85: aCentauri Solar Racing

Our team has participated one time, in 2023.

After a long design process, we decided to go with a bullet-shaped car, having compared its performance with a catamaran setup. The goal for our second solar car is to improve on every aspect of our first car, Aletsch, and build on everything the previous team learned. One of the biggest leaps forward came from the aerodynamics team — the car’s outer shape is now completely different from Aletsch, thanks to all the progress made in that area.

The car will have a clean, modern livery with a fast, streamlined look — designed by professionals to give it a strong visual identity. Because of its narrow track, it has a small frontal area, which really helps with aerodynamic efficiency. It performs on par with some of the top teams, all the while staying stable under all conditions. The chassis design is more unconventional too — it’s a monocoque made using a steel plate mould, with an integrated rollover hoop instead of using a direct tooling epoxy or carbon mould. Nevertheless, none of it would happen without the team. There’s a strong sense of collaboration, and working on the car is just as much about having fun and enjoying the process as it is about the engineering.

The solar car community is a thriving, inspiring community to be a part of. Gaining new knowledge, participating in the "world championships of solar racing" and meeting hundreds of new people make it a once in the lifetime opportunity. The staff and the organizers, especially, also make it an unforgettable experience.

We are looking forward to testing our solar car on the open road; letting it face the completely different weather and road conditions and seeing how it reacts and holds up. The moment we unpack our solar car in Adelaide will be a huge highlight and reinforces just how far we will have come!