Seattle Times, Travel & Outdoors:
Tuesday, October 02, 1990
Marla Williams
Ten years ago, when then-President Reagan ordered the solar panels on the roof of the White House dismantled, it seemed America officially abandoned its search for alternative energy sources.
But the Persian Gulf crisis has once again made this nation painfully aware of its dependence on imported oil.
So it was that the arrival of Western Washington University's ultra-sleek, solar-powered Viking XX race car in downtown Seattle yesterday signaled a renewed awareness of the nation's energy problems.
"Whatever it takes, I think they ought to fund its development," said Donna Rose of Oak Harbor, who viewed the solar vehicle in the Seattle Center House. "It sure beats going to war for oil."
The Viking XX, a futuristic conveyance that looks more like a huge silver bullet with a slanted roof attached and less like a car, was developed and designed by students at the Bellingham university.
Next month, the students plan to test Viking XX against 40 other solar-powered cars in the trans-continental 1990 World Solar Challenge in Australia.
The Viking XX placed second overall in the GM Sunrayce USA in July, earning General Motors sponsorship in the upcoming international challenge.
After display at the Seattle Center, the racer was moved to the Boeing High Technology Center in Bellevue for a demonstration.
Work on the Viking XX began two years ago. And up until a few weeks ago, generating solar power in the partly cloudy Pacific Northwest was proving easier than generating enthusiasm and financial support.
"There is nothing that changes the public's mind like high-priced gasoline or long lines at the pump," said Michael Seal, faculty adviser for the Viking XX project.
Steve Inge, the man responsible for securing money for Viking XX, said financial contributions from private individuals have increased substantially since August, when Iraq's Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait.
"We're receiving mainly small gifts, $100 to $500, from private individuals," Inge said.
Corporate contributors have yet to follow suit, however. And that is a sure sign that solar power has by no means regained the enormous attention commanded during the Arab oil embargo of the 1970s.
Inge believes that interest in solar power and other alternative-energy development continues to lag because so many other problems are pressing the nation.
"If this vehicle could end child abuse or the disintegration of the family, I could raise all kinds of money for its development," Inge said.
"But as long as gas still flows out of the pump and drugs are sold on the street corner, corporations and government are going to put their time and money into solving social ills."
Although a tougher clean-air act is having trouble on Capitol Hill, states are getting intense pressure from the federal government to clean up their smoggy air.
And California, which has long had the nation's toughest air-quality rules and worst pollution, has just adopted a tough new set of regulations that force auto manufacturers to develop new, cleaner technology.
Under the new rules, auto manufacturers have until 1994 to introduce models that emit no more than half the hydrocarbons currently allowed. By 1998, 2 percent of the vehicles sold in the state would have to meet zero emissions standards, meaning they would have to be solar or electric cars.
"Our next project will be a car that combines solar and electric power with an internal combustion engine fueled by natural gas," said faculty adviser Seal.
"At Western, we have already developed a natural-gas engine that is being used to power public buses in New York City, and I don't think a car such as we plan to build is far off from the showrooms."
With money and support from the auto industry, Seal estimates a prototype car could be developed within five years.
"Such a car could free us from Middle East oil politics, reduce global warming and air pollution," he said.
Copyright (c) 1990 Seattle Times Company, All Rights Reserved.
