RIT Formula Racing Team Competes Next Week

From the obvious to the subtle, it’s evident that Rochester Institute of Technology’s Formula SAE racecar is the product of an elite group of collegiate designers.

There’s the RIT custom-made fuel-injection system, the six-speed manual transmission and the modified motorcycle engine. Then there are the special touches such as a custom-stitched headrest featuring the RIT logo and a three-piece handmade body with its metallic-black, gray and white color scheme. Every component on this year’s newly designed, student-built racer is the specialized work of RIT’s team of young engineering majors in the Kate Gleason College of Engineering.

Improvements over last year’s model include enhancements to the chassis, which is made of one-inch diameter steel tubing, the advanced suspension system and the car’s wheels and tires, says Justin LaChausse, a fourth-year mechanical engineering major and the team’s project manager.

RIT’s 25-member team spent frequent all-nighters building the car—leading up to the first competition of the year, the Formula SAE, May 19 to 23 at the Pontiac Silverdome outside Detroit. RIT will be among 140 teams from inside and outside the U.S. competing in solo and group performance trials, including a 14-mile endurance race, and for top design. LaChausse says the speedster reaches a top speed of 110 miles per hour.

Formula competitions are sponsored by the Society of Automotive Engineers, DaimlerChrysler Corp., Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. RIT has competed every year since 1993.

Note: For more information, visit: http://www.rit.edu/~formula/

http://www.sae.org/students/formula.htm