Look at this thing.  It looks like something Doc Brown would drive in “Back to the Future,” doesn’t it?  Or that Woody Allen would steal in “Sleeper”?

It’s the Aptera Typ-1, a prototype three-wheeled, two seater road vehicle that the company claims can get 300mpg in its hybrid version (there’s also an electric version which can go 120 miles on a charge).  For $500 you can reserve one for when they start rolling them out in 2009.

Aptera, which apparently is Greek for “wingless flight,” is a company of a dozen employees based north of San Diego California.  Not only do they intend to sell these babies for “under $30,000,” they also intend to enter the car in the Automotive X-Prize competition.  You might remember the X-Prize, which awarded $10 Million to Burt Rutan for his first private manned space flight.  The Automotive X-Prize, funded by the same group, promises $10 Million to the competitor that can create a car that is mass-produceable and gets at least 100 mpg.

Although it looks like a pretty wide load, the Aptera folks claim that is will fit in a standard parking space.  Still, most parking spaces these days are that frustratingly narrow “compact” deal, so better to park on the street, I’m guessing.

I think I’ll hold onto my $500 and wait to see how the first batch of these performs on the road, but then I might be tempted, just to see the jaws drop when I pull it into my driveway.

Click on the video to see the darn thing in action: