Formula Hybrid Team to Compete Green Race Car in Italy at the Formula Electric and Hybrid Competition

September 2, 2009 Drexel’s formula hybrid team is taking green racing to a new level in Rome, Italy October 7-9, at the Formula Electric and Hybrid 2009 competition. Currently, the Drexel team is the only United States team being represented at the competition with over 15 teams from around the world racing for the first place title and the opportunity to raise awareness on the developments of technology in the ecological mobility field. The Drexel team will be racing their award-winning vehicle that placed third at the New Hampshire Speedway International Formula Hybrid in May, 2009.  Since the May 2009 competition, the team has upgraded the vehicle which has taken the last year to develop through a joint ECE and MEM senior design project.

“In preparation for Italy, we’ve upgraded the car even further, eliminating extra weight, improving handling and cooling and nearly doubling the performance of the car with a rear gear change and higher amperage controllers,” says Joshua Verdieck ’09 (ECE).  

Teams will compete in Rome’s Fiat facility and their cars will be judged in a series of static and dynamic events that include technical inspection, presentation and engineering design, solo performance trials and high performance track endurance. The events will be scored to determine how well the car performs. In each event, manufacturing firms will use specified minimum acceptable performance levels that are reflected in scoring equations for the judging.

“We couldn’t be more excited to participate in this event and demonstrate the developments in sustainable mobility,” says Dr. Kevin Scoles, faculty advisor for the team and associate dean for undergraduate affairs in CoE.

For more information on Drexel’s formula hybrid team, please visit the Formula Hybrid website.