Diesel - Urban Concept
As you may have read, our 2017 Diesel vehicle was in the prototype division within the Shell Eco Marathon. Our goal for 2018 was to completely rebuild the diesel car so that it qualifies for the Urban Concept division. This is was extremely demanding undertaking and required new custom fabricated parts from the ground up. Major redesign areas are:
New steel chassis
New carbon fiber body
New rims and tires
New braking system
Adjustable cockpit
Gull-Wing doors
Upgraded safety harness
New 12V electrical system
Chassis Rebuild
Since the Urban Concept division within the Shell Eco-Marathon has the most demanding rules, the chassis had to be designed with constant referral to the rule book. Items such as weight, maximum and minimum dimensions, overall strength, body attachment locations, and motor mounts had to be discussed and designed before anything could have been built! Students in NFA's welding program built the entire chassis within 5 months! This is by far the strongest chassis built to date for this team
Drive Train
To improve our energy efficiency, our Automotive Technician team devised a free wheeling system that will allow our motor to be turned off while our vehicle coasts around the track. This freewheeling system eliminates the movement of the chain, allowing for the motor to completely stop spinning. This system needs to be improved for the 2019 SEM competition.
Body Design
An entirely new body was designed and build in the 5 months leading up to the competition. Students in NFA's Engineering class designed the body, built and shaped the mold, and applied a composite of carbon fiber to the mold. To see the entire process from beginning to end, click the link below!
