UA Engineering Students Race Formula SAE Car

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – “Vroom, vroom:” is the sound University of Alabama Society of Automotive Engineers members love to hear when they rev the engine of their Formula SAE car. Recently, 20 mechanical engineering students participated in an international competition in Detroit, Mich.

The SAE competition challenges students to conceive, design, fabricate and compete with small formula-style racing cars. The cars are built in a team effort during a one-year period and are taken to the annual competition for judging and comparison with approximately 140 other vehicles from colleges and universities around the world.

“This annual competition is a great opportunity for our students to gain the experience needed to land their first job,” said Dr. William Sutton, professor and head of mechanical engineering and faculty adviser to the SAE student chapter.

“These students worked many long hours to make this car a success, and they met their goal of driving at the competition in Detroit,” Sutton continued.

UA competed in the Formula SAE competition in 2001, so this year’s team practiced their driving skills on the 2001 car while building the new one.

“Each year a new car must be built for the competition,” said Matt Moody, team leader and a senior majoring in mechanical engineering at UA. “Having the 2001 car for practice really helped us see what improvements we needed to make on the 2004 model.”

The students produced a prototype car for evaluation as a production item as if they were working for a real manufacturing firm. The intended sales market is the nonprofessional weekend autocross racer. Therefore, the car must have very high performance in terms of its acceleration, braking, and handling qualities. The car also must be low in cost, easy to maintain, and reliable.

The cars were judged in a series of static and dynamic events including: technical inspection, cost, presentation, engineering design, solo performance trials and high performance track endurance.

The SAE student members involved in the competition include:

• Charlie Aleman – senior from Orlando, Fla.
• Todd Anderson – senior from Huntsville
• Matt Blackwood – senior from Homewood
• Adam Bonner – sophomore from Duncanville
• Brad Boyer – senior from Birmingham (35243)
• McGhee Caperton – senior from Flatrock
• Josh Courson – junior from Leeds
• Andrew Dunbeck – sophomore from Albertville
• Adam Free – freshman from Daphne
• Stephen Gilbert – sophomore from Sylacauga
• David Hovater – senior from Decatur
• Jeremy Hunter – senior from Saraland
• Ronald Jarrell – senior from Vance
• Blake Mitchell – freshman from Talladega
• Patrick Merry – senior from Guin
• Logan Mize – junior from Jasper
• Matt Moody – senior from Birmingham (35214)
• John Peters – sophomore from Sylacauga
• Will Sellers – junior from Monroeville
• Michael Smothers – sophomore from Talladega

In 1837, UA became the first university in the state to offer engineering classes and was one of the first five in the nation to do so. Today, the College of Engineering, with about 1,900 students and more than 95 faculty, is one of the three oldest continuously operating engineering programs in the country and has been fully accredited since accreditation standards were implemented in the 1930s.