2: University of Michigan Solar Car Team

We have participated 14 times (racing 13 times).

Millennium embodies Michigan’s 35-year legacy in solar racing. Building on the bullet car concept pioneered by Novum, we’ve refined every aspect of Astrum’s design while embracing Quantum’s simplicity and Infinium’s drive for innovation. We carry forward Aurum’s aggressive structural optimization and Sunrunner’s elegant balance between drag and solar power. Our engineering culture revolves around ingenuity, simplicity, and strategic trade-offs. In 2025, we return to the world stage with our most minimalist car yet — finely tuned, but never overengineered. Millennium is poised to deliver our best-ever fusion of safety, reliability, and cutting-edge performance.

Millennium isn’t just a feat of engineering — it’s a testament to the boldness of students at the University of Michigan. The combined effort of over 150 undergraduates — nearly 40% of whom were in high school last year — Millennium shows what happens when young people are trusted with real responsibility. A culture of mentorship and trust, upheld by veteran members, empowers our first-years to do everything from designing suspensions to leading operations. Millennium reflects not only technical excellence but also a thirty-five year tradition of collaboration, empowerment, and student ownership that defines our team.

At Michigan, we say, “We dare to race not because we’re engineers, but because we’re romantics.” We value the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge because it’s the hardest thing we could find — on campus and in our lives. We value it because it puts our vision for a sustainable future into motion — on the road and wheel to wheel. We value it because it teaches us who we are, what we’re capable of, and what underpins our purpose — resilience, courage, and determination. We love it because it asks everything of us — and gives even more in return.

Our team is very excited to meet and learn from the other challengers. Arriving at Hidden Valley is transformative — it is deeply moving to see others who had a parallel journey arrive at our same destination. Each year our competitors inspire and teach us in ways we could have never imagined.