Electric cars are great for the average errand around town, but theygenerally do not have enough stored energy to drive very far. To help solve this range problem, UC Davis students are designing and building an electric car that also runs on ethanol. The group envisions a car that will work in Los Angeles, whose poor air quality is driving electric car research. The UC Davis plan calls for electricity to power the car at least 60 miles at 60 mph. That would get the car across the smoggy L.A. basin without any emissions. After that, the ethanol engine would kick in with efficient mileage of at least 100 mpg (the energy equivalent of a gasoline-powered car getting 200 mpg). UC Davis is one of 30 U.S. and Canadian universities participating in this project, called the Ford Hybrid Electric Vehicle Challenge and sponsored by the Ford Motor Co., the U.S. Department of Energy and the Society of Automotive Engineers. Last year, the same UC Davis vehicle-design class set an American record for gasoline efficiency at 3,313 mpg and the world record for methanol fuel at 2,083 mpg with two supermileage cars they also designed and built.