KU News Release

Engineering students win highest finish ever at California race-car competition

The KU Motorsports team's formula-style race car.

LAWRENCE — Jayhawk Motorsports — a team of mechanical engineering students at the University of Kansas — added a second-place finish to its string of achievements.

Competing June 13-16 at the 2007 Formula SAE West competition in Fontana, Calif., the team earned its highest finish ever and took honors in several categories of the event. Eighty student teams from around the world design, build and drive a small formula-style race car for the annual Society of Automotive Engineers-sponsored competition. The teams and their cars were evaluated in a series of eight static and dynamic events including high performance track endurance, acceleration, presentation, design, cost and technical inspection. Student teams also were required to adhere to extensive safety regulations, submit thorough design information and make several technical presentations.

“What a dedicated team of achievers,” said Robert Sorem, associate professor of mechanical engineering and faculty adviser for the team. “Out of 1,000 possible points, they were inched out of first place by only 3.7 points. To me they are the best. The team members brought fresh ideas to the design process. They made their designs work, and they showed great presentation skills and unparalleled sportsmanship. They really impressed the judges.”

In May, the Jayhawk Motorsports team brought home a 10th-place finish from the 130-entry 2007 Formula SAE competition in Detroit. In 2006, using a completely different vehicle, team members earned a fourth place finish in the Detroit competition and a 14th-place finish in the Formula SAE West. This is only the second year the team has competed in California. In the Detroit competition, KU is the only team to complete all aspects of the grueling technical competition in the last seven years. The team also has been a top-25 finisher in seven of the past nine years, said Sorem, who is also associate dean of the KU School of Engineering.

Jayhawk Motorsports team captain Tanner Rinke, who graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, was pleased with the California experience.

“We had teams and judges gawking at our car all week, and the judges even spent an hour with us until the grounds closed on Friday, just to talk with us about our design and help troubleshoot our track issues,” said Rinke, who has been offered a position with Disney in Orlando, Fla., to join the entertainment giant’s team of Imagineers.

Jayhawk Motorsports placed well in several of the events and won several industry-sponsored awards at the competition, including the first place Altair Design Award. The KU team earned $4,300 in award prizes, Rinke said. Results in some of the competition events include:

— Second place, endurance
— Fifth place, design
— Fifth place, sales presentation
— Ninth place, autocross
— 10th place, acceleration

Sponsored awards and prizes received are:

— First place, Altair Engineering’s William R. Adam Engineering Award, $1,000
— Second place, Goodyear Best Performance Award, two sets of tires
— Second place, Honda Dynamic Event Award, $800
— Second place, Timken Friction Management Engineering Award, $500
— Second place, SAE Spirit of Excellence, $2,000

Seniors in mechanical engineering have the option of taking part in the Formula SAE race-car project as part of the capstone design series of courses in their major. Underclassmen in mechanical engineering often volunteer to be a part of the team and are then better prepared for the class and familiar with the competition when they reach the senior level.

Several of the highly motivated senior-level students will begin volunteering their skills and time this summer to jump start the 2008 competition season.

Jayhawk Motorsports ’07 at a glance:

Model: JMS07

Vehicle Weight: 440 pounds
Vehicle CG (center of gravity): 10.4 inches
Wheelbase: 68 inches

Overall Length: 112 inches
Width: 54.5 inches
Height: 37.1 inches
Ground clearance: 1 inch

Engine: Honda CBR F4i
Displacement: 600 cc
Fuel: 100 octane
Acceleration: Zero to 60 mph in four seconds

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