Mississippi State Shows Subaru How to Build 100 MPG BRZ [Video]

Fuji Heavy Industries, maker of Subaru automobiles, needs to take a lesson from Mississippi State University. They have shown the Japanese automaker how to build a 100 mpg BRZ sports coupe using hybrid technology. Students and faculty unveiled a BRZ hybrid the team designed through their “Car of the Future” program. They brought the sports car to the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress in Detroit earlier this month. How did they do it?

The BRZ has been under development for more than two years at MSU and it’s finally completed. A team of faculty, students and alumni worked to build this lightweight, green hybrid BRZ that offers over 100 miles of driving using the equivalent of a single gallon of gasoline.

MSU converts BRZ to hybrid technology

The Subaru BRZ sports coupe gets 25/34 city/highway mpg from the factory. Here’s how the team accomplished 100 mpg with the rear-drive sports car. They significantly reduced weight in the BRZ. It features a cast magnesium sub-frame that reduces mass by 40 percent compared to the stock sub-frame. It supports a dual-motor electric axle that drives the rear wheels.

BRZ delivers efficiency and performance

A lightweight battery pack incorporating improved cell cooling through the use of proprietary cooling technologies that powers the electric motors. The BRZ also gets rear wheel torque vectoring for added traction and improved stability to hug tight curves. MSU says the BRZ achieves what no other car on the market can offer “at the same level of superior efficiency, sporty handling and outstanding performance.”

MSU’s Subaru BRZ hybrid was given a special paint job by Clinton Body Shop who provided custom exterior colors by House of Kolor. The sports coupe gets a Kandy burgundy over a black base, with ice white pearl stripes over a white base. The car also gets several layers clear coat for optimum shine.

MSU gets a generous gift

MSU doesn’t reveal the cost associated with building the 100 mpg Subaru BRZ Hybrid, but they received a “generous gift” from MSU alumnus James Worth Bagley to the MSU Foundation. Could Subaru ever bring a vehicle like this to production? Subaru is working on hybrid technology for their entire lineup now. Their Electrified Power Unit Research & Experiment Department is working on designing a single concept for development of all models, adaptable to electrification in the future.

With their new Global Platform seen on the 2017 Subaru Impreza, all Subaru vehicles, including the BRZ sports coupe, will be able to be designed with gasoline engines, hybrid powertrains, plug-in hybrids, electric cars, and other types of alternative power units. Subaru engineers should get their hands on this BRZ hybrid from MSU and do some reverse engineering.

Watch the MSU BRZ video below.

Source: MSU

Image source: MSU