University News Last updated 19 June 2013
Engineering students from Birmingham City University will compete in a non-stop driving challenge across the length of Britain in a bid to be crowned the nation’s most economical drivers.
The inaugural three-day competition, which starts on 18 June, will go via 46 universities and is being jointly run by Formula Student and Bosch.
Each team will drive a section of the route – while having their eco-driving ability measured by on-board computers - before passing the vehicle on to the next university. Monitoring equipment will analyse the efficiency of each team’s driving, with three awards up for grabs, which cover city, rural and highway driving.
The Birmingham City University team will set off from the University’s City Centre Campus at Eastside on 19 June, and will drive 42 miles to the next port of call at De Montfort University, Leicester.
Patrick Kniveton, President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers – which runs Formula Student – flagged off the event at the Institution’s Westminster headquarters on Tuesday 18 June at 11am.
Adam Rowlandson, a Motorsports Technology student at Birmingham City University and also the Deputy Team Manager for the ‘BCU Racing’ Formula Student car, said: “Whilst most people associate motor racing with speed, it has far wider ranging influences; especially in the efficient use of fuels.
“This is a great way to showcase how not all racing is about who can be the fastest and we are looking forward to the challenge of swapping lead boots for green ones.”
Chairman of Formula Student Jon Hilton said: ““This is a fantastic challenge and the first time we’ve attempted a driving challenge of this scale and I wish all the teams the best of luck.”
President of Bosch UK Peter Fouquet said: “With the help of Bosch technologies, the vehicle being used for the Formula Student Diesel Eco Driving Challenge achieves CO2 emissions of just 98g/km. In the near future, Bosch sees the potential across all vehicle segments for even greater CO2 emissions reductions – of up to 20 percent in some cases.”