A team of students from the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands have entered their names into the Guinness Book of Records thanks to a fuel cell car they created. Dubbed Eco-Runner XIII, it covered a record distance on a single tank of hydrogen gas and was recognized as the world’s most fuel-efficient vehicle of its kind.
The prototype was designed with airflow, utmost compactness and weight conservation in mind. It was made nearly completely out of carbon fiber. The team never published any detailed specifications, though.
The record-breaking run took place at a test track in Immendingen, Germany, and lasted 71 and a half hours. A team of eleven drivers replaced each other every 2 hours. In the end, the Eco-Runner XIII was able to cover 2,488.45 kilometers (1,546.25 miles) on a single tank of hydrogen storing no more than 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of the gas. The average speed was 45 km/h (28 mph).
The previous record in the same category was 2,056 km, or 1,277 miles.
The Roman number eight in the model name refers to the number of prototypes built. Students of the Delft university keep building Eco-Runner models since 2005, making sure to try and improve upon the last year’s design every time they do so.