Bright Automotive pokes Chevy Volt with new 100 mpg vehicle

Bright Automotive just revealed a new concept vehicle it’s calling the IDEA, and it looks like a minivan with a swishy rear end. The real goal behind IDEA is to cut costs for those managing fleets of vehicles like the government and larger companies. Bright boasts that the IDEA will achieve 100 mpg and provide $6,000 in savings every year.

The Bright IDEA appeals to a different segment of customers, but its value proposition is driving in the same direction as the Chevy Volt. Plus, the underlying technology could certainly be adapted to a form factor more closely resembling a car. Chevy Volt’s biggest advantage in that regard is its head start.

Rocky Mountain Institute, a nonprofit consulting company thought of the IDEA and spun Bright Automotive off as a new company. IDEA is still just a concept, and it will need to raise $400 million in funds before it can commit to its 2012 rollout. Interestingly, Bright Automotive is run by the former “. . . chief of General Motors’ EV-1 project,” according to Earth2Tech.

Like the Chevy Volt, the IDEA will begin each journey using only electric energy from an onboard battery, and extend its range by tapping into a gasoline engine that will recharge the batteries on the fly. Bright is focusing more on efficiencies gained by reducing weight, and it will only be capable of 30 miles on pure electricity compared to the Chevy Volt’s 40.

Bright claims reductions in carbon footprints, lower costs in energy because less gasoline is necessary, and performance that will match a traditional combustion engine. It remains to be seen how aggressively GM will pursue fleet sales with the Chevy Volt, and whether or not it has plans to build other models using the plug-in electric hybrid technology set.

IDEA certainly has merit as a concept, and it’s good to see start-ups pushing toward big business.