Behold the car of the future, a three-wheeled single-seat vehicle using special fuel vapor technology that its maker says gets 92 miles per gallon. Don't let that high mileage fool you, though — this speedster still zips from zero to 60 in five seconds. Called the alé, it can achieve that speed and efficiency by literally running on vapor. Conventional cars mix up air and gasoline at a ratio of 14.7:1. That's mostly air, indeed, but the alé's design takes that a step further, mixing that ratio up to 20:1 of air to gasoline, making it a lot more efficient.

It uses a turbocharged Honda engine that cranks out 180-hp, but the car's relatively light 1400-lb.weight makes that power go a long way. Even though it runs on regular gasoline, its lean fuel mixture reduces CO2 emissions by 30%. With just a prototype built so far, the alé's creators are looking for investors, and plan to enter the vehicle in the Automotive X-Prize competition for most fuel-efficient production vehicle. If the car can perform up to its boasted specs, the internal combustion engine may have a future after all. — Charlie White

Fuel Vapor Technologies, via Born Rich