News
Thousands of the world’s best young engineers are on track for Silverstone as record numbers of teams registered for Formula Student 2014.
The competition – run by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers - is the world’s largest student motorsport event and challenges student engineers to design, build and race a single seat racing car in one year.
Dozens of Formula Student alumni have progressed to Formula 1, and hundreds more are now working at the world’s largest automotive firms helping to design and engineer the cars of tomorrow.
Of the 178 teams to apply, 114 have successfully claimed a place for the competition at the home of British motorsport Formula Student on 9-13 July. Ross Brawn, former Team Principal of the MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team, is also returning as competition patron.
Lining up at Silverstone will be 61 teams from UK universities – up from 47 last year - and 53 electric vehicles, a 120% increase on 2013.
For the first time, teams from China, Ecuador and Jordan will compete, as well as teams from as far afield as South Africa, Pakistan, Australia, Canada and India.
Formula Student 2014 winners ETH Zurich, from Switzerland, as well as the top UK car last year, Huddersfield University (who came 15th) are also returning to compete in July.
Jon Hilton, Chairman of Formula Student said:
“It’s brilliant to see so many teams from around the world applying for Formula Student 2014 – it shows that the competition remains one of the most important learning experiences for those aiming to combine their studies with exposure to a real world engineering project.
“We’re also delighted to see teams from four new countries registering to take part. Formula Student is a global competition and we want to continue to encourage brilliant young engineers from across the globe to improve their practical skills and get ready to play their part in the vibrant worldwide engineering community.
“The innovation demonstrated by these young engineers gets more impressive every time and I’m extremely excited to see what they have in store for us this year.”
Formula Student will take place in Silverstone on 9-13 July. The cars are judged on their speed, acceleration, handling and endurance in a series of time-trial races, while the teams are tested on their design, costing and business presentation skills. There will also be a whole series of awards up for grabs, including Craig Dawson Most Valuable Team Member Award in memory of former Formula Student competitor, faculty advisor and commentator Craig Dawson who sadly died three and a half years ago.
In June, the nationwide Formula Student Diesel Eco Challenge – run with Formula Student Partners Robert Bosch UK – will take place for a second time, and competition sponsors MIRA will hold a test day at their world-renowned testing ground for teams to iron out any last minute issues.
For the full preliminary line-up, click here.
- Formula Student partners are Jaguar Land Rover, Robert Bosch UK, GKN, SAE and Shell. Our sponsors include PTC, Concurrent Engineering, ATL Fuel Cells, MIRA, Airpass, Royal Automobile Club, MIA, Stingray RV, EIM, Aford Awards and Marketpoint.