Patent ID: 6877786

Claim:
A thermally energy efficient vehicle comprising: a vehicle structure, wherein said vehicle structure includes generally interconnected structural members that form a frame for the vehicle and generally planar interconnected panels that define a shape of the vehicle, wherein a thermally efficient structural material is utilized for said structural members to reduce a thermal mass of said structural members; a low transmittance glass window positioned within window portions of said vehicle structure, wherein said low transmittance glass window increases a thermal resistance of the vehicle; an energy efficient insulator attached to an inside portion of said vehicle structure to increase a thermal resistance of the vehicle, the energy efficient insulator including a first wall surface and a second wall surface defining a gas-filled cavity, the gas-filled cavity extending substantially completely along the first and second wall surfaces; and an energy efficient thermal management system providing exterior thermal management for powertrain cooling within an engine compartment and interior thermal management for climate control within an occupant compartment for the vehicle, wherein said energy efficient thermal management system consumes less thermal energy as a result of the increased thermal resistance of the vehicle.