s announcement, Horse Power made no mention of their E85-powered Revenge Verde.

Gallery: Detroit 2009: E85 Mustang