If I were an automotive engineer (and I'm not just because they won't hire me, and believe me I've applied for a job) I would design the car even more radically different than the one in the picture....

If the vehicle does not lean into corners (which is difficult to design) then it should have two wheels in front for cornering stability. It should also have front-wheel steering and be front-wheel drive. I would probably design several versions, consisting of a benchmark, and subsequent variations on the core concept. I would design it with two seats, one behind the driver that can be folded down to make enough room for 2 suitcases. With two passengers, there would still be enough room for 3-4 grocery bags, or a couple fat briefcases. It would have extra safety features like roll bars, a crush zone, side-impact beams, airbags.

The benchmark model would have a conventional drive system, IC engine, rear-wheel drive. I would attempt to achieve motorcycle-like performance (55 mpg, excellent acceleration) with this benchmark design.

Modifications on the drive system would be substantial. There would be a diesel version, a methanol version, a compressed natural gas version, a hydrogen version - all with their specially converted IC engines and fuelling systems. There would also be electric versions.

For the EV design I would design electric motors to be fit *inside* each front wheel, just like the most recent prototype solar cars that competed in <a href=http://formulasun.org/index.htmlSunrayce 2001, and GM's <a href=http://www.edmunds.com/news/conceptcarspotlight/articles/48581/article.htmlAutonomy hydrogen fuel cell car. The drive system would be electrical, but the batteries would be charged by a small gas engine, which would kick in at high speeds with rear-wheel drive. Regenerative braking would be used. It would essentially be a hybrid car.

I wonder if regenerative breaking could be achieved easier using a pneumatic system... touch the brakes and it closes a valve to an air compressor. Turning the wheels compresses the air into a small pressure tank. Releasing the gas would launch the vehicle forward again. I also wonder if the energy could be stored in a metal spring, or a rubber band? You never know.