Over the past 20 years, the Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE, has held an annual competition known as Formula SAE. It is an international design competition that challenges today's aspiring engineers. The goal is to design and build a formula-type racing car that is taken to Pontiac Michigan to compete with similar racecars from all over the world. Recent entrants include teams from Canada, Mexico, Korea, Japan, and Europe.

A Formula SAE car weighs 400 to 500 lbs with horsepower figures ranging from 60-80 hp. The 0-60 mph dash is in the low 4 second range. The lateral acceleration of a FSAE car can be as high as 1.4 g's with braking from 60 to 0 mph in about 115 ft. These performance numbers will leave most streetcars in the dust.

The students take the role of being part of a manufacturing firm that must produce 4 racecars a day. The car is to be designed for the weekend autocross racer. This car must have excellent handling, braking, and acceleration capabilities. However, sheer performance is not the only goal. The car must be affordable, easy to maintain, and reliable. Additionally, ergonomics and aesthetics must be addressed. Surely with enough money any car can satisfy these requirements. But the Formula SAE competition requires that the maximum cost of the prototype car cannot exceed $25,000.

At the competition, each team is judged in several events including a cost analysis, general presentation, engineering design, and various dynamic performance trials. A panel of judges from the automotive and motorsports industry comes from all over the world for this annual event. The majority of the points earned in the competition come from the dynamic events including a grueling 13 mile endurance event.