Formula SAE.
Formula Student @ CU Boulder
Formula SAE (FSAE) is a student design competition endorsed by the Society of Automotive Engineers. Each year, students are challenged to design, build, and race a new race car while following a strict set of rules, encouraging students to create unique and innovative designs. There are over 400 University teams from 52 countries that come together in events around the world to prove that they have what it takes to produce a winning car.
Founded in 1981, Formula SAE has become the most prestigious collegiate engineering design event. FSAE encourages students to apply their in-class education by designing a single seater race car, and marketing it as a potential product. The design must adhere to strict regulations set by SAE. The race car must be cost efficient, compete in a variety of dynamic events, and be presented to a board of judges. FSAE promotes learning, problem solving, hands-on experience, excellence, and provides with career opportunities. Racing has great significance to our members. It develops their engineering, social and professional skills.
Each summer, the CU Boulder Racing Team travels to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California along with 75 other teams from around the world to compete in both dynamic and static events. Dynamic events give the teams a chance to prove their car mechanically while static events give scores for design, cost, and business model. Together, the dynamic and static scores are used to decide the winner. Once a car has competed, it is ineligible to compete again, meaning the process starts all over again. This gives students the opportunities to make iterations to their designs year after year.
CB1
CB1 is the first car built by the CU Boulder Racing Team’s Formula SAE division. Originally conceived in 2017, the car was supposed to compete at Formula SAE California in Fontana, California in the summer of 2020 but was cancelled due to COVID-19. After the event cancellation, CB1 was reborn as CB2, a continuation of the original project, to combat with potential vehicle problems. CB2 competed at Formula SAE California in the summer of 2021.
CB3
CB3 is an evolution of our CB1/2 platform, with driver ergonomic and control interface improvements. CB3 competed at FSAE Michigan in June 2022, but unfortunately did not pass
CB4
CB4 is our most successful design cycle to date. This car is our first vehicle to ever pass technical inspection. It attended the 2023 Michigan FSAE IC event and placed 20th. This vehicle also hosted our first piece of carbon fiber crafted in-house.
CB5
CB5 competed in the 2024 Formula SAE IC Michigan competition. CB5 was our first ever vehicle with an aerodynamics package, and a differential. This ambitous design cycle has the most changes to date. Other key changes to this platform include moving away from the direct linkage front suspension showcased in CB4, as well as a thirty percent power increase as a result of a new and improved intake system. Other systems such as the cooling and fuel tank were refined and downsized.
CB6
The design cycle for CB6 has begun and we cannot wait to share our plans and work with everyone along the way.