New Engineering Student Car Competition

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory will manage a new engineering student car competition, “Challenge X: Crossover to Sustainable Mobility.” Beginning in the 2004-05 academic year, 17 university teams will re-engineer a 2005 Chevrolet Equinox compact SUV. The three basic goals are to reduce energy consumption, decrease emissions, and maintain the stock vehicle’s performance as well as utility features.

Sponsored primarily by the DOE and General Motors, the three-year competition encourages engineering schools to participate in real-world research and math-intensive development focused on leading edge automotive propulsion, fuels, materials, and emissions-control technologies.

Other sponsors include Ballard Power Systems, BP, Dana Corp., Delphi, Freescale Semiconductor, Governors’ Ethanol Coalition, Hydrogenics Corp., The MathWorks, Michelin, National Instruments, National Science Foundation, Natural Resources of Canada, Renewable Fuels Association, Ricardo, U.S. Department of Transportation, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

In year one, Challenge X will focus on modeling, simulation and testing of the powertrain and vehicle subsystems. In years two and three, students will integrate their advanced powertrain and subsystems into the Chevrolet Equinox. Competitions will be held at the end of each academic year to showcase the teams’ learning and vehicle development.

Throughout the competition, participating universities will contribute funding, faculty release time, academic credit, and facilities for the students to develop and build their creations.

The 17 teams selected for Challenge X through a competitive proposal process are: University of Akron, University of California-Davis, Michigan Technological University, University of Michigan, Mississippi State University, Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, San Diego State University, University of Tennessee, University of Texas-Austin, Texas Tech University, University of Tulsa, Virginia Tech, University of Waterloo, West Virginia University, and University of Wisconsin-Madison.