Supercharged: MIT students overhaul solar car

Lithium-ion batteries key to speeds up to 80 mph, and 200-mile range

BOSTON – In a dingy basement in Boston, some young scientists are putting the finish touches to Eleanor, one of the most advanced solar cars yet designed.

The technology-packed, environmentally friendly, solar racing car can hit speeds of 80 mph and drive up to 200 miles in the pitch dark

Eleanor is the invention of the solar vehicle team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, one of the universities now preparing for this year’s World Solar Challenge in Australia in October.

“Eleanor is definitely pushing the limits of what can be done with solar panels and solar power,” said Fiona Hughes, a senior at the school of mechanical engineering at MIT.

Eleanor, ironically named after the gas-guzzling 1967 Ford Mustang showcased in the movie “Gone in 60 Seconds,” has 20 square feet of silicon solar panels that put out 1,200 watts