REINVENTING THE WHEELS

The report proposes the 'Hypercar', an ultralight hybrid-electric vehicle that combines synthetic composite materials with hybrid propulsion to increase fuel efficiency by up to ten times compared to standard cars. It argues that the current 'Iron Age' approach of incremental steel-car refinements is obsolete and that the U.S. must transition to agile, low-capital manufacturing using moldable composites to maintain global competitiveness. The authors suggest that government mandates, such as California's ZEV requirements, and market-based 'feebates' can accelerate this transition, which would reduce oil dependency and environmental impact while fostering industrial renewal.

• The 'Hypercar' concept combines an ultralight strategy with hybrid-electric drive to potentially increase fuel efficiency tenfold. While hybrid-electric drive alone increases efficiency by a third to a half, and making a car ultralight alone approximately doubles it, the combination yields synergistic effects.
• Current automotive inefficiency is primarily caused by the use of steel, which makes cars heavy and requires oversized engines. An ultralight strategy using synthetic composites could reduce weight by 65-75%, aerodynamic drag by 60-80%, and tire/road energy loss by 65-80%.
• Hybrid-electric propulsion allows for a much smaller engine—roughly one tenth the current normal size—because the engine only handles average loads while batteries or 'superflywheels' handle peak loads and recover at least 70% of braking energy.
• Manufacturing with moldable composites offers significant economic advantages over steel, including a reduction in total tooling costs to between half and one tenth of steel costs. It allows for a 'monocoque' body and eliminates the costly and polluting painting process through laid-in-the-mold color.
• The authors argue that the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate is a critical driver for this technology. They suggest that ultralight hybrids should qualify as ZEVs because their tailpipe emissions could be lower than the emissions from power plants used to charge battery-electric cars.
• To overcome market failures where low gasoline prices discourage the purchase of efficient cars, the report proposes a 'feebate' system. This system would charge a fee for inefficient new cars to fund rebates for efficient ones, potentially providing $5,000 to $15,000 for an efficient new car if an old one is scrapped.
• The transition to Hypercars could significantly reduce U.S. oil imports from the Persian Gulf. The report claims that maintaining the rate of oil saving achieved between 1977 and 1985 would have eliminated the need for these imports since 1985.

APA

Lovins, A. B., & Lovins, L. H. (1995). REINVENTING THE WHEELS. RMI. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T94-29_ReinventWheels.pdf

Chicago

Lovins, Amory B., and L. Hunter Lovins. REINVENTING THE WHEELS. RMI, 1995. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T94-29_ReinventWheels.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Lovins |first1=Amory B. |last2=Lovins |first2=L. Hunter |title=REINVENTING THE WHEELS |publisher=RMI |date=January 1995 |url=https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T94-29_ReinventWheels.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lovins1995reinventing, author = {Lovins, Amory B. and Lovins, L. Hunter}, title = {{REINVENTING THE WHEELS}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {1995}, month = jan, url = {https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T94-29_ReinventWheels.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }