“My car is faster than your car” are words to live by for the Society of Automotive Engineers, which is composed of college students all over the country.

The Formula SAE competition, which will be held in Detroit, Mich. this spring, is a yearly contest in which students conceive, design, fabricate and complete a small, formula-style racing car.

“During last year’s competition, 104 colleges and universities from all over the world were represented in the international competition. [Iowa State] received 63rd place out of 104 teams,” said Greg Conard, formula team captain and sophomore in mechanical engineering.

Judges score each school’s design based on a series of dynamic and static events. Dynamic events include skid pad, acceleration, autocross and endurance competitions. Cars must have four-wheel, independent suspension and braking.

Cash prizes are awarded to the respective school’s engineering programs, based on the quality of the car.

ISU’s SAE formula team group looks to improve on last year’s finish with a new design.

The plan is to design a hybrid electric car that has a gas engine. The engine will power a generator that produces electricity. The electricity will then be stored in a battery pack, which will power the wheels of the car.

“One thing that our plan is depending on is money,” Conard said. “We estimate that the car will cost around $50,000. If we don’t get enough money, we will just build a regular formula car.”

Conard also said his team is looking for new members.

“The group is not just for people who plan on being engineers,” he said. “We are open to people with all majors; anybody can get involved.”

The team is currently generating interest from students in many different areas of study.

“I am majoring in chemical engineering,” said freshman Donald Snyder. “I’ve always wanted to help build a car that runs on electricity. My goal in life is to build a car that runs on hydrogen. This is one step towards it.”

ISU’s SAE formula team will hold meetings in Room 1025 in the Black Engineering Building at 7 p.m. every Wednesday. Interested students can contact the group at [email protected].

Anyone interested in making a donation to the group can contact Conard at 268-0513.