Help the Formula SAE International Student Chapter!

Who are we and what do we do?

During the 2023-24 school year, The SAE International Formula team will design and build an advanced high-performance race car as well as run all aspects of business for the team and travel to four competitions around North America. They will represent Iowa State at the competitions by producing competitive vehicles and placing well against 150 of the top schools from around the world. Students must design and manufacture but are also exposed to budgeting, communication, project, and resource management skills. As one of the largest and fastest-growing organizations on campus, sponsorship is critical to not only meet the minimum needs of the teams but also to support competition at the highest level. With your generous support, we will be able to produce and compete with a car that will make the team, school, and sponsors proud. Also, funding these projects directly supports the journey of these students as they start their careers. Iowa State SAE International (Society of Automotive Engineers) allows students to design, build, and test the performance of a real vehicle and compete with other students from around the globe. The SAE International Student Chapter is one of the largest Engineering Student Organizations at Iowa State University, consisting of 5 student teams with over 250 students that design, build, and participate in competitions domestically and internationally. Formula SAE International is also heavily involved in local community outreach events aimed at educating youth in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (S.T.E.M.) as well as business. Since August of this school year, the team has participated in 23 community outreach events to help inspire the youth of our community to always strive for the best in education and in personal life development. 

What is Formula SAE?

Iowa State’s Formula Team challenges students to conceive, design, fabricate, and compete with formula-style race cars.

The students are challenged to build a vehicle that can achieve high cornering speeds but also have bulletproof reliability. They focus on powertrain performance, vehicle dynamics, suspension tuning, aerodynamics, and business aspects of the team.

Iowa State has built 28 vehicles for this competition and has gained recognition for its top-performing cars.

The Formula Team is also undertaking a new format to power their vehicle. 2023-24 will be the last competition season for the internal combustion car. The following year with CR-29 the team plans to make large technical advances moving to an all-electric car. That takes a lot of R&D so the team has created a whole new sector of the team specifically to design, build, and test the new all-electric powertrain before integration into next year's car.

What does the main competition look like?

The main competition the team goes to is Formula SAE Michigan. This event is held in May and there will be about 120 teams from around the world representing some of the best engineering schools. The teams are judged by top engineers and executives from companies such as General Motors, Ford, Tesla, Stelantis, Rivian, and Magna International just to name a few. The team wants to take as many members as possible so they all get the experience of the competition as well as being able to network for their future careers with these top companies and your contribution will help the team achieve that.

EVENTS AT COMPETITION

TECHNICAL INSPECTION

This is the first event the team participates in and it is a static event. The team takes the car through multiple different inspection categories. The goal of the team every year is to not only make a team and vehicle that is high-performance but also safe for anyone to drive. Safety is a large aspect of our competition and this inspection makes sure of that. Every year FSAE releases a rule book that every team has to abide by and there is no lie when we say every rule and word in the rule book is tested in this inspection. Once the team makes it fully through the intersection it is a SAE-certified legal and safe racecar which in and of itself is a large achievement that every team member is proud to have accomplished.

ACCELERATION

Acceleration is exactly what it sounds like its an event that tests the team's acceleration over a 75-meter straight track. There are 2 drivers in this event and each has just a few runs to set the fastest time across the finish line starting for a standstill at the starting line.

AUTOCROSS

Autocross is a common test of both the car and the driver's ability in the automotive world. It mainly tests the car's maneuverability and handling over a tight course with a series of straights and turns. There are also two drivers for this event with each doing two laps. This track is usually a mile or two long. Not only does the team get scored on their performance in this event, it also is qualifying for the endurance event.

BUSINESS

A lot of people think that Formula SAE is a strictly engineering competition, but that couldn't be further from the truth. The team is also tested and scored on the aspect of running the team like a fully operational business. This includes everything from budgeting, outreach events, social media, supply chain, and a five-year business plan with projections for the team. The team is also tasked each year with a prompt that challenges every aspect of a business and they then have to make a presentation answering how the business will tackle the problem and thrive in the given environment. This is usually judged by the executives of top companies talked about earlier and is an integral part of a winning team.

SKID-PAD

Skid-Pad is a very simple event where the team is tasked to go around a figure-8 track configuration in the shortest amount of time. this is a true test of cornering ability and shows how many G-forces the car can handle.

BRAKING

This event is one of the most straightforward! The team starts at a standstill, accelerates the car and then once they cross the start line, the team tests the braking ability of the car and is tasked with locking up all four wheels at once and not stalling the car. If completed successfully, the team gets to move on.

ENDURANCE

Endurance is by far the largest test of the team's ability. It mixes most of the other events into one! The team is tasked with making the car survive a grueling 22-KM race split between two drives. Most teams do not finish this event, as most break down and fail to cross the finish line. This event tests the reliability of the car, and, if finished, can score the team the most amount of points at the competition. The feeling of seeing the car cross the finish line of this event is even more rewarding than any amount of points that can be scored!

DESIGN

Design is a static event where instead of testing the car's ability, the students who worked so hard on the car are tested on their design by top engineers from top companies from around the world. They are asked to talk about the design of the different components of the vehicle and then critically question why it was designed this way. They have to defend why the part was made the way it was made, why it helps the car, and then explain the engineering and manufacturing aspects of the part. This event is one of the best events for students to learn about world engineering and learn how to effectively communicate their ideas and designs to other people in a professional manner. If the team does a good enough job, they then move on to design finals where the top 10 designs are given in front of all the competition.

Cars From Previous Years

Social Media

Want to know more about the teams? Feel free to check them out on social media! 

Formula: https://m.facebook.com/CycloneRacingUS/ | @CycloneRacingUS on Instagram and Twitter | linked-in: Cyclone Racing | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwibqZ044Ac